A touch of heaven

江苏徐州七中 彭向梅

悦读贴士

本刊所有文章中注释的词汇均为非课标词汇，无须记忆与理解;在文后注释的词汇为课标词汇，建议同学们将后者整理为词汇掌中宝，以便随带随记。

Step 1感知·阅读导航

话题导入

被告知重病的女儿很难存活，一对夫妻在痛苦与绝望中，难以自拔。然而餐馆中的一次偶遇却成了事情的转折点。一对老年夫妻重新为这个家庭带来了快乐。一美元的纸币虽然面值低，但能带来无价的温暖。一只老人的手虽然粗糙扭曲，却传递了来自天堂的触摸。这是一个怎样无比动人又发人深省的故事呢？我们一同去感受手掌所能传递的温度吧!

全文词数553，难度适中，建议用时10分钟。

阅读立意

阅读时应达成以下四个基本目标：

1.通过环境、人物和主要内容三个角度快读文章，抓住文本主要内容；

2.通过问题链，思考作者在遇到老人前后心态和人生态度的变化；

3.植入同样饭店场景，完成一个温情故事的续写；

4.通过手的细节描写，体会品味标题的含义，同时积累不同语境下hand的不同含义。

It had been a very sad day.The doctors had given us the worst of news.Our daughter，who had just completed her first brain surgery，was now officially given a two percent chance of survival as this type of cancer had no cure.

My wife and I decided to take our daughter to lunch before continuing our afternoon conversations.We went to a local restaurant where we sat in silence waiting for the waitress.Our daughter Molly wouldn't hear of such sadness or silence so she played happily with crayons and paper.

这是令人相当悲伤的一天。医生刚刚带给我们一个最坏的消息。我们的刚刚结束首次大脑手术的女儿，现在正式被宣布只有百分之二的存活率，因为这种类型的癌症已经没法治愈了。

在继续我们下午的会谈之前，我和妻子决定先带女儿去吃午饭。我们去了当地一家餐馆，安静地坐在那儿等着服务员。我们的女儿莫莉没有感受到这种悲伤或沉默，所以她很开心地用蜡笔在纸上涂鸦。

我注意到有一对老夫妇坐在不远处，他们也处于沉默之中，从头到尾没说一句话。我不禁想知道他们的生活面临着怎样的挑战，是否也曾在他们孩子身上发生过这种可怕的事情。

I noticed a very elderly couple sitting near us，they,too in silence，never speaking a word.I couldn't help but wonder what challenges they had faced in their life and if they ever faced such terrible news about a child of theirs.

We eventually ordered our lunch，still sitting in silence.At some point I became interested in the old couple and I watched carefully.I wondered if it was the peace they were enjoying or the food or maybe both.

Molly was talking and enjoying her meal and her mom and I both listened.We tried to be happy in her presence but it wasn't going very well.All of a sudden，I saw a hand come out of nowhere.It was huge，but the knuckles（指关节）were swollen and the fingers were off-center.The hand landed on my daughter's tiny hand.It was the hand of the old woman who had been sitting with the old man in silence eating their lunch.

She looked at my daughter and simply whispered， “If I could do more for you，I would.” And then she smiled and moved away to join her husband who had moved towards the door.

Just then，Molly cried out with excitement， “Hey！look， a whole dollar.” She discovered that the old lady had placed a one dollar bill on the back of her hand.I looked up to thank her，but she was gone.I sat stunned（目瞪口呆的），not sure what had just happened and then I looked over at my wife.Almost at the same moment，we broke out into a smile.The sadness of the day had been wiped out by the generous touch of an old lady.

The dollar， although exciting to Molly， was not what made us smile or begin to feel differently；it was the offer from an old lady.The crippled（残疾的）hand made us realize that we did not have to fight this battle alone;that others cared and wanted to help.We felt better and soon our day was filled with more happy thoughts as we spent the rest of our lunch planning the activities of the next day.

The hand taught us such an important lesson.One does not have to go through life facing hardships all alone;the world is full of compassionate（富有同情心的）and understanding people.Even those that are suffering have much to give to each other.And though Heaven has these two perfect angels now，the lessons that they both taught me will remain forever in my heart.

最后，我们点了午饭，仍然静静地坐着。有一段时间，我对这对老夫妇产生了兴趣，我仔细地观察着。我想知道他们享受的是安宁，还是食物，或者两者兼而有之。

莫莉仍旧在不停地说话，享受着她的午餐，而我和她妈妈在一旁听着。我们想在她面前表现出快乐，但我们做得不太好。突然，我看到一只手在我面前出现。这只手极大，手指关节肿胀，指头已经扭曲变形。这只手落在我女儿的手上。它正是刚刚一直在沉默中吃饭的那个老太太的手。

她看着我的女儿，轻声说：“如果我能为你多做点什么，我会的。”然后她微笑着离开了，走向她的丈夫，而他已朝门口走去。

就在那时，莫莉兴奋地叫道：“看啊，这有一美元。”莫莉发现那个老太太在她手背上放了一张一美元的纸币。我抬起头想感谢那个老人，但是她已经走了。我震惊地坐在那，不确定刚刚发生了什么，然后我看向我的妻子。几乎同一时刻，我们脸上都绽放出了微笑。那一整天的忧愁都被老人那仁慈的抚摸一扫而空。

