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Chapter 5
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I n 1956, I finally got a brother, and our family finally got a television set. My brother, Roger Cassidy Clinton, was born on July 25, his fathers birthday. I was so happy. Mother and Daddy had been trying to have a baby for some time (a couple of years earlier shed had a miscarriage). I think she, and probably he too, thought it might save their marriage. Daddys response was not auspicious1. I was with Mammaw and Papaw when Mother delivered by caesarean section. Daddy picked me up and took me to see her, then brought me home and left. He had been drinking for the last few months, and instead of making him happy and responsible, the birth of his only son prompted him to run back to the bottle.

Along with the excitement of a new baby in the house was the thrill of the new TV. There were lots of shows and entertainers for kids: cartoons, Captain Kangaroo and Howdy Doody, with Buffalo2 Bob Smith, whom I especially liked. And there was baseball: Mickey Mantle3 and the Yankees, Stan Musial and the Cardinals4, and my all-time favorite, Willie Mays and the old New York Giants.

But strange as it was for a kid of ten years old, what really dominated my TV viewing that summer were the Republican and Democratic conventions. I sat on the floor right in front of the TV and watched them both, transfixed. It sounds crazy, but I felt right at home in the world of politics and politicians. I liked President Eisenhower and enjoyed seeing him renominated, but we were Democrats6, so I really got into their convention. Governor Frank Clement7 of Tennessee gave a rousing keynote address. There was an exciting contest for the vice-presidential nomination8 between young Senator John F. Kennedy and the eventual9 victor, Senator Estes Kefauver, who served Tennessee in the Senate with Al Gores10 father. When Adlai Stevenson, the nominee11 in 1952, accepted his partys call to run again, he said he had prayed this cup would pass from me. I admired Stevensons intelligence and eloquence12, but even then I couldnt understand why anyone wouldnt want the chance to be President. Now I think what he didnt want was to lead another losing effort. I do understand that. Ive lost a couple of elections myself, though I never fought a battle I didnt first convince myself I could win.

I didnt spend all my time watching TV. I still saw all the movies I could. Hot Springs had two old-fashioned movie houses, the Paramount13 and the Malco, with big stages on which touring western stars appeared on the weekends. I saw Lash15 LaRue, all decked out in cowboy black, do his tricks with a bullwhip, and Gail Davis, who played Annie Oakley on TV, give a shooting exhibition.

Elvis Presley began to make movies in the late fifties. I loved Elvis. I could sing all his songs, as well as the Jordanaires backgrounds. I admired him for doing his military service and was fascinated when he married his beautiful young wife, Priscilla. Unlike most parents, who thought his gyrations obscene, Mother loved Elvis, too, maybe even more than I did. We watched his legendary16 performance on The Ed Sullivan Show together, and laughed when the cameras cut off his lower body movements to protect us from the indecency. Beyond his music, I identified with his small-town southern roots. And I thought he had a good heart. Steve Clark, a friend of mine who served as attorney general when I was governor, once took his little sister, who was dying of cancer, to see Elvis perform in Memphis. When Elvis heard about the little girl, he put her and her brother in the front row, and after the concert he brought her up onstage and talked to her for a good while. I never forgot that.

Elviss first movie, Love Me Tender, was my favorite and remains17 so, though I also liked Loving You, Jailhouse Rock, King Creole, and Blue Hawaii. After that, his movies got more saccharine18 and predictable. The interesting thing about Love Me Tender, a postCivil War western, is that Elvis, already a national sex symbol, got the girl, Debra Paget, but only because she thought his older brother, whom she really loved, had been killed in the war. At the end of the film, Elvis gets shot and dies, leaving his brother with his wife.

I never quite escaped Elvis. In the 92 campaign, some members of my staff nicknamed me Elvis. A few years later, when I appointed Kim Wardlaw of Los Angeles to a federal judgeship, she was thoughtful enough to send me a scarf Elvis had worn and signed for her at one of his concerts in the early seventies, when she was nineteen. I still have it in my music room. And I confess: I still love Elvis.

My favorite movies during this time were the biblical epics19: The Robe, Demetrius and the Gladiators, Samson and Delilah, Ben-Hur, and especially The Ten Commandments, the first movie I recall paying more than a dime20 to see. I saw The Ten Commandments when Mother and Daddy were on a brief trip to Las Vegas. I took a sack lunch and sat through the whole thing twice for the price of one ticket. Years later, when I welcomed Charlton Heston to the White House as a Kennedy Center honoree, he was president of the National Rifle Association and a virulent21 critic of my legislative22 efforts to keep guns away from criminals and children. I joked to him and the audience that I liked him better as Moses than in his present role. To his credit, he took it in good humor.

In 1957, my grandfathers lungs finally gave out. He died in the relatively23 new Ouachita Hospital, where Mother worked. He was only fifty-six years old. Too much of his life had been occupied with economic woes24, health problems, and marital25 strife26, yet he always found things to enjoy in the face of his adversity. And he loved Mother and me more than life. His love, and the things he taught me, mostly by example, including appreciation27 for the gifts of daily life and the problems of other people, made me better than I could have been without him.

Nineteen fifty-seven was also the year of the Little Rock Central High crisis. In September, nine black kids, supported by Daisy Bates, the editor of the Arkansas State Press, Little Rocks black newspaper, integrated Little Rock Central High School. Governor Faubus, eager to break Arkansas tradition of governors serving only two terms, abandoned his familys progressive tradition (his father had voted for Eugene Debs, the perpetual Socialist28 candidate for President) and called out the National Guard to prevent the integration29. Then President Dwight Eisenhower federalized the troops to protect the students, and they went to school through angry mobs shouting racist30 epithets31. Most of my friends were either against integration or apparently32 unconcerned. I didnt say too much about it, probably because my family was not especially political, but I hated what Faubus did. Though Faubus had inflicted33 lasting34 damage to the states image, he had assured himself not only a third two-year term but another three terms beyond that. Later he tried comebacks against Dale Bumpers35, David Pryor, and me, but the state had moved beyond reaction by then.

The Little Rock Nine became a symbol of courage in the quest for equality. In 1987, on the thirtieth anniversary of the crisis, as governor I invited the Little Rock Nine back. I held a reception for them at the Governors Mansion36 and took them to the room where Governor Faubus had orchestrated the campaign to keep them out of school. In 1997, we had a big ceremony on the lawn of Central High for the fortieth anniversary. After the program, Governor Mike Huckabee and I held open the doors of Central High as the nine walked through. Elizabeth Eckford, who at fifteen was deeply seared emotionally by vicious harassment37 as she walked alone through an angry mob, was reconciled with Hazel Massery, one of the girls who had taunted38 her forty years earlier. In 2000, at a ceremony on the South Lawn of the White House, I presented the Little Rock Nine with the Congressional Gold Medal, an honor initiated39 by Senator Dale Bumpers. In that late summer of 1957, the nine helped to set all of us, white and black alike, free from the dark shackles40 of segregation41 and discrimination. In so doing, they did more for me than I could ever do for them. But I hope that what I did do for them, and for civil rights, in the years afterward42 honored the lessons I learned more than fifty years ago in my grandfathers store.

In the summer of 1957 and again after Christmas that year, I took my first trips out of Arkansas since going to New Orleans to see Mother. Both times I got on a Trailways bus bound for Dallas to visit Aunt Otie. It was a luxurious43 bus for the time, with an attendant who served little sandwiches. I ate a lot of them.

