UNIT 5
Overcoming Obstacles

Part I Pre-Reading Task

Listen to the recording two or three times and then think over the following questions:
1. What happened to the singer?
2. What helped her pull through all the hardships she suffered?
3. What is the tone of the song?
4. Is the song related to the theme of the unit — overcoming obstacles?

Part II
Text A

Look at the following two sayings and then see if the story of Michael Stone bears out the points they make.

The greater the obstacle, the more glory in overcoming it.
—— Moliere

When it is dark enough, you can see the stars.
—— Charles A, Beard

TRUE HEIGHT
David Naster

His palms were sweating. He needed a towel to dry his grip. The sun was as hot as the competition he faced today at the National Junior Olympics. The pole was set at 17 feet. That was three inches higher than his personal best. Michael Stone confronted the most challenging day of his pole-vaulting career.
The stands were still filled with about 20,000 people, even though the final race had ended an hour earlier. The pole vault is truly the highlight of any track and field competition. It combines the grace of a gymnast with the strength of a body builder. It also has the element of flying, and the thought of flying as high as a two-story building is a mere fantasy to anyone watching such an event.
As long as Michael could remember he had always dreamed of flying. Michael's mother read him numerous stories about flying when he was growing up. Her stories were always ones that described the land from a bird'seye view. Her excitement and passion for details made Michael's dreams full of color and beauty. Michael had this one recurring dream. He would be running down a country road. As he raced between golden wheat fields, he would always outrun the locomotives passing by. It was at the exact moment he took a deep breath that he began to lift off the ground. He would begin soaring like an eagle.
Where he flew would always coincide with his mother's stories. Wherever he flew was with a keen eye for detail and the free spirit of his mother's love. His dad, on the other hand, was not a dreamer. Bert Stone was a hardcore realist. He believed in hard work and sweat. His motto: If you want something, work for it!
From the age of 14, Michael did just that. He began a very careful training program. He worked out every other day with weightlifting, with some kind of running work on alternate days. The program was carefully monitored by Michael's coach, trainer and father. Michael's dedication, determination and discipline was a coach's dream. Besides being an honor student and only child, Michael Stone continued to help his parents with their farm chores. Mildred Stone, Michael's mother, wished he could relax a bit more and be that "free dreaming" little boy. On one occasion she attempted to talk to him and his father about this, but his dad quickly interrupted, smiled and said, "You want something, work for it!"
All of Michael's vaults today seemed to be the reward for his hard work. If Michael Stone was surprised, excited or vain about clearing the bar at 17 feet, you couldn't tell. As soon as he landed on the inflated landing mat, and with the crowd on its feet, Michael immediately began preparing for his next attempt at flight. He seemed unaware of the fact that he had just beaten his personal best by three inches and that he was one of the final two competitors in the pole-vaulting event at the National Junior Olympics.
When Michael cleared the bar at 17 feet 2 inches and 17 feet 4 inches, again he showed no emotion. As he lay on his back and heard the crowd groan, he knew the other vaulter had missed his final jump. He knew it was time for his final jump. Since the other vaulter had fewer misses, Michael needed to clear this vault to win. A miss would get him second place. Nothing to be ashamed of, but Michael would not allow himself the thought of not winning first place.
He rolled over and did his routine of three finger-tipped push-ups. He found his pole, stood and stepped on the runway that led to the most challenging event of his 17-year-old life.
The runway felt different this time. It startled him for a brief moment. Then it all hit him like a wet bale of hay. The bar was set at nine inches higher than his personal best. That's only one inch off the National record, he thought. The intensity of the moment filled his mind with anxiety. He began shaking the tension. It wasn't working. He became more tense. Why was this happening to him now, he thought. He began to get nervous. Afraid would be a more accurate description. What was he going to do? He had never experienced these feelings. Then out of nowhere, and from the deepest depths of his soul, he pictured his mother. Why now? What was his mother doing in his thoughts at a time like this? It was simple. His mother always used to tell him when you felt tense, anxious or even scared, take deep breaths.
So he did. Along with shaking the tension from his legs, he gently laid his pole at his feet. He began to stretch out his arms and upper body. The light breeze that was once there was now gone. He carefully picked up his pole. He felt his heart pounding. He was sure the crowd did, too. The silence was deafening. When he heard the singing of some distant birds in flight, he knew it was his time to fly.
As he began sprinting down the runway, something felt wonderfully different, yet familiar. The surface below him felt like the country road he used to dream about. Visions of the golden wheat fields seemed to fill his thoughts. When he took a deep breath, it happened. He began to fly. His take-off was effortless. Michael Stone was now flying, just like in his childhood dreams. Only this time he knew he wasn't dreaming. This was real. Everything seemed to be moving in slow motion. The air around him was the purest and freshest he had ever sensed. Michael was soaring like an eagle.
It was either the eruption of the people in the stands or the thump of his landing that brought Michael back to earth. On his back with that wonderful hot sun on his face, he knew he could only see in his mind's eye the smile on his mother's face. He knew his dad was probably smiling too, even laughing. What he didn't know was that his dad was hugging his wife and crying. That's right: Bert "If You Want It, Work For It" Stone was crying like a baby in his wife's arms. He was crying harder than Mildred had ever seen before. She also knew he was crying the greatest tears of all: tears of pride. Michael was immediately surrounded by people hugging and congratulating him on the greatest accomplishment of his life. He later went on that day to clear 17 feet 6 1/2 inches: a National and International Junior Olympics record.
With all the media attention and sponsorship possibilities, Michael's life would never be the same again. It wasn't just because he won the National Junior Olympics and set a new world record. And it wasn't because he had just increased his personal best by 9 l/2 inches. It was simply because Michael Stone is blind.

