High 2 · Reading series
Lesson 56 · The Path I Did Not Expect
Audio track 56
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I visited a workshop because I wanted to learn how bicycles were repaired. The owner told me that she had first studied theater design, then worked in a shop, and finally learned bicycle mechanics from a mentor. Her path did not match the straight line I had imagined.
I asked whether the earlier years had been wasted. She showed me a wheel display she had designed for customers. Her theater experience helped her explain parts visually, while her shop work taught her to listen before offering a repair. Not every skill transferred directly, but some connected in ways she had not predicted.
On the train home, I crossed out a sentence in my career notebook: “Choose one correct route now.” I replaced it with questions about what I enjoyed practicing and what I wanted to learn next. I still needed to make decisions, but they did not all have to be final.
The workshop did not give me a career answer. It gave me a more useful picture of how a path can be built while walking.
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After reading, state the main idea in one sentence and find a line that supports it.
Chinese translation
我去一家维修工坊参观，想学自行车怎样修理。店主告诉我，她最早学的是剧场设计，之后在商店工作，最后跟着一位师傅学会自行车维修。她走的路，和我想象中的笔直路线不同。
我问早些年是否白费了。她给我看自己为顾客设计的车轮展示。剧场经验帮助她用图像解释零件，店铺工作则教会她先倾听，再提出维修建议。不是每项技能都能直接转用，但其中一些以她未曾预料的方式连接起来。
回家火车上，我划掉职业笔记里的一句话：‘现在就选唯一正确的路线。’换成了几个问题：自己喜欢练习什么？接下来想学什么？我仍须作决定，但不必让每个决定都是最终决定。
那家工坊没有给我一个职业答案，却让我更清楚地看见：道路也可以在前行时逐渐建成。
Key words and expressions
Key terms have Chinese explanations. Hover over dotted words in the English passage for word help and pronunciation when available.
- workshop
- 工作坊、维修店；主人公参观的地方。
- theater design
- 剧场设计；店主早年的学习。
- mechanics
- 维修技术；后来跟师傅学习。
- mentor
- 导师；指导她学修车。
- straight line
- 直线；职业道路并非总如此。
- wasted
- 白费；早年经验仍可使用。
- visually
- 视觉上；展示零件的方式。
- transferred
- 转用；不是每项技能都直接适用。
- career
- 职业；笔记里原写着唯一道路。
- final
- 最终的；不是每个选择都不可更改。
Background notes (Chinese)
职业道路未必是一条直线，先前的学习也不必因转向而全部作废。店主把视觉设计与听取顾客需求的能力带入维修工作。