Dallas was the third real city I had been in. I visited Little Rock on a fifth-grade field trip to the state Capitol, the highlight of which was a visit to the governors office with the chance to sit in the absent governors chair. It made such an impression on me that years later I often took pictures with children sitting in my chair both in the governors office and in the Oval Office.

The trips to Dallas were remarkable44 to me for three reasons, beyond the great Mexican food, the zoo, and the most beautiful miniature golf course Id ever seen. First, I got to meet some of my fathers relatives. His younger brother, Glenn Blythe, was the constable45 of Irving, a suburb of Dallas. He was a big, handsome man, and being with him made me feel connected to my father. Sadly, he also died too young, at forty-eight, of a stroke. My fathers niece, Ann Grigsby, had been a friend of Mothers since she married my father. On those trips she became a lifetime friend, telling me stories about my father and about what Mother was like as a young bride. Ann remains my closest link to my Blythe family heritage.

Second, on New Years Day 1958, I went to the Cotton Bowl, my first college football game. Rice, led by quarterback King Hill, played Navy, whose great running back Joe Bellino won the Heisman Trophy46 two years later. I sat in the end zone but felt as if I were on a throne, as Navy won 207.

Third, just after Christmas I went to the movies by myself on an afternoon when Otie had to work. I think The Bridge on the River Kwai was showing. I loved the movie, but I didnt like the fact that I had to buy an adult ticket even though I wasnt yet twelve. I was so big for my age, the ticket seller didnt believe me. It was the first time in my life someone refused to take my word. This hurt, but I learned an important difference between big impersonal47 cities and small towns, and I began my long preparation for life in Washington, where no one takes your word for anything.

I started the 195859 school year at the junior high school. It was right across the street from Ouachita Hospital and adjacent to Hot Springs High School. Both school buildings were dark red brick. The high school was four stories high, with a great old auditorium48 and classic lines befitting its 1917 vintage. The junior high was smaller and more pedestrian but still represented an important new phase of my life. The biggest thing that happened to me that year, however, had nothing to do with school. One of the Sunday-school teachers offered to take a few of the boys in our church to Little Rock to hear Billy Graham preach in his crusade in War Memorial Stadium, where the Razorbacks played. Racial tensions were still high in 1958. Little Rocks schools were closed in a last-gasp effort to stop integration, its kids dispersed49 to schools in nearby towns. Segregationists from the White Citizens Council and other quarters suggested that, given the tense atmosphere, it would be better if the Reverend Graham restricted admission to the crusade to whites only. He replied that Jesus loved all sinners, that everyone needed a chance to hear the word, and therefore that he would cancel the crusade rather than preach to a segregated51 audience. Back then, Billy Graham was the living embodiment of Southern Baptist authority, the largest religious figure in the South, perhaps in the nation. I wanted to hear him preach even more after he took the stand he did. The segregationists backed down, and the Reverend Graham delivered a powerful message in his trademark52 twenty minutes. When he gave the invitation for people to come down onto the football field to become Christians53 or to rededicate their lives to Christ, hundreds of blacks and whites came down the stadium aisles54 together, stood together, and prayed together. It was a powerful counterpoint to the racist politics sweeping55 across the South. I loved Billy Graham for doing that. For months after that I regularly sent part of my small allowance to support his ministry56.

Thirty years later, Billy came back to Little Rock for another crusade in War Memorial Stadium. As governor, I was honored to sit on the stage with him one night and even more to go with him and my friend Mike Coulson to visit my pastor57 and Billys old friend W. O. Vaught, who was dying of cancer. It was amazing to listen to these two men of God discussing death, their fears, and their faith. When Billy got up to leave, he held Dr. Vaughts hand in his and said, W.O., it wont58 be long now for both of us. Ill see you soon, just outside the Eastern Gate, the entrance to the Holy City.

When I became President, Billy and Ruth Graham visited Hillary and me in the White House residence. Billy prayed with me in the Oval Office, and wrote inspiring letters of instruction and encouragement in my times of trial. In all his dealings with me, just as in that crucial crusade in 1958, Billy Graham lived his faith.

Junior high school brought a whole new set of experiences and challenges, as I began to learn more about my mind, my body, my spirit, and my little world. I liked most of what I learned about myself but not all of it. And some of what came into my head and life scared the living hell out of me, including anger at Daddy, the first stirrings of sexual feelings toward girls, and doubts about my religious convictions, which I think developed because I couldnt understand why a God whose existence I couldnt prove would create a world in which so many bad things happened.

My interest in music grew. I was now going to junior high band practices every day, looking forward to marching at football game halftimes and in the Christmas parade, to the concerts, and to the regional and state band festivals, at which judges graded the bands as well as solo and ensemble59 performances. I won a fair number of medals in junior high, and when I didnt do so well, it was invariably because I tried to perform a piece that was too difficult for me. I still have some of the judges rating sheets on my early solos, pointing out my poor control in the lower register, bad phrasing, and puffy cheeks. The ratings got better when I grew older, but I never quite cured the puffy cheeks. My favorite solo in this period was an arrangement of Rhapsody in Blue, which I loved to try to play and once performed for guests at the old Majestic60 Hotel. I was nervous as could be, but determined61 to make a good impression in my new white coat, with red plaid bow tie and cummerbund.

My junior high band directors encouraged me to improve and I decided62 to try. Arkansas had a number of summer band camps back then on university campuses and I wanted to go to one of them. I decided to attend the camp at the main University of Arkansas campus in Fayetteville because it had a lot of good teachers and I wanted to spend a couple of weeks on the campus where I assumed Id go to college one day. I went there every summer for seven years, until the summer after high school graduation. It proved to be one of the most important experiences in my growing up. First, I played and played. And I got better. Some days I would play for twelve hours until my lips were so sore I could hardly move them. I also listened to and learned from older, better musicians.

Band camp also proved an ideal place for me to develop political and leadership skills. The whole time I was growing up, it was the only place being a band boy instead of a football player wasnt a political liability. It was also the only place being a band boy wasnt a disadvantage in the adolescent quest for pretty girls. We all had a grand time, from the minute we got up for breakfast at a university dining hall until we went to bed in one of the dorms, all the while feeling very important.

I also loved the campus. The university is the oldest land-grant college west of the Mississippi. As a high school junior I wrote a paper on it and as governor I supported an appropriation63 to restore Old Main, the oldest building on campus. Built in 1871, it is a unique reminder64 of the Civil War, marked by two towers, with the northern one higher than its southern counterpart.

The band also brought me my best friend in junior high, Joe Newman. He was a drummer, and a good one. His mother, Rae, was a teacher in our school, and she and her husband, Dub65, always made me feel welcome in their big white wood-frame house on Ouachita Avenue, near where Uncle Roy and Aunt Janet lived. Joe was smart, skeptical66, moody67, funny, and loyal. I liked to play games or just talk with him. I still doweve stayed close over the years.

My main academic interest in junior high was math. I was lucky enough to be among the first group in our town to take algebra68 in the eighth, not the ninth, grade, which meant Id have a chance to take geometry, alge-bra II, trigonometry, and calculus69 by the time I finished high school. I loved math because it was problem-solving, which always got my juices flowing. Although I never took a math class in college, I always thought I was good at it until I had to give up helping70 Chelsea with her homework when she was in ninth grade. Another illusion bites the dust.

