爱的绝唱

Music for dying will

Fuller是一位專职音乐家，受自身经历的影响加入了一个非营利组织，为临终的病人演唱。

难词探意

1. professionally /pr??fe??n?li/ adv. 在职业上

2. encourage /?n?k?r?d?/ v. 激励;鼓励

3. nonprofit /?n?n?pr?f?t/ adj. 非营利的

4. surround /s??ra?nd/ v. 包围;围绕

When Freddie Fuller arrived to perform in the hospital room in Temple， Texas， Pam Golightly worried it was already too late because the nurse told her that her stepfathers time was near. “Youre probably wasting your time，” Golightly told Fuller.

Fuller， age 68 and a full?time musician， is known professionally as the Singing Cowboy. With two albums， the country and folk musician has performed all over the United States.

Growing up in Salado， Texas， Fuller heard gospel music（福音音乐） all the time from his mother. She even sang as she hung clothes on the line. And she encouraged her young sons musical talent. When she was dying of cancer， in 1987， he put their love of song to its greatest use. He would crawl into her hospital bed with his guitar and sing her favorite songs. His mother seemed to relax， a peaceful look crossing her face.

So when he heard about a nonprofit organization called Swan Songs， he gave them a call. Since 2005， Swan Songs has arranged more than 800 free musical last wishes at hospitals， hospices， and private homes. Fuller signed up on the spot.

Since then， he has performed dozens of musical vigils（守夜祈祷）. Sometimes theyre almost festive， with terminally ill people surrounded by family， including one patient who sang along and danced slowly with her walker. Other times， theyre quieter， as Fullers experience with his mom was. And sometimes they feel a bit like a miracle.

That was the case with Golightlys stepfather. He enjoyed country music， and Swan Songs sent Fuller. When Fuller arrived， Strobel seemed ready to say goodbye. Golightly and her sister， watched their stepfathers every breath， each holding one of his hands. Fuller played some songs. After 45 minutes， Golightly asked for just one more song. Fuller chose Love， Me. “I played the last song， sang the last note， and hit the last guitar chord， and then he took his last breath，” Fuller says. “She， her sister， and I looked at one another， saying， ‘Oh my gosh， we just experienced one of the most magical moments in our lives.”

“It was a gift for us all，” Golightly says of Fullers singing. “At a really sad time， it was beautiful.”

Reading Check

1. Why did Golightly say Fuller was probably wasting his time？

A. Her stepfather was dying.

B. It was late in the evening.

C. Fuller didnt come on time.

D. Her stepfather didnt like music.

2. What do we know about Fuller？

A. He is well known as a cowboy.

B. He performs all over the world.

C. He is playing music for people who are dying.

D. He has a good relationship with his stepfather.

3. What can we infer from the third paragraph？

A. Fullers mother was fond of music.

B. Fullers mother was a professional singer.

C. Fullers mother made him play gospel music.

D. Fullers mother used to enjoy popular music.

4. What can be the main idea of the passage？

A. Loves last refrain（副歌）.

B. Performance of a great musician.

C. Love for the amazing stepfather.

D. A dying mans love for music.

Language Study

Sentence for writing

Sometimes theyre almost festive， with terminally ill people surrounded by family， including one patient who sang along and danced slowly with her walker.

【信息提取】本句是一个简单句。theyre almost festive是主系表结构，including...her walker是介词短语作伴随状语，其中who引導的是限制性定语从句，with terminally ill people surrounded by family是“with+宾语+宾语补足语”结构，由于surround和people有逻辑上的动宾关系，所以用V?ed形式作宾补。

【句式仿写】所有的工作都提前完成了，我能轻松愉快地享受假期了。

________________________________________________________________