使我们露出微笑并且开始感觉不一样的不是那一美元——尽管它让莫莉很兴奋，而是那个感受到我们痛苦的老人所给予的安慰。那双残疾的手让我们明白了我们没必要独自面对战斗，还有其他人也在关心着我们，并且希望帮助我们。我们感觉好多了，很快这一天就被很多快乐的想法填满，我们用吃午饭剩下的时间去计划第二天的活动。

这只手给了我们如此重要的一课。在人生旅程中，我们不必独自面对痛苦时光。这个世界充满了富有同情心和善解人意的人。甚至那些正遭受痛苦的人也可以给予他人许多帮助。尽管天堂现在有了这两个完美的天使，但他们教会我的事情将永远留在我的心中。

Step 2 实践·文本解读

阅读扫障

Ⅰ.热词积累

Vocabulary

1.complete v.to finish doing something完成；完工；结束

2.surgery n.the treatment of injuries or diseases in people or animals by cutting open the body and removing or repairing the damaged part外科手术

3.officially adv.formally and in a way agreed to or arranged by people in positions of authority官方地

4.tiny adj.extremely small微小的

5.whisper v.to speak very quietly，using the breath but not the voice，so that only the person close to you can hear you小声说话；低语；耳语

6.generous adj.willing to give money， help， kindness， etc.， especially more than is usual or expected慷慨的；宽宏大量的；仁慈的

7.hardship n.（something that causes） difficult or unpleasant conditions of life，or an example of this艰苦；困难

8.remain v.to stay in the same place or in the same condition留下；保持不变

Phrases

1.can't help but do情不自禁做某事

2.in one's presence当着某人的面；在某人面前

3.out of nowhere突然冒出来；莫名其妙地出现

4.look over at sb看向某人

5.break out into突然发出；迸发

6.wipe out擦掉；彻底摧毁

7.fight the battle斗争；打仗

8.be filled with充满着；被填满

9.remain in one's heart铭记在心

Ⅱ.句型积累

1.I couldn't help but wonder what challenges they had faced in their life and if they ever faced such terrible news about a child of theirs.我不禁想知道他们的生活面临着怎样的挑战，是否也曾在他们孩子身上发生过这种可怕的事情。

can't/couldn't help but do为常用句型“不得不；禁不住”，意思和can't help doing“情不自禁”差不多。如can't help feeling excited about the show.我不禁对这场秀感到激动不已。 但是一定要注意其与can't help to do表示“不能帮助做某事”的辨析。如He can't help to clean the house.他没有办法帮助打扫房间。

句式仿写

我情不自禁为这场精彩的表演鼓掌。

2.We went to a local restaurant where we sat in silence waiting for the waitress.我们去了当地一家餐馆，安静地坐在那儿等着服务员。

It was the hand of the old woman who had been sitting with the old man in silence eating their lunch它正是刚刚一直在沉默中吃饭的那个老太太的手。

这两句都包含了定语从句和现在分词作状语的情况。第一句中where引导定语从句，先行词是a loca restaurant，waiting是作伴随状语；第二句中who引导定语从句，先行词是the old woman，eating是现在分词作伴随状语。

句式仿写

她是我们最喜欢的老师，她总是面带微笑走进教室。

立意呈现

Ⅰ.Fast reading to get the basic information of the text.

【点石成金】记叙文的阅读除了抓时间、地点、人物、事件、起因、经过和结果六要素外，还可以从环境、人物和主要内容着手。本篇文章特点在于，老人的出现改变了作者和妻子对人生的态度。同学们可以从环境、人物和内容入手，这样就更容易抓住重点，体会文本行文特点和主要人物的情感变化。

Ⅱ.Deep reading to think over the development of the plot.

1.What made the author and his wife sit in silence?

2.What made the old couple sit in silence?

3.What broke the silence?

4.What did “one dollar”bring?

【点石成金】环境的烘托，是全文的一个关注点。从开篇首句指出，a very sad day，到2～5段持续的silence的氛围，作者夫妇的心情和故事都蕴化于silence中。而老妇人的相助，打破这一沉默，随后带来的smile和excitement，就是故事的转机。那么问题链的设置也在于引导学生，体会故事线、感情线和环境线的交融。

Step 3 运用·读写整合

Ⅰ.语篇缩写

参考词汇：

the author，a local restaurant，a very elderly couple，Molly，survival，the generous touch

【规范写作】

Ⅱ.读后续写

阅读下面短文，根据所给情节进行续写，使之构成一个完整的故事。

It was raining and cold when we went out to eat.We found a boring place，which looked carelessly decorated.It smelled greasy.Only five tables in the restaurant were occupied.There were two German couples， two French families， and an American sailor，by himself.In the corner a piano_ player monotonously played Christmas music.

I was too stubborn and too tired and miserable to leave.I looked around and noticed that the other customers were eating in stony silence.The only person who seemed happy was the American sailor While eating， he was writing a letter， and a half smile lighted his face.