Mary Matassarin taught me algebra and geometry. Her sister, Verna Dokey, taught history, and Vernas husband, Vernon, a retired71 coach, taught eighth-grade science. I liked them all, but even though I was not particularly good at science, it was one of Mr. Dokeys lessons that stayed with me. Though his wife and her sister were attractive women, Vernon Dokey, to put it charitably, was not a handsome man. He was burly, a bit heavy around the waist, wore thick glasses, and smoked cheap cigars in a cigar holder72 with a small mouthpiece, which gave his face a peculiar73 pinched look when he sucked on it. He generally affected74 a brusque manner, but he had a great smile, a good sense of humor, and a keen understanding of human nature. One day he looked out at us and said, Kids, years from now you may not remember anything you learned about science in this class, so Im going to teach you something about human nature you should remember. Every morning when I wake up, I go into my bathroom, splash water on my face, shave, wipe the shaving cream off, then look in the mirror and say, Vernon, youre beautiful. You remember that, kids. Everybody wants to feel like theyre beautiful. And I have remembered, for more than forty years. Its helped me understand things I would have missed if Vernon Dokey hadnt told me he was beautiful, and I hadnt come to see that, in fact, he was.

I needed all the help I could get in understanding people in junior high school. It was there that I had to face the fact that I was not destined76 to be liked by everyone, usually for reasons I couldnt figure out. Once when I was walking to school and was about a block away, an older student, one of the town hoods77, who was standing75 in the gap between two buildings smoking a cigarette, flicked78 the burning weed at me, hitting the bridge of my nose and nearly burning my eye. I never did figure out why he did it, but after all, I was a fat band boy who didnt wear cool jeans (Levis, preferably with the stitching on the back pockets removed).

Around that same time, I got into an argument about something or other with Clifton Bryant, a boy who was a year or so older, but smaller than I was. One day my friends and I decided to walk home from school, about three miles. Clifton lived in the same end of town, and he followed us home, taunting79 me and hitting me on the back and shoulders over and over. We walked like that all the way up Central Avenue to the fountain and the right turn to Park Avenue. For more than a mile I tried to ignore him. Finally I couldnt take it anymore. I turned, took a big swing, and hit him. It was a good blow, but by the time it landed he had already turned to run away, so it caught him only in the back. As I said, I was slow. When Clifton ran away home, I yelled at him to come back and fight like a man. He kept on going. By the time I got home, I had calmed down and the atta boys I got from my buddies80 had worn off. I was afraid I might have hurt him, so I made Mother call his house to make sure he was okay. We never had any trouble after that. I had learned I could defend myself, but I hadnt enjoyed hurting him and I was a little disturbed by my anger, the currents of which would prove deeper and stronger in the years ahead. I now know that my anger on that day was a normal and healthy response to the way Id been treated. But because of the way Daddy behaved when he was angry and drunk, I associated anger with being out of control and I was determined not to lose control. Doing so could unleash81 the deeper, constant anger I kept locked away because I didnt know where it came from.

Even when I was mad I had sense enough not to take on every challenge. Twice in those years, I took a pass, or, if youre inclined to be critical, a dive. Once I went swimming with the Crane kids in the Caddo River, west of Hot Springs, near a little town called Caddo Gap. One of the local country boys came up to the riverbank near where I was swimming and shouted some insult at me. So I mouthed off back at him. Then he picked up a rock and threw it at me. He was twenty yards or so away, but he hit me right in the head, near the temple, and drew blood. I wanted to get out and fight, but I could see he was bigger, stronger, and tougher than I, so I swam away. Given my experiences with the ram14, Tavia Perrys BB gun, and similar mistakes I still had ahead of me, I guess I did the right thing.

The second time I took a pass in junior high I know I did the right thing. On Friday nights there was always a dance in the gym of the local YMCA. I loved rock-and-roll music and dancing and went frequently, starting in eighth or ninth grade, even though I was fat, uncool, and hardly popular with the girls. Besides, I still wore the wrong jeans.

One night at the Y, I strolled into the poolroom next to the gym, where the Coke machine was, to get something to drink. Some older high school boys were shooting pool or standing around watching. One of them was Henry Hill, whose family owned the old bowling82 alley83 downtown, the Lucky Strike Lanes. Henry started in on me about my jeans, which, that night, were especially raunchy. They were carpenters jeans, with a right side loop to hang a hammer in. I was insecure enough without Henry grinding on me, so I sassed him back. He slugged me in the jaw84 as hard as he could. Now, I was big for my age, about five nine, 185 pounds. But Henry Hill was six foot six with an enormous reach. No way was I going to hit back. Besides, to my amazement85, it didnt hurt too badly. So I just stood my ground and stared at him. I think Henry was surprised I didnt go down or run off, because he laughed, slapped me on the back, and said I was okay. We were always friendly after that. I had learned again that I could take a hit and that theres more than one way to stand against aggression86.

By the time I started ninth grade, in September 1960, the presidential campaign was in full swing. My homeroom and English teacher, Ruth Atkins, was also from Hope and, like me, a stomp-down Democrat5. She had us read and discuss Dickenss Great Expectations, but left lots of time for political debate. Hot Springs had more Republicans than most of the rest of Arkansas back then, but their roots were far less conservative than the current crop. Some of the older families had been there since the Civil War and became Republicans because they were against secession and slavery. Some families had Republican roots in Teddy Roosevelts progressivism. Others supported Eisenhowers moderate conservatism.

The Arkansas Democrats were an even more diverse group. Those in the Civil War tradition were Democrats because their forebears had supported secession and slavery. A larger group swelled87 the ranks of the party in the Depression, when so many unemployed88 workers and poor farmers saw FDR as a savior and later loved our neighbor from Missouri, Harry89 Truman. A smaller group were immigrant Democrats, mostly from Europe. Most blacks were Democrats because of Roosevelt, and Trumans stand for civil rights, and their sense that Kennedy would be more aggressive than Nixon on the issue. A small group of whites felt that way too. I was one of them.

In Miss Atkinss class most of the kids were for Nixon. I remember David Leopoulos defending him on the grounds that he had far more experience than Kennedy, especially in foreign affairs, and that his civil rights record was pretty good, which was true. I didnt really have anything against Nixon at this point. I didnt know then about his Red-baiting campaigns for the House and Senate in California against Jerry Voorhis and Helen Gahagan Douglas, respectively. I liked the way he stood up to Nikita Khrushchev. In 1956, I had admired both Eisenhower and Stevenson, but by 1960, I was a partisan90. I had been for LBJ in the primaries because of his Senate leadership, especially in passing a civil rights bill in 1957, and his poor southern roots. I also liked Hubert Humphrey, because he was the most passionate91 advocate for civil rights, and Kennedy, because of his youth, strength, and commitment to getting the country moving again. With Kennedy the nominee, I made the best case I could to my classmates.

I badly wanted him to win, especially after he called Coretta King to express his concern when her husband was jailed, and after he spoke92 to the Southern Baptists in Houston, defending his faith and the right of Catholic Americans to run for President. Most of my classmates, and their parents, disagreed. I was getting used to it. A few months earlier, I had lost the student council presidents race to Mike Thomas, a good guy, who would be one of four classmates to be killed in Vietnam. Nixon carried our county, but Kennedy squeaked93 by in Arkansas with 50.2 percent of the vote, despite the best efforts of Protestant fundamentalists to convince Baptist Democrats that he would be taking orders from the pope.

Of course, the fact that he was a Catholic was one of the reasons I wanted Kennedy to be President. From my own experiences at St. Johns School and my encounters with the nuns94 who worked with Mother at St. Josephs Hospital, I liked and admired Catholicstheir values, devotion, and social conscience. I was also proud that the only Arkansan ever to run for national office, Senator Joe T. Robinson, was the running mate of the first Catholic candidate for President, Governor Al Smith of New York, in 1928. Like Kennedy, Smith carried Arkansas, thanks to Robinson.

