I have just received a letter from my old school, informing me that my former headmaster, Mr. Stuart Page, will be retiring next week. Pupils of the school, old and new, will be sending him a present to mark the occasion. All those who have contributed towards the gift will sign their names in a large album which will be sent to the headmaster's home. We shall all remember Mr. Page for his patience and understanding and for the kindly encouragement he gave us when we went so unwillingly to school. A great many former pupils will be attending a farewell dinner in his honour next Thursday. It is a curious coincidence that the day before his retirement, Mr. Page will have been teaching for a total of forty years. After he has retired, he will devote himself to gardening. For him, this will be an entirely new hobby. But this does not matter, for, as he has often remarked, one is never too old to learn.
New words and expressions 生詞和短語(yǔ)
inform v. 告訴,通知
headmaster n. 校長(zhǎng)
contribute v. 捐助,援助
gift n. 禮物,贈(zèng)品
album n. 簽名簿,相冊(cè)
patience n. 耐心
encouragement n. 鼓勵(lì)
farewell n. 告別
honour n. 敬意
coincidence n. 巧合
total n. 總數(shù)
devote v. 致力于
gardening n. 園藝
hobby n. 愛(ài)好,嗜好
我剛剛收到母校的一封信,通知我說(shuō)以前的校長(zhǎng)斯圖亞特.佩奇先生下星期就退休了。為了紀(jì)念這個(gè)日子,學(xué)校的學(xué)生——無(wú)論老同學(xué)還是新同學(xué)——將送他一件禮物。所有湊錢買此禮品的人都將自己的名字簽在一本大簽名簿上,簽名簿將被送到校長(zhǎng)的家里。我們不會(huì)忘記佩奇先生對(duì)我們既有耐心又充滿理解,也不會(huì)忘記在我們不愿去上學(xué)時(shí)他給予我們的親切鼓勵(lì)。很多老同學(xué)都準(zhǔn)備參加下星期四為他舉行的告別宴會(huì)。佩奇先生退休的前一天正好是他執(zhí)教滿40年的日子,這真是奇妙的巧合。他退休后,將致力于園藝。對(duì)于他來(lái)說(shuō),這將是一種全新的愛(ài)好。但這沒(méi)有關(guān)系,因?yàn)檎缢Uf(shuō)的那樣,人要活到老學(xué)到老。