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1 Text B
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2 Language Points
迈克尔·乔丹致篮球的告别信
Dear Basketball,
亲爱的篮球：
1 It’s been almost 28 years since the first day we met, 28 years since I saw you in the back of your garage, 28 years since my parents introduced us.
从我们初次见面那天到现在，已有差不多28年了。从我在我家车库后面见到你到现在，已有28年了。从我的父母介绍我们相识到现在，已有28年了。
2 If someone would have told me then, what would become of us, I’m not sure I would have believed them; I barely remembered your name.
如果那时候有人告诉我，将来我们之间会发生什么，我不知道自己会不会相信他们。我当时几乎记不住你的名字。
3 Then I started seeing you around the neighborhood and watching you on television. I used to see you with guys down at the playground. But when my older brother started paying more attention to you, I started to wonder. Maybe you were different.
之后，我开始在我家附近遇见你，在电视上观看你。我过去总是看到你和一群人出现在下面的操场上。不过，当我的哥哥开始更加关注你之后，我开始感到好奇。或许你是与众不同的。
4 We hung out a few times. The more I got to know you, the more I liked you. And as life would have it, when I finally got really interested in you, when I was finally ready to get serious, you left me off the varsity. You told me I wasn’t good enough.
我们曾在一起玩了几次。对你了解得越多，我就越喜欢你。也许是命运的捉弄，就在我终于对你有了强烈的兴趣、终于想要认真地对待你的时候，你却没让我入选大学校队。你告诉我，我还不够优秀。
5 I was crushed. I was hurt. I think I even cried.
我感到心碎、难过，我想我甚至还掉过眼泪。
6 Then I wanted you more than ever. So I practiced. I hustled. I worked on my game. Passing, shooting, thinking, I ran, I did sit-ups, I did push-ups, I lifted weights. I studied you. I began to fall in love and you noticed. At least that’s what Coach Smith said.
在那之后，我对你的渴望比任何时候都强烈。为此我勤加练习。我还投入比赛。我传球、投篮、思考。我跑步、做仰卧起坐、做俯卧撑、练举重，还去研究你。我开始爱上了你，而你也察觉到了。至少史密斯教练是这么说的。
7 At the time, I wasn’t sure exactly what was going on. But now I know. Coach Smith was teaching me how to love you, how to listen to you, how to understand you, how to respect you and how to appreciate you. Then it happened. That night, at the Louisiana Superdome in the final seconds of the championship game against Georgetown, you found me in the corner and we danced. Since then, you’ve become much more than just a court. More than just a hoop. More than just a pair of sneakers. More than just a game.
7 当时，我并不太清楚到底发生了什么。但现在我知道了。史密斯教练那时正教我如何爱你，如何倾听你的心声，如何理解你，如何尊重你，如何欣赏你。然后事情就那样发生了。那一晚，在路易斯安那超级圆顶体育馆，与乔治敦大学进行冠军争夺赛的最后一刻，你在球场一侧找到了我，我们起舞了。从那时起，你对我来说已远不止是一个球场、一个篮圈，也不止是一双球鞋、一场比赛。
8 In some respects, you’ve become my life. My passion. My motivation. My inspiration.
在某些方面，你已经融入了我的生命，给我激情，给我动力，给我灵感。
9 You’re my biggest fan and my harshest critic. You’re my dearest friend and my strongest ally. You’re my most challenging teacher and my most endearing student. You’re my ultimate teammate and my toughest competitor. You’re my passport around the world and my visa into the hearts of millions.
你是我最忠实的粉丝，也是我最严厉的批评家。你是我最亲密的朋友，也是我最坚定的同盟。你是我最严苛的老师，也是我最喜爱的学生。你是我最重要的队友，也是我最难缠的对手。你是我走遍天下的护照，也是我走进数百万人心中的签证。
10 So much has changed since the first day we met, and to a large degree, I have you to thank. So if you haven’t heard me say it before, let me say it now for the world to hear. Thank you. Thank you, Basketball.
10 从与你初见的那一天起，很多事情都改变了。在很大程度上，我要感谢你。所以如果你以前从没听我说过这句话，那么现在让我讲给全世界听。谢谢，谢谢你，篮球。
11 Thank you for everything.
谢谢你带给我的一切。
12 Thank you for all the players who came before me. Thank you for all the players who went into battle with me. Thank you for the championships. Thank you for the All-Star Games and the playoffs. Thank you for the last shots, the buzzer-beaters, the hard fouls, the victories and the defeats...
谢谢你为我展现了那些前辈球员的风采。谢谢你让我和众多球员同场竞技。谢谢你带我夺冠。谢谢你让我经历那些全明星赛和季后赛。谢谢你让我体验最后关头的投球、压哨球、严重犯规以及那些成败得失……
13 I love you, Basketball. I love everything about you and I always will. My playing days in the NBA are definitely over, but your relationship will never end.
我爱你，篮球。我爱你的一切，永远都爱。我在 NBA 的职业球员生涯无疑已经画上了句号，但我和你的关系永存。
Much Love and Respect,
Michael Jordan
爱你敬你的迈克尔·乔丹
(P105) III. Identify the paragraph from which the information of each of the following statements is derived.
_____ 1.Jordan used to watch other guys playing basketball at the playground.
_____ 2. Jordan was very sad when he failed to get into the varsity basketball team.
_____ 3. Jordan worked really hard in order to be a good basketball player.
_____ 4. With the help of his parents, Jordan first got to know basketball.
_____ 5. The final seconds of the championship game against Georgetown made Jordan famous.
______ 6. As a child, Jordan could not believe that basketball would be his dearest friend.
______ 7. Basketball played different roles to Jordan.
______ 8. Coach Smith taught Jordan how to treat basketball.
______ 9. The more Jordan got to know basketball, the more he loved it.
______ 10. Jordan feels grateful for the victories and the defeats basketball brought to him.
This farewell letter expresses Jordan’s strong love and gratitude to basketball. At the very beginning, Jordan wasn’t fond of basketball. But when he got serious with it, he was regarded as not good enough for the varsity. This setback made Jordan practice playing basketball even harder. Gradually, Jordan fell in love with basketball and made it one part of himself. Therefore, basketball not only made Jordan’s life wonderful but also brought him great achievement.
