Lesson thirteen How to grow old？

　　老年人应如何避免变老？

　　Psychologically there are two dangers to be guarded against in old age. One of these is too great an absorption in the past. One should not live in memories，in regrets for the good old days，or in sadness about friend who are dead. One‘s thoughts must be directed to the future，and to things about which there is something to be done. This is not always easy；one’s own past is a gradually increasing weight. It is easy to think to oneself that one‘s emotions used to be more vivid than they are，and one’s mind more keen. If this is true it should be forgotten，and if it is forgotten it will probably not be true.从心理角度来说，老年时期要提防两种危险。
一是沉湎于过去。人不应该生活在记忆之中，不要总为一去不复返的好时光而懊丧，不要总为故去的朋友而悲伤。人的思想应该转向未来，应该转向自己还能有所作为的那些事情上去。要做到这一点并非易事；自己的过去逐渐成了精神负担。人很容易自思自量，感到自己的感情不如以往强烈，思维不如以往敏锐。如果真是如此，就别去想它，假如你根本不去想它，也许这就不会成真。

　　The other thing to be avoided is clinging to youth in the hope of finding strength in its vitality. When your children are grown up they want to live their own lives，and if you continue to be as interested in them as you were when they were young，you are likely to become a burden to them，unless they are unusually insensible. I do not mean that one should be without interest in them，but one‘s interest should be contemplative and，if possible，philanthropic，but not too emotional.另一件要避免的事，就是依恋子女，希望从他们身上的活力中获取生命的力量。孩子们长大之后，想过自己的生活，如果你还是像他们小时候那样关注他们，你很可能会成为他们的负担，除非他们十分麻木而感觉不到这一点。我不是说不应该关注他们，而是说对他们的关注应该是含蓄的，如果有可能还应是宽厚的，但感情上不要过于依赖他们。

　　Don‘t fear to death，the best way to overcome it is to make your interests gradually wider and more impersonal，until bit by bit the walls of the ego recede，and your life becomes increasingly part of the universal life.不要害怕死亡，克服怕死心理的最好办法就是使你的兴趣更加广博，更加超脱具体的个人，直至包围自我的围墙一点点地消失，直至你的生命逐渐溶入整个宇宙之中，成为其一部分。

　　变老阶段的暗喻

　　An individual human existence should be like a river——small at first，narrowly contained within its banks，and rushing passionately past rocks and over waterfalls. Gradually the river grows wider，the banks recede，the waters flow more quietly，and in the end，without any visible break，they become part of the sea，and painlessly lose their individual being. The man who，in old age，can see his life in this way，will not suffer from the fear of death，since the thing be cares for will continue一个人的生命历程应该是像江河一样——开始是细小的，让两岸紧紧抱住，然后奔腾直泻，流过山岩，飞越瀑布，然后河面渐渐变宽，堤岸慢慢后退，水流趋缓，最后不留一丝痕迹地溶入大海，毫无痛苦的失去了自身的存在。垂幕之年这样看待人生的人，是不会因接近死亡而恐惧和烦恼的，因为他喜爱的事业会继续下去。

　　作者一生三个牵挂

　　1.The longing for love. He has sought love，first，because it brings ecstasy，next，because it relieves loneliness. Finally，because in the union of love. He has seen，in a mystic miniature，the prefiguring vision of the heaven that saints and poets have imagined.对爱的渴望。他寻求过爱情，首先是因为它使人心醉神迷，其次因为它能使人摆脱孤独。最后，从融洽的爱中他看到了一种奇妙的微观形式，向他预示了圣人和诗人所想象的天堂

　　2.The search for knowledge. With equal passion he has sought knowledge.对知识的渴求。他以同样的热情寻求知识。

　　3.Unbearable pity for suffering of mankind. Love and knowledge，so far as they were possible，led upward toward the heavens. But always pity brought him back to earth. He longs for alleviate the evil，but he can not，and he too suffer.对人类苦难的深深同情。爱情和知识在其可能性的范围内把他带到了天堂。但怜悯心总是又把他带回人间。他渴望减少邪恶，但我无能为力，因而他也感到痛苦。

　　Lesson fifteen Edison：Inventor of Invention

　　What was the most important contribution of Edison to people？

　　It is impossible to measure the importance of Edison by adding up the specific inventions with which his name is associated. Far-reaching as many of them have been in their effect upon modern civilization，the total effect of Edison‘s career surpasses the sum of al of them. He did not merely make the incandescent lamp and the phonograph and innumerable other devices practicable for general use；it was given to him to demonstrate the power of applied science so concretely，to understandably，so convincingly that he altered the mentality of mankind. Because of Edison，more than of any other man，scientific research has an established place in our society：because of the demonstrations he made，the money of taxpayers and stockholders has become available for studies the nature. The lighthouse keeper，83 years old，lived alone on a rock island，took care of the lighthouse and the great lamp，which spoke majestic，silent messages of light to the ships at sea. He was a huge old man with a grizzled beard that came down over his chest.

　　（1）He was hospitable. He welcomed the stranger，Rudolf，warmly，offered him black bread and boiled potatoes，etc. and talked with him earnestly.

　　（2）The lighthouse keeper loved his work and was devoted to his duty .When the storm was coming，he was busy preparing for the storm，attending to the great lamp in the tower，that dominated the whole region.

　　（3）He was equable，deliberate. Even when the storm hammered like a battering ram on the walls of the lighthouse，he sat there，gentle and reflective，as if there was nothing happened. Generally，the lighthouse keeper was a deliberate，equable toiler. He loved life without excessive demands.

　　lessone six What are the three geographical characteristics of Britain？

　　The beauty of Britain is as hard to define as it is easy to enjoy.

　　（1）The first characteristic is that it is varied within a small range，It seems that nature has carefully adjusted things-mountains，plants，rivers，lakes，to the scale of the island itself. there is astonishing variety almost everywhere，everything is in miniature. some mountains，for example，although not very high，have all the air of great mountains.

　　（2）Secondly，surprise goes with variety. the country is full of happy surprises. one can always be pleasantly astonished while traveling.

　　（3）The third characteristic of the landscape is its exquisite moderation. it has been born of a compromise between wildness and tameness，between nature and man. there is compromise in the surburb，where the inhabitants feel that they have one foot in the city and one in the country. there is also harmony in the country where the cottages fit snugly into the landscape.