爱鸟人家

 1992年10月22日，走过将近一个世纪人生之路的老人陈秀莲告别了人间。悲哀弥漫在亲人的脸上和心上，而更大的悲哀，则笼罩在天空中。本来半月前就该到南方去过冬的一万多只鹭鸟，此时低低地盘旋在半空中，一声声，发出令人不安的哀鸣。整整一天一夜，他们一群群的落下来，聚集在屋顶和院子中央，舍不得离开。一些成年的鹭鸟，则飞到老人的床前，伤心地眨着眼睛，这是它们在向老人做最后的告别。

为什么一个普通人的死，能让鸟都伤心哀鸣？这里面有个真实而感人的故事。

陕西汉中地区城固县铁路乡，位于泰岭山下，这里山林茂密，山泉清清，汉江从山脚缓缓流过，环境十分优美。袁德山一家就住在这里

1969年3月16日，猎人袁德山的小女儿袁秀芳出生了。这天，两队白色羽毛的鹭鸟飞落在院里，袁德山拿出猎枪，他的母亲陈秀莲制止道：“鸟儿也是有生命的，只要我在，谁也别想到它们一根毛。”孝顺的儿子听从了母亲的劝告。从此，两对鹭鸟便在袁德山家门前的树上筑巢安家，当年就孵出了几只幼鸟。

起初，鹭鸟对袁家人还有些害怕，后来，见人们待它们非常友好，便消除了戒心。秋天，它们飞到了南方。第二年的春天，飞回来的鹭鸟竟有二十多对。袁德山一家依然像以前一样，与这群特殊的客人友好相处。

一年、两年、三年……这里的山山岭岭成了鹭鸟的世界。袁德山家承包的三十亩山林，到处都有白色的鹭鸟和鸟巢。

与鹭鸟一同长大的袁秀芳，从她会走路的那天起，鹭鸟就陪伴着她在院子里玩耍，甚至在她上学时也常常有几只鹭鸟在路上跟着她，令同行的小伙伴羡慕得不得了。

五月是鹭鸟繁殖的季节，刚出壳的幼鸟十分调皮，经常用力挣扎着跳出鸟巢。为了防止树林中的鹰、野猫、蛇等动物侵害鹭鸟，一进五月，袁德山一家七口人都要轮流在山上护鸟，扒掉在地上惊慌不安的小鸟送回鸟巢。

有一年，七十多岁的陈秀莲听到鸟的惊叫声，赶忙拄着拐杖，气喘吁吁的爬上鸟山查看，她赶走了两个掏鸟蛋的年轻人，小心翼翼地把鸟蛋放回鸟巢。

就这样，袁家的三十亩山林在周围十里八乡人们的心中成了鸟的天堂。大家经过鸟山时都会尽量不发出声响，更不会捕杀鹭鸟。自从鹭鸟到来后，袁德山尽然连抢也不曾摸过。从1987年到1990年，鸟的数量突破一万只。每到夏天，成千上万只鹭鸟飞舞而来，遮天盖地，构成了一番奇妙而壮观的景象，简直是一个天然鸟场！

日本有位著名的鸟类专家曾经来到这里考察。在鸟山，这位学者不由得发出了惊喜的赞叹：奇迹！奇迹！他说从来没见过如此庞大的鹭鸟群，说明这里的保护工作是做得最好的，他将向世界推广这一做法。临别时，他深情地向爱鸟人家祝福，感谢这家人为保护鸟、保护大自然所做的贡献……

1992年8月，善良的陈秀莲老人突然病倒了。那些天，鹭鸟也莫名其妙地烦躁不安，一直到老人10月22日去世。老人走了以后，袁德山猜想鹭鸟不会来了，然而，1993年初夏，鹭鸟又按期飞来了……

 课文选自中级汉语精读教程II

赵新主编，4-6页，北京大学出版社

 词汇Vocabulary:

1. 将近	jiāngjìn	Nearly (adj.)
例句: 走过将近一个世纪人生之路的老人陈秀莲告别了人间。Example: An old lady nearly a century old passed away.
2. 世纪	shìjì	Century (n.)
例句: 走过将近一个世纪人生之路的老人陈秀莲告别了人间。 Example: An old lady nearly a century old passed away.
3. 悲哀	bēiāi	Sorrow (n.)
例句: 悲哀弥漫在亲人的脸上和心上。 Example: Her relatives’ hearts were full of sorrow.
4. 弥漫	mímàn	Be full of (v.)
例句: 悲哀弥漫在亲人的脸上和心上。 Example: Her relatives’ hearts were full of sorrow.
5. 盘旋	pánxuán	Circle; spiral (v.)
例句: 鹭鸟低低地盘旋在半空中。Example: Herons stayed circling the sky.
6. 伤心	shāngxīn	Sadly (adv.)
例句: 一些成年的鹭鸟，则飞到老人的床前，伤心地眨着眼睛。 Example: Some adult herons flew to the old lady’s bed and sadly blinked their eyes.
7. 真实	zhēnshí	True (adj.)
例句: 这里面有个真实而感人的故事。Example: The following is a true and impressive story.
8. 感人	gǎnrén	Impressive (adj.)
例句: 这里面有个真实而感人的故事。Example: The following is a true and impressive story.
9. 茂密	màomì	Dense; thick (adj.)
例句: 这里山林茂密。Example: The forest is dense.
10. 缓缓	huǎnhuǎn	Slowly (adv.)
例句: 汉江从山脚缓缓流过。Example: Han River is slowly moving at the bottom of the mountain.
11. 猎枪	liè qiāng	Hunting gun; shotgun (n.)
例句: 袁德山拿出猎枪。Example: Yun De Shan took out his hunting gun.
12. 制止	zhì zhǐ	Stop; Forbid (v.)
例句: 他的母亲陈秀莲制止了他。Example: His mother, Chen Shou Lian, stopped him.
13. 孝顺	xiàoshùn	Filial (adj.)
例句: 孝顺的儿子听从了母亲的劝告。Example: The filial son heeded his mother’s words..
14. 筑巢	zhùcháo	Nest (v.)
例句: 两对鹭鸟在袁德山家门前的树上筑巢安家。Example: The pair of herons nested in the tree in front of Yun De Shan’s house
15. 孵	fū	Hatch (v.)
例句: 当年就孵出了几只幼鸟。Example: A few young herons were hatched there
16. 害怕	hàipà	Fear; be afraid of (v.)
例句: 鹭鸟对袁家人还有些害怕。Example: The herons feared the Yun family.
20. 戒心	jièxīn	Vigilance (n.)
例句: 鹭鸟消除了戒心。Example: The herons removed their vigilance.
21. 承包	chéngbāo	Lease; contract (v.)
例句: 袁德山家承包的三十亩山林。Example: Yun De Shan’s family leased thirty acres of land.
22. 玩耍	wánshuǎ	Play (v.)
例句: 鹭鸟陪伴着她在院子里玩耍。Example: The herons played with her in the yard.
23. 羡慕	xiànmù	Admire (v.)
例句: 同行的小伙伴羡慕得不得了。Example: Her friends and classmates admired badly.
24. 繁殖	fánzhí	Propagation (n.)
例句: 五月是鹭鸟繁殖的季节。Example: May is the season of . Propagation.
25. 挣扎	zhēngzhá	Struggle (v.)
例句: 幼鸟经常用力挣扎着跳出鸟巢。Example: Baby birds struggled to jump out of their nests.
26. 侵害	qīnhài	Hurt; encroach (v.)
例句: 他们要防止树林中的鹰、野猫、蛇等动物侵害鹭鸟。Example: They had to prevent predators, like eagles, cats, and snakes, from hurting baby herons.
27. 轮流	lúnliú	Take turn; alternate (v.)
例句: 袁德山一家七口人都要轮流在山上护鸟。Example: All seven Yun family members take turns going to the mountain to protect the birds.
28. 拐杖	guǎizhàng	Cane (n.)
例句: 她拄着拐杖。Example: She took her cane.
29. 气喘吁吁	qìchuǎnxūxū	Be out of breath; breathless (v.)
例句: 才爬到山顶，他就已经气喘吁吁了。Example: He was already out of breath, by the time he arrived at the mountain top
30. 小心翼翼	xiǎoxīnyìyì	Very cautiously (adv.)
例句: 她小心翼翼地把鸟蛋放回鸟巢。Example: She cautiously returned the eggs to their nests.
31. 天堂	tiāntáng	Heaven (n.)
例句: 这三十亩山林成了鸟的天堂。Example: This thirty acre forest mountain became a heaven for the birds.
32. 捕杀	bǔshā	Hunt; kill (v.)
例句: 人们不会捕杀鹭鸟。Example: People refrained from hunting the herons.
33. 遮天盖地	zhētiāngàidì	To cover the sky and the ground (v.)
例句: 成千上万只鹭鸟飞舞而来，遮天盖地。Example: 10,000 herons flew and danced to cover the sky and the ground.
34. 考察	kǎochá	Inspect; observe (v.)
例句: 日本有位著名的鸟类专家曾经来到这里考察。Example: A famous Japanese ornithologist once visited to observe the herons.
35. 奇迹	qíjì	Miracle (n.)
例句: 这是一个奇迹。Example: This is a miracle.
36. 贡献	gòngxiàn	Contribution (n.)
例句: 他感谢这家人为保护鸟、保护大自然所做的贡献。Example: He gave told the family how much he appreciated their contribution to protecting the environment and the herons..
37. 莫名其妙	mòmíngqímiào	Bafflingly (adv.)
例句: 鹭鸟也莫名其妙地烦躁不安。Example: The herons became very anxious without reason.