Given my affinity95 for Catholics, its ironic96 that, besides music, my major extracurricular interest from ninth grade on was the Order of DeMolay, a boys organization sponsored by the Masons. I always thought the Masons and DeMolays were anti-Catholic, though I didnt understand why. DeMolay was, after all, a pre-Reformation martyr97 who died a believer at the hands of the Spanish Inquisition. It was not until I was doing research for this book that I learned that the Catholic Church had condemned98 Masons going back to the early eighteenth century as a dangerous authority-threatening institution, while the Masons dont ban people of any faith and, in fact, have had a few Catholic members.

The purpose of DeMolay was to foster personal and civic99 virtues100 and friendship among its members. I enjoyed the camaraderie101, memorizing all the parts of the rituals, moving up the offices to be master counselor102 of my local chapter, and going to the state conventions, with their vigorous politics and parties with the Rainbow Girls, DeMolays sister organization. I learned more about politics by participating in the state DeMolay election, though I never ran myself. The cleverest man I supported for state master counselor was Bill Ebbert of Jonesboro. Ebbert would have made a great mayor or congressional committee chairman in the old days when seniority ruled. He was funny, smart, tough, and as good at deal making as LBJ. Once he was barreling down an Arkansas highway at ninety-five miles per hour when a state police car, with siren screaming, gave chase. Ebbert had a shortwave radio, so he called the police to report a serious car wreck103 three miles behind. The police car got the message and quickly changed direction, leaving the speeding Ebbert home free. I wonder if the policeman ever figured it out.

Even though I enjoyed DeMolay, I didnt buy the idea that its secret rituals were a big deal that somehow made our lives more important. After I graduated out of DeMolay, I didnt follow a long line of distinguished104 Americans going back to George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, and Paul Revere50 into Masonry105, probably because in my twenties I was in an anti-joining phase, and I didnt like what I mistakenly thought was Masonrys latent anti-Catholicism, or the segregation of blacks and whites into different branches (though when I was exposed to black Prince Hall Masonic conventions as governor, the members seemed to be having more fun on their own than the Masons I had known).

Besides, I didnt need to be in a secret fraternity to have secrets. I had real secrets of my own, rooted in Daddys alcoholism and abuse. They got worse when I was fourteen and in the ninth grade and my brother was only four. One night Daddy closed the door to his bedroom, started screaming at Mother, then began to hit her. Little Roger was scared, just as I had been nine years earlier on the night of the gunshot. Finally, I couldnt bear the thought of Mother being hurt and Roger being frightened anymore. I grabbed a golf club out of my bag and threw open their door. Mother was on the floor and Daddy was standing over her, beating on her. I told him to stop and said that if he didnt I was going to beat the hell out of him with the golf club. He just caved, sitting down in a chair next to the bed and hanging his head. It made me sick. In her book, Mother says she called the police and had Daddy taken to jail for the night. I dont remember that, but I do know we didnt have any more trouble for a good while. I suppose I was proud of myself for standing up for Mother, but afterward I was sad about it, too. I just couldnt accept the fact that a basically good person would try to make his own pain go away by hurting someone else. I wish Id had someone to talk with about all this, but I didnt, so I had to figure it out for myself.

I came to accept the secrets of our house as a normal part of my life. I never talked to anyone about themnot a friend, a neighbor, a teacher, a pastor. Many years later when I ran for President, several of my friends told reporters they never knew. Of course, as with most secrets, some people did know. Daddy couldnt be on good behavior with everyone but us, though he tried. Whoever else knewfamily members, Mothers close friends, a couple of policemendidnt mention it to me, so I thought I had a real secret and kept quiet about it. Our family policy was dont ask, dont tell.

The only other secret I had in grade school and junior high was sending part of my allowance to Billy Graham after his Little Rock crusade. I never told my parents or friends about that, either. Once when I was on my way to the mailbox near our driveway off Circle Drive with my money for Billy, I saw Daddy working in the backyard. To avoid being seen, I went out the front down to Park Avenue, turned right, and cut back through the driveway of the Perry Plaza106 Motel next door. Our house was on a hill. Perry Plaza was on flat land below. When I got about halfway107 through the drive, Daddy looked down and saw me anyway with the letter in my hand. I proceeded to the mailbox, put the letter in, and came home. He must have wondered what I was doing, but he didnt ask. He never did. I guess he had enough secrets of his own to carry.

The question of secrets is one Ive thought about a lot over the years. We all have them and I think were entitled to them. They make our lives more interesting, and when we decide to share them, our relationships become more meaningful. The place where secrets are kept can also provide a haven108, a retreat from the rest of the world, where ones identity can be shaped and reaffirmed, where being alone can bring security and peace. Still, secrets can be an awful burden to bear, especially if some sense of shame is attached to them, even if the source of the shame is not the secret holder. Or the allure109 of our secrets can be too strong, strong enough to make us feel we cant110 live without them, that we wouldnt even be who we are without them.

Of course, I didnt begin to understand all this back when I became a secret-keeper. I didnt even give it much thought then. I have a good memory of so much of my childhood, but I dont trust my memory to tell me exactly what I knew about all this and when I knew it. I know only that it became a struggle for me to find the right balance between secrets of internal richness and those of hidden fears and shame, and that I was always reluctant to discuss with anyone the most difficult parts of my personal life, including a major spiritual crisis I had at the age of thirteen, when my faith was too weak to sustain a certain belief in God in the face of what I was witnessing and going through. I now know this struggle is at least partly the result of growing up in an alcoholic111 home and the mechanisms112 I developed to cope with it. It took me a long time just to figure that out. It was even harder to learn which secrets to keep, which to let go of, which to avoid in the first place. I am still not sure I understand that completely. It looks as if its going to be a lifetime project.


