动，但他俩大多数时间也呆在家里。
13 The other requirement is energy -- a lot of it. The way to make self-sufficiency work on a small scale is to resist the temptation to buy a tractor and other expensive laborsaving devices. Instead, you do the work yourself. The only machinery we own (not counting the lawn mower) is a little three-horsepower rotary cultivator and a 16-inch chain saw.
另一项要求是体力――相当大的体力。小范围里实现自给自足的途径是抵制诱惑，不去购置拖拉机和其他昂贵的节省劳力的机械。相反，你要自己动手。我们仅有的机器（不包括割草机）是一台3马力的小型旋转式耕耘机以及一架16英寸的链锯。
14 How much longer we'll have enough energy to stay on here is anybody's guess -- perhaps for quite a while, perhaps not. When the time comes, we'll leave with a feeling of sorrow but also with a sense of pride at what we've been able to accomplish. We should make a fair profit on the sale of the place, too. We've invested about $35,000 of our own money in it, and we could just about double that if we sold today. But this is not a good time to sell. Once economic conditions improve, however, demand for farms
like ours should be strong again.
没人知道我们还能有精力在这里再呆多久--也许呆很长一阵子，也许不是。到走的时候，我们会怆然离去，但也会为自己所做的一切深感自豪。我们把农场出售也会赚相当大一笔钱。我们自己在农场投入了约35，000美金的资金，要是现在售出的话价格差不多可以翻一倍。不过现在不是出售的好时机。但是一旦经济形势好转，对我们这种农场的需求又会增多。
15 We didn't move here primarily to earn money though. We came because we wanted to improve the quality of our lives. When I watch Emily collecting eggs in the evening, fishing with Jim on the river or enjoying an old-fashioned picnic in the orchard with the entire family, I know we've found just what we were looking for.
但我们主要不是为了赚钱而移居至此的。我们来此居住是因为想提高生活质量。当我看着埃米莉傍晚去收鸡蛋，跟吉米一起在河上钓鱼，或和全家人一起在果园里享用老式的野餐，我知道，我们找到了自己一直在寻求的生活方式。
Donna Barron describes how American family life has changed in recent years. She identifies three forces at work. What are they? Read on to find out. Then ask yourself whether similar forces are at work within China. Will
family life here end up going in the same direction? 唐娜·巴伦描述了美国家庭生活近几年来的变化。她指出有三种力量在起作用。是哪三种力量？请读本文。读后问一下自己，同样的力量在中国是否也在起作用。中国的家庭生活最终是否会朝着同一个方向变化？
American Family Life: The Changing Picture
Donna Barron
1 It's another evening in an American household. 美国家庭生活：变化中的景象
唐娜·巴伦
这是美国家庭一个寻常的傍晚。
2 The door swings open at 5:30 sharp. home!In walks dear old Dad, hungry and tired after a long day at the office. He is greeted by Mom in her apron, three happy children, and the aroma of a delicious pot roast.
门在5：30准时推开。“嗨，亲爱的！我回来了！”亲爱的老爸走了进来，他在办公室上了一天的班，肚子饿了，人也累了。迎接他的是系着围裙的妈妈，3个快乐的孩子以及炖肉诱人的香味。
3 After a leisurely meal together, Mom does the dishes. That, after all, is part of her job. The whole family then moves to the living room. There everyone spends the evening playing Scrabble or watching TV.
全家人从容地吃完饭后，妈妈就刷洗碗碟。反正这是她的活。接着全家人聚在起居室。一个晚上大家玩玩牌，看看电视。
4 Then everyone is off to bed. And the next morning Dad and the kids wake up to the sounds and smells of Mom preparing pancakes and sausages for breakfast. 随后各自上床睡觉。第二天早上，爸爸和孩子们在妈妈准备早餐发出的声响和薄饼、香肠散发的香味中醒来。
5 (1) What? You say that doesn't sound like life in your house? Well, you're not alone. In fact, you're probably in the majority. 什么？你说那听起来不像你府上的生活？其实，不仅仅是你一个人这么想。事实上，大多数人很可能都跟你一样这么想的。
6 At one time in America, the above household might have been typical. You can still visit such a home -- on television. Just watch reruns of old situation comedies. (2) Leave it to Beaver, for example, shows Mom doing housework in pearls and high heels. Dad keeps his suit and tie on all weekend. But the families that operate like Beaver Cleaver's are fewer and fewer. They're disappearing because three parts of our lives have changed: the way we work, the way we eat, and the way we entertain ourselves. Becoming aware of the effects of those changes may help us improve family life.
上面描述的家庭可以说在美国曾一度相当典型。如今你仍能见到这样的家庭――不过得在电视里。只要看一看那些重播的情景剧老片子。例如，《交给比弗吧》一剧中妈妈带着珍珠项链、穿着高跟鞋做家务。爸爸整个周末都穿着西装，戴着领带。但像比弗·克立弗那样的家庭越来越少了。那样的家庭正在消失，因为我们生活中的三个部分发生了变化：我们的工作方式，餐饮方式以及娱乐方式。了解这些变化所带来的影响也许有助于我们改善家庭生活。
7 Let's look first at the changes in the way we work.