 Discussion Questions:

1. 袁德山一家为保护鹭鸟做了哪些事情？请一一列出。

What did the family of Yun De Shan do in order to protect the herons? Please make a list.

2. 你觉得袁家为什么要为鹭鸟做这些事情呢？

Why did this family do such things for the herons?

3. 如果你是他们，你会怎么做？为什么？

If you were them, what would you do? Why?

4. 你曾经参加过某些保护动物的组织或活动吗？如果有，请跟大家分享你的经历。

Have you ever been involved with any kinds of animal protection organizations or events? If yes, please share your experiences.

5. 我们在日常生活中还可以怎样保护野生动物？

What else can we do in the daily life in order to protect the wild animals?

 Transcript：

On October 22, 2002, an old lady nearly a century old passed away. Her relatives’ hearts were full of sorrow, but the herons in the sky were sadder still. More than 10,000 herons were supposed to fly south months ago, but instead they stayed circling the sky. One by one, they cried out in mourning. The herons were reluctant to leave and stayed perched on the roof all day and all night. Some adult herons flew to the old lady’s bed and sadly blinked their eyes. It was as if they were saying goodbye to the old lady.

Why would the death of a person make birds so sad? The following is a true story. At the bottom of Qinglin Mountain in the Hanzhong area of Sanxi province, near a great forest and a slowly moving mountain spring, lived the family of Yun De Shan.

On March 16, 1969, the daughter of the hunter Yun De Shan was born. Her name was Yun Xiu Feng. On the same day that she was born, a pair white herons fell into the family’s yard. Yun De Shan took out his hunting gun. His mother, Chen Shou Lian, forbid killing the birds. She said that birds also have lives and as long she was alive, nobody could touch one feather. The son heeded his mother’s words. From then on, the pair of herons nested in the tree in front of Yun De Shan’s house. A few young herons were born there.

In the beginning, the herons feared the Yun family. Later, they saw that the family treated them well and became more relaxed. In the fall they flew to the south. The following spring, twenty pairs of herons returned with them. Yun De Shan’s family treated all the herons with the same respect.

Three years passed and the mountain and its valley became the home of many herons. Yun De Shan’s family leased thirty acres of land and the herons nested everywhere. Yun Xiu Feng grew up with the herons. From the day she began working, the herons played with her in the yard. Even when she went to school, herons would often accompany her on the road, which earned her admiration from her friends and classmates.

Baby heron are born in the late spring. As they grow bigger, baby birds try to jump out of their nests. In order to prevent predators, like eagles, cats, and snakes, from hurting baby herons, all seven Yun family members take turns going to the mountain to protect the birds. If the birds fall out of their nests, they carefully put them back.

One year, when Chen Shou Lian was more than 70 years old, she heard the birds crying out in fear. She took her cane and climbed the mountain to take a look. She found two young people trying to steal the birds’ eggs. She ordered them to leave and returned the eggs to their nests.

Through the efforts of people dedicated to protecting herons, this thirty acre forest mountain became a heaven for the birds. When visitors passed through this bird mountain, they tried not to make a sound. Also, people refrained from hunting the herons.  After the first pair of herons landed in his yard, Yun De Shan did not touch a gun again. From 1987-1990, the number of birds reached 10,000. Whenever a visitor entered the forest, 10,000 herons flew and danced in the sky and on the ground. The land became the home of the herons.

A famous Japanese ornithologist once visited to observe the herons. Once in the forest, the scholar exclaimed, “Miracle, miracle!” He said he had never before seen such a large flock of herons. He wanted to write about the benefits of the methods the family utilized in protecting the birds. When he said goodbye, he gave told the family how much he appreciated their contribution to protecting the environment and the herons.

In August of 1992, the kind old lady Chen Shou Lian suddenly became sick. The herons became very anxious without reason. After the old lady passed away on October 22, Yun De Shan guessed that the herons would not come again. But, in the beginning of the summer 1993, the herons flew back according to their migratory patterns.