第三十一讲

   Para. 3
   On another trip, after boarding a plane from Xiamen to Beijing, I discovered I’ve lost my passport. Without it, I was stuck between two cities, neither of which was my home base. I tried to hide my panic, but I could see that the flight staff and the other passengers on the plane could tell. And maybe that was for the best because, to my amazement, they held up the flight and radioed the airport staff, who searched the airport while the flight staff searched the runway and the shuttle bus. Meanwhile, many of the passengers had begun searching the cabin. I didn’t hear a single complaining voice; everyone was willing to help. Finally a police officer entered the plane and began to collect information from me. I was about to despair of finding my passport when suddenly a woman waved the small blue book in the air－－she’d found it! The whole plane burst into smiles and applause. I was very relieved and grateful for the kindness I’ve experienced from so many people who’ve treated me like a friend in need and not just as a foreigner.

   Language Points:
   1. Explanation of Difficult Sentences
   1) Without it, I was stuck between two cities, neither of which was my home base.

   Analysis: without it is an adverbial of condition. Which introduces a non-restrictive relative clause modifying two cities and which itself refers to two cities.

   Translation: 没了护照，阻在两座城市之间，人生地不熟。
   Example: Without a job, I went to Beijing and Shanghai, neither of which is familiar to me.
   2) I was about to despair of finding my passport when suddenly a woman waved the small blue book in the air ?she’d found it!

   Analysis: Be about to means be just ready to. Finding is a gerund and acts as the object of the preposition of. When means “at the moment” and is a conjunction that introduces an adverbial clause of time.

   Translation: 我对找到护照几乎就要绝望时，突然一位妇女用手在半空中挥动着那个蓝皮本子——她找到了。
   Example: She was about to leave when she heard someone knocking at the door.
   3) I was very relieved and grateful for the kindness I’d experienced from so many people who’d treated me like a friend in need and not just as a foreigner.
   Analysis: I’d experienced...as a foreigner is a restrictive relative clause modifying kindness, with that omitted. In this relative clause who introduces another restrictive relative clause modifying people. Like and as are both prepositions and are of the same meaning “being” and both are used as an adverbial of manner.
   Translation: 我松了口气，心里充满感激，我感受到他们的善良，他们把我当成患难中的朋友，而不只是把我当成一个外国人。

   Example: I was moved by the kindness I’d experienced from the Smiths who’d treated me like one of the family members and not just as a friend.

   2. Important Words
   1）hold up v. to delay 耽搁, 延误
   e.g. The traffic was held up by a car accident.由于车祸，交通堵塞了。
   Bad weather held up the building of the road.坏天气耽搁了这条路的修建。

   2） Complain v. to express grief, complaint or discomfort 抱怨
   e.g. He always complains about the weather.他总是抱怨天气。
   Mary complained that she couldn’t find a good job anywhere.
   玛丽抱怨她总不到一个好工作。
   3）relieve v. to lessen (pain, trouble or worry) 减轻, 缓解; 解除
   e.g. His mother was relieved to hear that he is safe.
   听到他平安的消息，他母亲就放心了。
   The medicine will help to relieve your pain.这药会帮助你减轻痛苦。

   4）treat
   v. to act or behave towards; to deal with, to handle 对待; 处理
   e.g. This glassware must be treated with care. 这个玻璃器具必须要小心处理。
   Our teacher treats us like friends. 我们老师对待我们象朋友一样。
   Exercises：See the textbook.