Level 3 · Reading series
Lesson 14 · The Box under Grandfather’s Desk
Audio track 14
Listen first
Listen once before opening the English passage.
Open the English passage and hover for word help
While helping Grandfather clean his room, I found a box of drawings under his desk. They showed a small park, with trees, benches, and a path wide enough for two people to walk side by side.
“Did you design a park?” I asked. He laughed. “I was thirteen. Our town asked children for ideas, and I sent these.” His plan had not been chosen. Still, he had kept the drawings for more than fifty years.
On the back of one page, he had written, “A place to talk without buying anything.” I had never thought of a park that way. Grandfather and I took the drawing to the real park nearby. The benches were different, but people were talking there.
Check your understanding
After reading, state the main idea in one sentence and find a line that supports it.
Chinese translation
帮祖父整理房间时，我在书桌下发现一盒画稿。画上是一座小公园，有树木、长椅，还有一条宽到能让两个人并肩行走的小路。
‘您设计过公园吗？’我问。祖父笑了：‘那时我十三岁。镇上向孩子们征集点子，我就把这些画寄去了。’他的方案没有入选，但他把图纸保存了五十多年。
其中一张画的背面写着：‘一个不必买东西，也能坐下来聊天的地方。’我从没这样想过公园。祖父和我带着画稿去了附近真正的公园。长椅与画上的不同，却有人正坐在那里聊天。
Key words and expressions
Key terms have Chinese explanations. Hover over dotted words in the English passage for word help and pronunciation when available.
- while helping
- 在帮忙……时；while helping Grandfather 是‘帮祖父时’。
- drawing
- 画稿、图纸；祖父少年时画的公园设计。
- bench
- 长椅；画中的公园有供人坐下的椅子。
- wide enough for
- 宽到足以让……；小路能容两人并排走。
- side by side
- 并肩、并排；side by side 描述两人走路的位置。
- design
- 设计；祖父十三岁时构想过一座公园。
- choose
- 选择；祖父的方案最终没有被选中。
- keep
- 保存、留着；祖父把画稿保存了五十多年。
- on the back of
- 在……背面；一句话写在其中一页的背后。
- nearby
- 附近的；祖孙后来去了家附近的公园。
Background notes (Chinese)
公园可以用来玩耍、休息或穿行。祖父特别看重它作为‘无需消费也能聊天’的公共空间。方案没有入选，不等于其中的想法毫无价值。阅读时留意人物看重的功能，才能理解同一地点对不同人的意义。