点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 auspicious vu8zs     
adj.吉利的;幸运的,吉兆的
参考例句:
  • The publication of my first book was an auspicious beginning of my career.我的第一本书的出版是我事业吉祥的开始。
  • With favorable weather conditions it was an auspicious moment to set sail.风和日丽,正是扬帆出海的黄道吉日。
2 buffalo 1Sby4     
n.(北美)野牛;(亚洲)水牛
参考例句:
  • Asian buffalo isn't as wild as that of America's. 亚洲水牛比美洲水牛温顺些。
  • The boots are made of buffalo hide. 这双靴子是由水牛皮制成的。
3 mantle Y7tzs     
n.斗篷,覆罩之物,罩子;v.罩住,覆盖,脸红
参考例句:
  • The earth had donned her mantle of brightest green.大地披上了苍翠欲滴的绿色斗篷。
  • The mountain was covered with a mantle of snow.山上覆盖着一层雪。
4 cardinals 8aa3d7ed97d6793c87fe821585838a4a     
红衣主教( cardinal的名词复数 ); 红衣凤头鸟(见于北美,雄鸟为鲜红色); 基数
参考例句:
  • cardinals in scarlet robes 身披红袍的枢机主教
  • A conclave of cardinals was held to elect the new Pope. 红衣主教团举行了秘密会议来选举新教皇。
5 democrat Xmkzf     
n.民主主义者,民主人士;民主党党员
参考例句:
  • The Democrat and the Public criticized each other.民主党人和共和党人互相攻击。
  • About two years later,he was defeated by Democrat Jimmy Carter.大约两年后,他被民主党人杰米卡特击败。
6 democrats 655beefefdcaf76097d489a3ff245f76     
n.民主主义者,民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
  • The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》
7 clement AVhyV     
adj.仁慈的;温和的
参考例句:
  • A clement judge reduced his sentence.一位仁慈的法官为他减了刑。
  • The planet's history contains many less stable and clement eras than the holocene.地球的历史包含着许多不如全新世稳定与温和的地质时期。
8 nomination BHMxw     
n.提名,任命,提名权
参考例句:
  • John is favourite to get the nomination for club president.约翰最有希望被提名为俱乐部主席。
  • Few people pronounced for his nomination.很少人表示赞成他的提名。
9 eventual AnLx8     
adj.最后的,结局的,最终的
参考例句:
  • Several schools face eventual closure.几所学校面临最终关闭。
  • Both parties expressed optimism about an eventual solution.双方对问题的最终解决都表示乐观。
10 gores 92755583198755a2cc9433e31a3d1695     
n.(动物)用角撞伤,用牙刺破( gore的名词复数 )v.(动物)用角撞伤,用牙刺破( gore的第三人称单数 )
参考例句:
  • This bull gores people. 这牛爱顶人。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
  • Prometheus periodically gores the F ring drawing out streamers of material from the ring. 普罗米修斯周期性的F环触的彩带,从材料的戒指。 来自互联网
11 nominee FHLxv     
n.被提名者;被任命者;被推荐者
参考例句:
  • His nominee for vice president was elected only after a second ballot.他提名的副总统在两轮投票后才当选。
  • Mr.Francisco is standing as the official nominee for the post of District Secretary.弗朗西斯科先生是行政书记职位的正式提名人。
12 eloquence 6mVyM     
n.雄辩;口才,修辞
参考例句:
  • I am afraid my eloquence did not avail against the facts.恐怕我的雄辩也无补于事实了。
  • The people were charmed by his eloquence.人们被他的口才迷住了。
13 paramount fL9xz     
a.最重要的,最高权力的
参考例句:
  • My paramount object is to save the Union and destroy slavery.我的最高目标是拯救美国,摧毁奴隶制度。
  • Nitrogen is of paramount importance to life on earth.氮对地球上的生命至关重要。
14 ram dTVxg     
(random access memory)随机存取存储器
参考例句:
  • 512k RAM is recommended and 640k RAM is preferred.推荐配置为512K内存,640K内存则更佳。
15 lash a2oxR     
v.系牢;鞭打;猛烈抨击;n.鞭打;眼睫毛
参考例句:
  • He received a lash of her hand on his cheek.他突然被她打了一记耳光。
  • With a lash of its tail the tiger leaped at her.老虎把尾巴一甩朝她扑过来。
16 legendary u1Vxg     
adj.传奇(中)的,闻名遐迩的;n.传奇(文学)
参考例句:
  • Legendary stories are passed down from parents to children.传奇故事是由父母传给孩子们的。
  • Odysseus was a legendary Greek hero.奥狄修斯是传说中的希腊英雄。
17 remains 1kMzTy     
n.剩余物,残留物;遗体,遗迹
参考例句:
  • He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
  • The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。
18 saccharine TYtxo     
adj.奉承的,讨好的
参考例句:
  • She smiled with saccharine sweetness.她的笑里只有虚情假意的甜蜜。
  • I found the film far too saccharine.我觉得这部电影太缠绵了。
19 epics a6d7b651e63ea6619a4e096bc4fb9453     
n.叙事诗( epic的名词复数 );壮举;惊人之举;史诗般的电影(或书籍)
参考例句:
  • one of the great Hindu epics 伟大的印度教史诗之一
  • Homer Iliad and Milton's Paradise Lost are epics. 荷马的《伊利亚特》和弥尔顿的《失乐园》是史诗。 来自互联网
20 dime SuQxv     
n.(指美国、加拿大的钱币)一角
参考例句:
  • A dime is a tenth of a dollar.一角银币是十分之一美元。
  • The liberty torch is on the back of the dime.自由火炬在一角硬币的反面。
21 virulent 1HtyK     
adj.有毒的,有恶意的,充满敌意的
参考例句:
  • She is very virulent about her former employer.她对她过去的老板恨之入骨。
  • I stood up for her despite the virulent criticism.尽管她遭到恶毒的批评,我还是维护她。
22 legislative K9hzG     
n.立法机构,立法权;adj.立法的,有立法权的
参考例句:
  • Congress is the legislative branch of the U.S. government.国会是美国政府的立法部门。
  • Today's hearing was just the first step in the legislative process.今天的听证会只是展开立法程序的第一步。
23 relatively bkqzS3     
adv.比较...地,相对地
参考例句:
  • The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
  • The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。
24 woes 887656d87afcd3df018215107a0daaab     
困境( woe的名词复数 ); 悲伤; 我好苦哇; 某人就要倒霉
参考例句:
  • Thanks for listening to my woes. 谢谢您听我诉说不幸的遭遇。
  • She has cried the blues about its financial woes. 对于经济的困难她叫苦不迭。
25 marital SBixg     
adj.婚姻的,夫妻的
参考例句:
  • Her son had no marital problems.她的儿子没有婚姻问题。
  • I regret getting involved with my daughter's marital problems;all its done is to bring trouble about my ears.我后悔干涉我女儿的婚姻问题, 现在我所做的一切将给我带来无穷的烦恼。
26 strife NrdyZ     
n.争吵,冲突,倾轧,竞争
参考例句:
  • We do not intend to be drawn into the internal strife.我们不想卷入内乱之中。
  • Money is a major cause of strife in many marriages.金钱是造成很多婚姻不和的一个主要原因。
27 appreciation Pv9zs     
n.评价;欣赏;感谢;领会,理解;价格上涨
参考例句:
  • I would like to express my appreciation and thanks to you all.我想对你们所有人表达我的感激和谢意。
  • I'll be sending them a donation in appreciation of their help.我将送给他们一笔捐款以感谢他们的帮助。
28 socialist jwcws     
n.社会主义者;adj.社会主义的
参考例句:
  • China is a socialist country,and a developing country as well.中国是一个社会主义国家,也是一个发展中国家。
  • His father was an ardent socialist.他父亲是一个热情的社会主义者。
29 integration G5Pxk     
n.一体化,联合,结合
参考例句:
  • We are working to bring about closer political integration in the EU.我们正在努力实现欧盟內部更加紧密的政治一体化。