(1170 words)

New Words and Expressions

bear out
prove that (sth.) is true 证实

sweat
vi. 出汗
n. 汗水

towel
n. 毛巾，手巾

pole-vault
vi., n. 撑竿跳高

vault
n. 撑竿跳高 (=pole vault)；撑物跳跃

grace
n. quality of being smooth and elegant, esp. in movement or structure 优美，优雅；雅致

gymnast
n. 体操家，体操运动员

body builder
n. 健美运动员

mere
a. nothing more than 仅仅，只不过

fantasy
n. 幻想

numerous
a. very many 许多的，无数的

passion
n. strong feeling, esp. of love 热情

detail
n. small, particular fact or item 细节，琐碎的事

recur▲
vi. come or happen again 再来；再发生

outrun (outran, outrun)
vt. run faster or better than; go beyond 跑得比…快；跑得比…好；超过

eagle
n. 鹰

coincide▲
vi. happen at the same time; be in agreement 同时发生；一致

coincide with
与…同时发生；与…一致

hard-core
a. 顽固不化的

core
n. the most important part 核心

realist
n. a person who deals in a practical way with situations as they actually are 现实主义者

motto
n. 格言，座右铭

work out
go through a physical exercise session 体育锻炼，训练

weightlifting
n. 举重（运动）

alteinate▲
a. every other or second; happening by turns 交替的；轮流的

coach
n. （体育运动的）教练

dedication
n. giving oneself, time, effort, etc. (to sth.) 奉献，献身

dedicate▲
vt. 献身于，致力于

chore
n. 家庭杂务

relax
v. make or become less tense, worried or nervous 放松，松弛

on one/two/several occasion(s)
有一（两，几）次

vain
a. too pleased with one's own abilities or looks 虚荣的，自负的

bar
n. 横杆；条；块

inflate
v. fill (sth.) with air （使）充气，（使）膨胀

mat
n. 垫子；席子

competitor
n. 竞争者，对手

emotion
n. 情感，感情

preparation
n. the act or process of preparing 准备

be ashamed of
feeling foolish or uncomfortable because of (sth.) 因…感到难为情

finger-tipped
a. using or operated by the fingers 用手的

push-up
n. (AmE) 俯卧撑

runway
n. 跑道

startle▲
vt. give a sudden shock or surprise to 使大吃一惊

bale
n. （一）大捆，（一）大包

hay
n. 干草

intensity
n. the state of being intense 强烈、剧烈，紧张

anxiety
n. a feeling of worry or fear 忧虑，担心

tension
n. worry or nervousness 紧张，不安

tense
a. feeling worried or nervous; making people worried or nervous 紧张的；令人紧张的

along with
together with 连同

stretch out
伸展

breeze
n. 微风，轻风

deafen
vt. make (sb.) unable to hear, esp. for a short time 使聋

deaf
a. unable to hear at all or to hear well 耳聋的

sprint
vi. run at one's fastest speed, esp. for a short distance 疾跑

take-off
n. 起跳；（飞机）起飞

effortless
a. needing little or no effort 容易的，不费力气的

eruption
n. 爆发

erupt▲ vi.

thump
n. (noise made by) a heavy blow 重击（声）

bring (sb.) back to earth
使回到现实中

in one's mind's eye
在想象中

congratulate
vt. 祝贺

media
n. 大众传播媒介

sponsorship
n. 资助；赞助

Proper Names

David Naster
大卫·纳史特

the Olympics = Olympic Games 奥林匹克运动会

Michael
迈克尔（男子名）

Bert
伯特（男子名，Albert, Herbert, Bertram 的昵称，亦作Burt）

Mildred
米尔德里德（女子名）

Language sense Enhancement

1. Read aloud paragraphs 9-10 and learn them by heart.
2. Read aloud the following poem written by the American deaf-blind writer and educationist, Helen Keller (1880-1968).

Facing Fate
Helen keller

Security is mostly a superstition.
It does not exist in nature,
nor do the children or men as a whole experience it.
Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run
than outright exposure.
Life is either a daring adventure, or nothing.
To keep our faces toward change and
behave like free spirits
in the presence of fate is strength undefeatable.

3. Read the following quotations. Learn them by heart if you can. You might need to look up new words in a dictionary.

Although the world is full of suffering, it is full also of the overcoming of it.
—— Helen Keller

No pain, no palm; no thorns, no throne; no gall, no glory; no cross, no crown.
—— William Penn

All rising to great place is by a winding stair.
——Francis bacon

If we face our tasks with the resolution to solve them, who shall say that anything is impossible.
—— Wilfred Grenfell

4. Read the following humorous story for fun. You might need to look up new words in a dictionary.

A missionary unexpectedly met a lion in the jungle. Not seeing any way to escape, he fell to his knees in prayer. He was comforted by seeing the lion kneeling next to him.

" Dear Brother, how delightful to join you in prayer when only a moment ago I feared for my life," the missionary said.

" Don't interrupt," said the lion, "I'm just saying grace."