经典英语短文

　　I have a great deal of company in my house; especially in the morning, when nobody calls. Let me suggest a few comparisons, that some one may convey an idea of my situation. I am no more lonely than the loon in the pond that laughs so loud, or than Walden Pond itself. What company has that lonely lake, I pray?

　　And yet it has not the blue devils, but the blue angels in it, in the azure tint of its waters. The sun is alone, except in thick weather, when there sometimes appear to be two, but one is a mock sun. god is alone---but the devil, he is far from being alone; he sees a great deal of company; he is legion. I am no more lonely than a single mullein or dandelion in a pasture, or a bean leaf, or sorrel, or a horse-fly, or a bumblebee. I am no more lonely than the Millbrook, or a weathercock, or the north star, or the south wind, or an April shower, or a January thaw, or the first spider in a new house.

　　There is a proverb, All work and no play makes Jack a dullboy. That is to say, if we want to be in good health, we shouldrelax ourselves after the day’s hard work.

　　Yet, everyone has his own way of relaxation. For those who sitmuch at their business, going for sports is the best relaxation.They may swim, run, play football or table tennis and so on. Butfor people engaged in outdoor work, reading or playing chess is anexcellent change. What’s more, making a trip on weekends is also agood pastime.

　　I like sports and often take part in it. My favorite sport isswimming. Because it brings the whole body into action ,In thewater ,I feel rather relaxed and all the fatigue goes away .Itmakes me energetic in the next day’s work.

　　We have learnt to expect that trains will be punctual. after years of pre-conditioning, most of us have developed an unshakable faith in railway time-tables. ships may be delayed by storms; air flights may be cancelled because of bad weather; but trains must be on time. only an exceptionally heavy snow fall might temporarily dislocate railway services. it is all too easy to blame the railway authorities when something does go wrong. the truth is that when mistakes

　　Occur, they are more likely to be ours than theirs.

　　After consulting my railway time-table, i noted with satisfaction that there was an express train to westhaven. it went direct from my local station and the journey lasted a mere hour and seventeen minutes. when i boarded the train, i could not help noticing that a great many local people got on as well. at the time, this did not strike me as odd. i reflected that there must be a great many people besides myself who wished to take advantage of this excellent service. neither was i surprised when the train stopped at widley, a tiny station a few miles along the line. even a mighty express train can be held up by signals. but when the train dawdled at station after station, i began to wonder. it suddenly dawned on me that this express was not roaring down the line at ninety miles an hour, but barely chugging along at thirty. one hour and seventeen minutes passed and we had not even covered half the distance. i asked a passenger if this was the westhaven express, but he had not even heard of it. i determined to lodge a complaint as soon as we arrived. two hours later, i was talking angrily to the station-master at westhaven. when he denied the train's existence, i borrowed his copy of the time-table. there was a note of triumph in my voice when i told him that it was there in black and white. glancing at it briefly, he told me to look again. a tiny asterisk conducted me to a footnote at the bottom of the page. it said: 'this service has been suspended.'

　　It was a sunny Saturday afternoon in Oklahoma City. My friend and proud father Bobby Lewis was taking his two little boys to play miniature golf. He walked up to the fellow at the ticket counter and said, "How much is it to get in?"

　　The young man replied, "$3.00 for you and $3.00 for any kid who is older than six. We let them in free if they are six or younger. How old are they?"

　　Bobby replied, "The lawyer's three and the doctor is seven, so I guess I owe you $6.00."

　　The man at the ticket counter said, "Hey, Mister, did you just win the lottery or something? You could have saved yourself three bucks. You could have told me that the older one was six; I wouldn't have known the difference." Bobby replied, "Yes, that may be true, but the kids would have known the difference."

　　As Ralph Waldo Emerson said, "Who you are speaks so loudly I can't hear what you're saying." In challenging times when ethics are more important than ever before, make sure you set a good example for everyone you work and live with.

　　The courage of life is often a less dramatic spectacle than the courage of a final moment; but it is no lessa magnificent mixture of triumph and tragedy. A man does what he must in spite of personal consequences，in spite of obstacles and dangers and pressures and that is the basis of all human morality.

　　To be courageous…requires no exceptional qualifications，no magic formula，no special combination of time，place and circumstance.It is an opportunity that sooner or later is presented to us all. Politics merely furnishes one arena which imposes special tests of courage.In whatever arena of life one may meet the challengeof courage，whatever may be the sacrifices he faces if he follows his conscience，the loss of his friends，his fortune，his contentment， even the esteem of his fellow men，each man must decide for himself the course he will follow. The stories of past courage can define that ingredient，they can teach，they can offer hope，they can provide inspiration.But they cannot supply courage itself. For this each man must look into his own soul.