  • This was the greatest event in the annals of European integration.这是欧洲统一史上最重大的事件。
30 racist GSRxZ     
n.种族主义者,种族主义分子
参考例句:
  • a series of racist attacks 一连串的种族袭击行为
  • His speech presented racist ideas under the guise of nationalism. 他的讲话以民族主义为幌子宣扬种族主义思想。
31 epithets 3ed932ca9694f47aefeec59fbc8ef64e     
n.(表示性质、特征等的)词语( epithet的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • He insulted me, using rude epithets. 他用粗话诅咒我。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • He cursed me, using a lot of rude epithets. 他用上许多粗鲁的修饰词来诅咒我。 来自辞典例句
32 apparently tMmyQ     
adv.显然地;表面上,似乎
参考例句:
  • An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽,豁然开朗。
  • He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。
33 inflicted cd6137b3bb7ad543500a72a112c6680f     
把…强加给,使承受,遭受( inflict的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • They inflicted a humiliating defeat on the home team. 他们使主队吃了一场很没面子的败仗。
  • Zoya heroically bore the torture that the Fascists inflicted upon her. 卓娅英勇地承受法西斯匪徒加在她身上的酷刑。
34 lasting IpCz02     
adj.永久的,永恒的;vbl.持续,维持
参考例句:
  • The lasting war debased the value of the dollar.持久的战争使美元贬值。
  • We hope for a lasting settlement of all these troubles.我们希望这些纠纷能获得永久的解决。
35 bumpers 7d5b5b22a65f6e2373ff339bbd46e3ec     
(汽车上的)保险杠,缓冲器( bumper的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • Our bumpers just grazed (ie touched each other) as we passed. 我们错车时保险互相蹭了一下。
  • Car stickers can be attached to the bumpers or windows. 汽车贴纸可以贴在防撞杆上或车窗上。
36 mansion 8BYxn     
n.大厦,大楼;宅第
参考例句:
  • The old mansion was built in 1850.这座古宅建于1850年。
  • The mansion has extensive grounds.这大厦四周的庭园广阔。
37 harassment weNxI     
n.骚扰,扰乱,烦恼,烦乱
参考例句:
  • She often got telephone harassment at night these days.这些天她经常在夜晚受到电话骚扰。
  • The company prohibits any form of harassment.公司禁止任何形式的骚扰行为。
38 taunted df22a7ddc6dcf3131756443dea95d149     
嘲讽( taunt的过去式和过去分词 ); 嘲弄; 辱骂; 奚落
参考例句:
  • The other kids continually taunted him about his size. 其他孩子不断地耻笑他的个头儿。
  • Some of the girls taunted her about her weight. 有些女孩子笑她胖。
39 initiated 9cd5622f36ab9090359c3cf3ca4ddda3     
n. 创始人 adj. 新加入的 vt. 开始,创始,启蒙,介绍加入
参考例句:
  • He has not yet been thoroughly initiated into the mysteries of computers. 他对计算机的奥秘尚未入门。
  • The artist initiated the girl into the art world in France. 这个艺术家介绍这个女孩加入巴黎艺术界。
40 shackles 91740de5ccb43237ed452a2a2676e023     
手铐( shackle的名词复数 ); 脚镣; 束缚; 羁绊
参考例句:
  • a country struggling to free itself from the shackles of colonialism 为摆脱殖民主义的枷锁而斗争的国家
  • The cars of the train are coupled together by shackles. 火车的车厢是用钩链连接起来的。
41 segregation SESys     
n.隔离,种族隔离
参考例句:
  • Many school boards found segregation a hot potato in the early 1960s.在60年代初,许多学校部门都觉得按水平分班是一个棘手的问题。
  • They were tired to death of segregation and of being kicked around.他们十分厌恶种族隔离和总是被人踢来踢去。
42 afterward fK6y3     
adv.后来;以后
参考例句:
  • Let's go to the theatre first and eat afterward. 让我们先去看戏,然后吃饭。
  • Afterward,the boy became a very famous artist.后来,这男孩成为一个很有名的艺术家。
43 luxurious S2pyv     
adj.精美而昂贵的;豪华的
参考例句:
  • This is a luxurious car complete with air conditioning and telephone.这是一辆附有空调设备和电话的豪华轿车。
  • The rich man lives in luxurious surroundings.这位富人生活在奢侈的环境中。
44 remarkable 8Vbx6     
adj.显著的,异常的,非凡的,值得注意的
参考例句:
  • She has made remarkable headway in her writing skills.她在写作技巧方面有了长足进步。
  • These cars are remarkable for the quietness of their engines.这些汽车因发动机没有噪音而不同凡响。
45 constable wppzG     
n.(英国)警察,警官
参考例句:
  • The constable conducted the suspect to the police station.警官把嫌疑犯带到派出所。
  • The constable kept his temper,and would not be provoked.那警察压制着自己的怒气,不肯冒起火来。
46 trophy 8UFzI     
n.优胜旗,奖品,奖杯,战胜品,纪念品
参考例句:
  • The cup is a cherished trophy of the company.那只奖杯是该公司很珍惜的奖品。
  • He hung the lion's head as a trophy.他把那狮子头挂起来作为狩猎纪念品。
47 impersonal Ck6yp     
adj.无个人感情的,与个人无关的,非人称的
参考例句:
  • Even his children found him strangely distant and impersonal.他的孩子们也认为他跟其他人很疏远,没有人情味。
  • His manner seemed rather stiff and impersonal.他的态度似乎很生硬冷淡。
48 auditorium HO6yK     
n.观众席,听众席;会堂,礼堂
参考例句:
  • The teacher gathered all the pupils in the auditorium.老师把全体同学集合在礼堂内。
  • The stage is thrust forward into the auditorium.舞台向前突出,伸入观众席。
49 dispersed b24c637ca8e58669bce3496236c839fa     
adj. 被驱散的, 被分散的, 散布的
参考例句:
  • The clouds dispersed themselves. 云散了。
  • After school the children dispersed to their homes. 放学后,孩子们四散回家了。
50 revere qBVzT     
vt.尊崇,崇敬,敬畏
参考例句:
  • Students revere the old professors.学生们十分尊敬那些老教授。
  • The Chinese revered corn as a gift from heaven.中国人将谷物奉为上天的恩赐。
51 segregated 457728413c6a2574f2f2e154d5b8d101     
分开的; 被隔离的
参考例句:
  • a culture in which women are segregated from men 妇女受到隔离歧视的文化
  • The doctor segregated the child sick with scarlet fever. 大夫把患猩红热的孩子隔离起来。
52 trademark Xndw8     
n.商标;特征;vt.注册的…商标
参考例句:
  • The trademark is registered on the book of the Patent Office.该商标已在专利局登记注册。
  • The trademark of the pen was changed.这钢笔的商标改了。
53 Christians 28e6e30f94480962cc721493f76ca6c6     
n.基督教徒( Christian的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • Christians of all denominations attended the conference. 基督教所有教派的人都出席了这次会议。
  • His novel about Jesus caused a furore among Christians. 他关于耶稣的小说激起了基督教徒的公愤。
54 aisles aisles     
n. (席位间的)通道, 侧廊
参考例句:
  • Aisles were added to the original Saxon building in the Norman period. 在诺曼时期,原来的萨克森风格的建筑物都增添了走廊。
  • They walked about the Abbey aisles, and presently sat down. 他们走到大教堂的走廊附近,并且很快就坐了下来。
55 sweeping ihCzZ4     
adj.范围广大的,一扫无遗的
参考例句:
  • The citizens voted for sweeping reforms.公民投票支持全面的改革。
  • Can you hear the wind sweeping through the branches?你能听到风掠过树枝的声音吗?
56 ministry kD5x2     
n.(政府的)部;牧师
参考例句:
  • They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
  • We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。
57 pastor h3Ozz     
n.牧师,牧人