My wife ordered our meal in French.The waite brought us the wrong thing.I scolded my wife for being stupid.She began to cry.The boys defended her，and I felt even worse.

Then，at the table with the French family on ou left， the father slapped （掌掴） one of his children fo some minor fault，and the boy began to cry.On ou right，the German wife began scolding her husband.

All of us were interrupted by an unpleasant blas of cold air.Through the front door came an old French flower woman.She wore a ragged overcoat and dragged herself in wet，worn shoes.Carrying he basket of flowers，she went from one table to another

“Flowers， sir?Only one franc.”

No one bought any.

Wearily she sat down at a table between the sailor and us.To the waiter she said， “A bowl o soup.I haven't sold a flower all afternoon.”To the piano player she said sharply， “Can you imagine Joseph，soup on Christmas Eve?”

He pointed to his empty “tipping plate”.The young sailor finished his meal and got up to leave.Putting on his coat，he walked over to the flower woman's table.

“Happy Christmas，” he said， smiling and picking out two flowers.“How much are they?”

“Two francs， sir.”注意：

1.所续写短文的词数应为150左右；

2.应使用5个以上短文中标有下划线的关键词语；

3.续写部分分为两段，每段的开头语已为你写好；

4.续写完成后，请用下划线标出你所使用的关键词语。

Paragraph 1:

Pressing one of the small flowers flat，he put it into the letter he had written，then handed the woman a twenty-franc note.

Paragraph 2:

Touched by his generosity and joy，happiness of Christmas exploded throughout the restaurant like a bomb.

【读后续写思路呈现】

（1）从环境、人物和内容方面提取信息；

（2）根据已有情节内容进行推测；

①What would happen in a boring and silen Christmas Eve filled with complaint and cold air?

②Would the flower and the happy American sailor can change the situation?

（3）借助题干给出的信息进行情节的推测整合；

第一段提示语：

Pressing one of the small flowers flat，he put i into the letter he had written，then handed the woman a twenty-franc note.他把一朵小花压扁，把它放进他写的信里，然后递给那女人一张二十法郎的钞票。

第二段提示语：

Touched by his generosity and joy，happiness o Christmas exploded throughout the restaurant like a bomb.被他的慷慨和喜悦所感动，整个餐厅的圣诞快乐的气氛就像炸弹一样爆炸了。

（4）尝试续写

Ⅲ.读写归纳

读后续写最初是浙江高考题型，随着高考改革的推进，范围逐渐扩大。读后续写，也是读写整合，以读促写的训练方式之一。通过不同层面角度解读文本，帮助学生形成提取核心信息、抓文本特点和行文预测的思维能力，最后落实于写作。

Step 4 提升·素养建构

【文学赏析】

记叙文中的细节描写，具体渗透在对人物、景物或者场面描写中。以小见大，渲染烘托，定格瞬间，从而增强文章的感染力。情节由粗线条的发展到细节定格的瞬间，先读得味，再读得悟。人物跃然纸上，才是阅读的精妙之处。

文中的手代表着陌生人的关心。同样处在沉默中的老太太的手，肿胀变形的手，更暗示了老太太可能也经历过痛苦，但尽己之力，伸出温情之手。小手拉着大手，就是 “我”患重症的女儿和老太太的精神鼓励和交流。“我”女儿已逝，但这一瞬间的触摸，却是永在天堂的触摸。由手的感悟，到完成对标题的理解。

请从本篇文章中摘抄关于手的细节描写，再思考标题“A touch of heaven”的蕴意。

1.突然，我看到一只手在我面前显现。

2.这只手极大，手指关节肿胀，指头已经扭曲变形。

3.这只手落在我女儿的手上。

4.它正是刚刚一直在沉默中吃饭的那个老太太的手。

5.那双残疾的手让我们明白了我们没必要独自面对战斗，还有其他人也在关心着我们，并且希望帮助我们。

【其他关于手的语境炼句】

1.Even local consumers have become fed up with Proton's cars，with their second-hand values declining sharply.就连当地消费者也逐渐对宝腾汽车产生了不满情绪，原因就是二手宝腾车贬值过快。（Nov.30th 2006 HONG KONG From The Economist print edition）

2.In some localities，people have the misconception that poverty relief goes hand in hand with industrial projects.在一些地方，人们有一种误解，认为扶贫与工业项目并驾齐驱。（中国日报2017-02-27）

3.At first sight，Li Yufeng's thin and not very tall figure makes it hard to believe he can climb five floors up a drain pipe outside a building with his bare hands in just 10 seconds.乍一看，李宇峰瘦小不高的身材让人很难相信他能在10秒内徒手沿着一栋大楼外的排水管，爬上五层楼。（中国日报2017-10-12）

4.On the other hand，it helps put an end to the misunderstanding of Chinese culture and facilitate the peace of the world.另一方面，它有助于结束对中国文化的误解，并促进世界和平。

5.As corporation ownership narrows，power lies in the hands of a few，making it difficult for diverse voices to be heard.随着公司所有权的缩小，权力掌握在少数人手中，使得不同的声音难以被听到。（《大学美英报刊教材系列·美英报刊阅读教程》）