参考例句:
  • He was the son of a poor pastor.他是一个穷牧师的儿子。
  • We have no pastor at present:the church is run by five deacons.我们目前没有牧师:教会的事是由五位执事管理的。
58 wont peXzFP     
adj.习惯于;v.习惯;n.习惯
参考例句:
  • He was wont to say that children are lazy.他常常说小孩子们懒惰。
  • It is his wont to get up early.早起是他的习惯。
59 ensemble 28GyV     
n.合奏(唱)组;全套服装;整体,总效果
参考例句:
  • We should consider the buildings as an ensemble.我们应把那些建筑物视作一个整体。
  • It is ensemble music for up to about ten players,with one player to a part.它是最多十人演奏的合奏音乐,每人担任一部分。
60 majestic GAZxK     
adj.雄伟的,壮丽的,庄严的,威严的,崇高的
参考例句:
  • In the distance rose the majestic Alps.远处耸立着雄伟的阿尔卑斯山。
  • He looks majestic in uniform.他穿上军装显得很威风。
61 determined duszmP     
adj.坚定的;有决心的
参考例句:
  • I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
  • He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。
62 decided lvqzZd     
adj.决定了的,坚决的;明显的,明确的
参考例句:
  • This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
  • There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。
63 appropriation ON7ys     
n.拨款,批准支出
参考例句:
  • Our government made an appropriation for the project.我们的政府为那个工程拨出一笔款项。
  • The council could note an annual appropriation for this service.议会可以为这项服务表决给他一笔常年经费。
64 reminder WkzzTb     
n.提醒物,纪念品;暗示,提示
参考例句:
  • I have had another reminder from the library.我又收到图书馆的催还单。
  • It always took a final reminder to get her to pay her share of the rent.总是得发给她一份最后催缴通知,她才付应该交的房租。
65 dub PmEyG     
vt.(以某种称号)授予,给...起绰号,复制
参考例句:
  • I intend to use simultaneous recording to dub this film.我打算采用同期录音的方法为这部影片配音。
  • It was dubbed into Spanish for Mexican audiences.它被译制成西班牙语以方便墨西哥观众观看。
66 skeptical MxHwn     
adj.怀疑的,多疑的
参考例句:
  • Others here are more skeptical about the chances for justice being done.这里的其他人更为怀疑正义能否得到伸张。
  • Her look was skeptical and resigned.她的表情是将信将疑而又无可奈何。
67 moody XEXxG     
adj.心情不稳的,易怒的,喜怒无常的
参考例句:
  • He relapsed into a moody silence.他又重新陷于忧郁的沉默中。
  • I'd never marry that girl.She's so moody.我决不会和那女孩结婚的。她太易怒了。
68 algebra MKRyW     
n.代数学
参考例句:
  • He was not good at algebra in middle school.他中学时不擅长代数。
  • The boy can't figure out the algebra problems.这个男孩做不出这道代数题。
69 calculus Is9zM     
n.微积分;结石
参考例句:
  • This is a problem where calculus won't help at all.对于这一题,微积分一点也用不上。
  • After studying differential calculus you will be able to solve these mathematical problems.学了微积分之后,你们就能够解这些数学题了。
70 helping 2rGzDc     
n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的,辅助的
参考例句:
  • The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
  • By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。
71 retired Njhzyv     
adj.隐退的,退休的,退役的
参考例句:
  • The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
  • Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。
72 holder wc4xq     
n.持有者,占有者;(台,架等)支持物
参考例句:
  • The holder of the office of chairman is reponsible for arranging meetings.担任主席职位的人负责安排会议。
  • That runner is the holder of the world record for the hundred-yard dash.那位运动员是一百码赛跑世界纪录的保持者。
73 peculiar cinyo     
adj.古怪的,异常的;特殊的,特有的
参考例句:
  • He walks in a peculiar fashion.他走路的样子很奇特。
  • He looked at me with a very peculiar expression.他用一种很奇怪的表情看着我。
74 affected TzUzg0     
adj.不自然的,假装的
参考例句:
  • She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
  • His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。
75 standing 2hCzgo     
n.持续,地位;adj.永久的,不动的,直立的,不流动的
参考例句:
  • After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
  • They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。
76 destined Dunznz     
adj.命中注定的;(for)以…为目的地的
参考例句:
  • It was destined that they would marry.他们结婚是缘分。
  • The shipment is destined for America.这批货物将运往美国。
77 hoods c7f425b95a130f8e5c065ebce960d6f5     
n.兜帽( hood的名词复数 );头巾;(汽车、童车等的)折合式车篷;汽车发动机罩v.兜帽( hood的第三人称单数 );头巾;(汽车、童车等的)折合式车篷;汽车发动机罩
参考例句:
  • Michael looked at the four hoods sitting in the kitchen. 迈克尔瞅了瞅坐在厨房里的四条汉子。 来自教父部分
  • Eskimos wear hoods to keep their heads warm. 爱斯基摩人戴兜帽使头暖和。 来自辞典例句
78 flicked 7c535fef6da8b8c191b1d1548e9e790a     
(尤指用手指或手快速地)轻击( flick的过去式和过去分词 ); (用…)轻挥; (快速地)按开关; 向…笑了一下(或瞥了一眼等)
参考例句:
  • She flicked the dust off her collar. 她轻轻弹掉了衣领上的灰尘。
  • I idly picked up a magazine and flicked through it. 我漫不经心地拿起一本杂志翻看着。
79 taunting ee4ff0e688e8f3c053c7fbb58609ef58     
嘲讽( taunt的现在分词 ); 嘲弄; 辱骂; 奚落
参考例句:
  • She wagged a finger under his nose in a taunting gesture. 她当着他的面嘲弄地摇晃着手指。
  • His taunting inclination subdued for a moment by the old man's grief and wildness. 老人的悲伤和狂乱使他那嘲弄的意图暂时收敛起来。
80 buddies ea4cd9ed8ce2973de7d893f64efe0596     
n.密友( buddy的名词复数 );同伴;弟兄;(用于称呼男子,常带怒气)家伙v.(如密友、战友、伙伴、弟兄般)交往( buddy的第三人称单数 );做朋友;亲近(…);伴护艾滋病人
参考例句:
  • We became great buddies. 我们成了非常好的朋友。 来自辞典例句
  • The two of them have become great buddies. 他们俩成了要好的朋友。 来自辞典例句
81 unleash bjewz     
vt.发泄,发出;解带子放开
参考例句:
  • They hope to create allies to unleash against diseases,pests,and invasive species.他们希望创造出一些新群体来对付疾病、害虫和一些有侵害性的物种。
  • Changing water levels now at times unleash a miasma of disease from exposed sewage.如今,大坝不时地改变水位,从暴露的污水释放出了疾病瘴气。
82 bowling cxjzeN     
n.保龄球运动
参考例句:
  • Bowling is a popular sport with young and old.保龄球是老少都爱的运动。
  • Which sport do you 1ike most,golf or bowling?你最喜欢什么运动,高尔夫还是保龄球?
83 alley Cx2zK     
n.小巷,胡同;小径,小路
参考例句:
  • We live in the same alley.我们住在同一条小巷里。
  • The blind alley ended in a brick wall.这条死胡同的尽头是砖墙。
84 jaw 5xgy9     
n.颚,颌,说教,流言蜚语;v.喋喋不休,教训
参考例句:
  • He delivered a right hook to his opponent's jaw.他给了对方下巴一记右钩拳。
  • A strong square jaw is a sign of firm character.强健的方下巴是刚毅性格的标志。
85 amazement 7zlzBK     
n.惊奇,惊讶
参考例句:
  • All those around him looked at him with amazement.周围的人都对他投射出惊异的眼光。
  • He looked at me in blank amazement.他带着迷茫惊诧的神情望着我。
86 aggression WKjyF     
n.进攻,侵略,侵犯,侵害
参考例句:
  • So long as we are firmly united, we need fear no aggression.只要我们紧密地团结,就不必惧怕外来侵略。
  • Her view is that aggression is part of human nature.她认为攻击性是人类本性的一部份。
87 swelled bd4016b2ddc016008c1fc5827f252c73     
增强( swell的过去式和过去分词 ); 肿胀; (使)凸出; 充满(激情)
参考例句:
  • The infection swelled his hand. 由于感染,他的手肿了起来。
  • After the heavy rain the river swelled. 大雨过后,河水猛涨。
88 unemployed lfIz5Q     
adj.失业的,没有工作的;未动用的,闲置的
参考例句:
  • There are now over four million unemployed workers in this country.这个国家现有四百万失业人员。
  • The unemployed hunger for jobs.失业者渴望得到工作。
89 harry heBxS     
vt.掠夺,蹂躏,使苦恼
参考例句:
  • Today,people feel more hurried and harried.今天,人们感到更加忙碌和苦恼。
  • Obama harried business by Healthcare Reform plan.奥巴马用医改掠夺了商界。
90 partisan w4ZzY     
adj.党派性的;游击队的;n.游击队员;党徒
参考例句:
  • In their anger they forget all the partisan quarrels.愤怒之中,他们忘掉一切党派之争。
  • The numerous newly created partisan detachments began working slowly towards that region.许多新建的游击队都开始慢慢地向那里移动。
91 passionate rLDxd     
adj.热情的,热烈的,激昂的,易动情的,易怒的,性情暴躁的
参考例句:
  • He is said to be the most passionate man.据说他是最有激情的人。
  • He is very passionate about the project.他对那个项目非常热心。
92 spoke XryyC     
n.(车轮的)辐条;轮辐;破坏某人的计划;阻挠某人的行动 v.讲,谈(speak的过去式);说;演说;从某种观点来说
参考例句:
  • They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
  • The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。
93 squeaked edcf2299d227f1137981c7570482c7f7     
v.短促地尖叫( squeak的过去式和过去分词 );吱吱叫;告密;充当告密者
参考例句:
  • The radio squeaked five. 收音机里嘟嘟地发出五点钟报时讯号。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
  • Amy's shoes squeaked on the tiles as she walked down the corridor. 埃米走过走廊时,鞋子踩在地砖上嘎吱作响。 来自辞典例句
94 nuns ce03d5da0bb9bc79f7cd2b229ef14d4a     
n.(通常指基督教的)修女, (佛教的)尼姑( nun的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • Ah Q had always had the greatest contempt for such people as little nuns. 小尼姑之流是阿Q本来视如草芥的。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
  • Nuns are under vows of poverty, chastity and obedience. 修女须立誓保持清贫、贞洁、顺从。 来自辞典例句
95 affinity affinity     
n.亲和力,密切关系
参考例句:
  • I felt a great affinity with the people of the Highlands.我被苏格兰高地人民深深地吸引。
  • It's important that you share an affinity with your husband.和丈夫有共同的爱好是十分重要的。
96 ironic 1atzm     
adj.讽刺的,有讽刺意味的,出乎意料的
参考例句:
  • That is a summary and ironic end.那是一个具有概括性和讽刺意味的结局。
  • People used to call me Mr Popularity at high school,but they were being ironic.人们中学时常把我称作“万人迷先生”,但他们是在挖苦我。
97 martyr o7jzm     
n.烈士,殉难者;vt.杀害,折磨,牺牲
参考例句:
  • The martyr laid down his life for the cause of national independence.这位烈士是为了民族独立的事业而献身的。
  • The newspaper carried the martyr's photo framed in black.报上登载了框有黑边的烈士遗像。
98 condemned condemned     
adj. 被责难的, 被宣告有罪的 动词condemn的过去式和过去分词
参考例句:
  • He condemned the hypocrisy of those politicians who do one thing and say another. 他谴责了那些说一套做一套的政客的虚伪。
  • The policy has been condemned as a regressive step. 这项政策被认为是一种倒退而受到谴责。
99 civic Fqczn     
adj.城市的,都市的,市民的,公民的
参考例句:
  • I feel it is my civic duty to vote.我认为投票选举是我作为公民的义务。
  • The civic leaders helped to forward the project.市政府领导者协助促进工程的进展。
100 virtues cd5228c842b227ac02d36dd986c5cd53     
美德( virtue的名词复数 ); 德行; 优点; 长处
参考例句:
  • Doctors often extol the virtues of eating less fat. 医生常常宣扬少吃脂肪的好处。
  • She delivered a homily on the virtues of family life. 她进行了一场家庭生活美德方面的说教。
101 camaraderie EspzQ     
n.同志之爱,友情
参考例句:
  • The camaraderie among fellow employees made the tedious work just bearable.同事之间的情谊使枯燥乏味的工作变得还能忍受。
  • Some bosses are formal and have occasional interactions,while others prefer continual camaraderie.有些老板很刻板,偶尔才和下属互动一下;有些则喜欢和下属打成一片。
102 counselor czlxd     
n.顾问,法律顾问
参考例句:
  • The counselor gave us some disinterested advice.顾问给了我们一些无私的忠告。
  • Chinese commercial counselor's office in foreign countries.中国驻国外商务参赞处。
103 wreck QMjzE     
n.失事,遇难;沉船;vt.(船等)失事,遇难
参考例句:
  • Weather may have been a factor in the wreck.天气可能是造成这次失事的原因之一。
  • No one can wreck the friendship between us.没有人能够破坏我们之间的友谊。
104 distinguished wu9z3v     
adj.卓越的,杰出的,著名的
参考例句:
  • Elephants are distinguished from other animals by their long noses.大象以其长长的鼻子显示出与其他动物的不同。
  • A banquet was given in honor of the distinguished guests.宴会是为了向贵宾们致敬而举行的。
105 masonry y21yI     
n.砖土建筑;砖石
参考例句:
  • Masonry is a careful skill.砖石工艺是一种精心的技艺。
  • The masonry of the old building began to crumble.旧楼房的砖石结构开始崩落。
106 plaza v2yzD     
n.广场,市场
参考例句:
  • They designated the new shopping centre York Plaza.他们给这个新购物中心定名为约克购物中心。
  • The plaza is teeming with undercover policemen.这个广场上布满了便衣警察。
107 halfway Xrvzdq     
adj.中途的,不彻底的,部分的;adv.半路地,在中途,在半途
参考例句:
  • We had got only halfway when it began to get dark.走到半路,天就黑了。
  • In study the worst danger is give up halfway.在学习上,最忌讳的是有始无终。
108 haven 8dhzp     
n.安全的地方,避难所,庇护所
参考例句:
  • It's a real haven at the end of a busy working day.忙碌了一整天后,这真是一个安乐窝。
  • The school library is a little haven of peace and quiet.学校的图书馆是一个和平且安静的小避风港。
109 allure 4Vqz9     
n.诱惑力,魅力;vt.诱惑,引诱,吸引
参考例句:
  • The window displays allure customers to buy goods.橱窗陈列品吸引顾客购买货物。
  • The book has a certain allure for which it is hard to find a reason.这本书有一种难以解释的魅力。
110 cant KWAzZ     
n.斜穿,黑话,猛扔
参考例句:
  • The ship took on a dangerous cant to port.船只出现向左舷危险倾斜。
  • He knows thieves'cant.他懂盗贼的黑话。
111 alcoholic rx7zC     
adj.(含)酒精的,由酒精引起的;n.酗酒者
参考例句:
  • The alcoholic strength of brandy far exceeds that of wine.白兰地的酒精浓度远远超过葡萄酒。
  • Alcoholic drinks act as a poison to a child.酒精饮料对小孩犹如毒药。
112 mechanisms d0db71d70348ef1c49f05f59097917b8     
n.机械( mechanism的名词复数 );机械装置;[生物学] 机制;机械作用
参考例句:
  • The research will provide direct insight into molecular mechanisms. 这项研究将使人能够直接地了解分子的机理。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • He explained how the two mechanisms worked. 他解释这两台机械装置是如何工作的。 来自《简明英汉词典》


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