4. Whip Whap Willie

4 Whip Whap Willie "I call this meeting of the Beaver Scouts to order," barked Miss Blake. "We begin and end each meeting with the Beaver Growl." What? Cows moo. Ducks quack. Pigs oink. Beavers... "What sound does a beaver make?"

“我现在宣布海狸侦察兵会议开始，”布莱克小姐厉声说。 “我们每次开会的开始和结束都用海狸的咆哮。” 怎么啦？奶牛牛叫声。鸭子嘎嘎叫。 猪的呼噜声。海狸……“海狸会发出什么声音？”

Ryan whispered. "Beats me," I whispered back. "I didn't even know they made sounds." Miss Blake got down on her hands and knees and started to scurry around on the floor, making weird noises. "Get on the ground!" she barked. "Growl like a busy beaver!" We all got down on the floor and growled. "Okay," Miss Blake said as she jumped up. "It's time for the official Beaver Scout promise. It's very simple. Three little words."

瑞安低声说。“我不知道。”我小声回答。 “我甚至不知道它们会发出声音。” 布莱克小姐趴在地上，开始在地板上跑来跑去，发出奇怪的声音。 “趴在地上！”她吼道。 “像一只忙碌的海狸一样咆哮！”我们都跪在地板上咆哮。 “好吧，”布莱克小姐说着跳了起来。 “是时候做出正式的海狸童子军承诺了。 这很简单。三个小字。”

Miss Blake held up her right hand, closed her eyes, and announced, "Do your duty." We all giggled because Miss Blake said "duty," which sounds just like "doody." It's okay to say "duty," but we're not allowed to say "doody." Nobody knows why. They should really have two different-sounding words for those things. It would make life a lot easier. Next, Miss Blake handed each of us the Beaver Scout Handbook.* "I want you to take this home and memorize it word for word," she barked. "This book could save your life one day." Books? Ugh. Books are boring. I don't even know why you're reading this one. I leafed through the handbook. It had

布莱克小姐举起右手，闭上眼睛，宣布：“履行你的职责。” 我们都咯咯地笑，因为布莱克小姐说了“责任”，听起来就像“便便”。 说“职责”是可以的，但我们不能说“便便” 没人知道为什么。他们真的应该有两个不同发音的词来形容这些东西。 这样生活就轻松多了。 接着，布莱克小姐递给我们每人一本《海狸童子军手册》。“我要你把这个带回家，一字不差地背下来。”她吼道。 “这本书有一天会救你的命。” 书吗?啊。书很无聊。 我都不知道你为什么要读这本书。 我翻阅了一下手册。 它

lots of activities in it—making campfires, tying knots, studying insects, learning about astronomy, tracking weather, boating and canoeing, spelunking... Spelunking? "What's spelunking?" I asked. "Spelunking is exploring caves," said Little Miss I-Know-Everything. That's a weird word. Why don't they just call it exploring caves? Why did they need to invent some dumb word that nobody knows? "As you master activities in your handbook, you earn awards," barked Miss Blake. "First you get a sticker just for trying a new activity." "I love stickers!" shouted Andrea. "Then, as you get better, you'll earn a decal," said Miss Blake, showing us a page in the handbook that had pictures

其中有很多活动——生火、打结、研究昆虫、学习天文学、追踪天气、划船和划独木舟、洞穴探险…… 洞穴探险吗?“洞穴探险是什么?”我问。 “洞穴探险就是探索洞穴，”万事通小姐说。 这是个奇怪的词。他们为什么不直接叫它洞穴探险呢？ 为什么他们要发明一些没人知道的愚蠢的词？ “当你掌握了手册上的活动，你就会获得奖励，”布莱克小姐咆哮道。 “首先，你会因为尝试一项新活动而得到一张贴纸。” “我喜欢贴纸！”安德里亚喊道。 “然后，当你变得更好的时候，你会得到一个贴花，”布莱克小姐说，给我们看了手册上有图片的一页

of decals. "Decals are cool!" said Emily. "After that, you'll earn a ribbon," said Miss Blake. "I like ribbons!" said Alexia. "Then you can earn a badge," said Miss Blake. "I've always wanted a badge!" said Ryan. "Then you'll earn a belt loop," said Miss Blake. Belt loops are metal loops that you put on your belt, so they have the perfect name. "Then you'll earn a certificate," said Miss Blake. "I can put that on my wall!" said Neil. "Then you'll earn a medallion," said Miss Blake.

贴花。“贴花很酷！”艾米丽说。 “然后，你会得到一条缎带，”布莱克小姐说。 “我喜欢丝带！” “那么你就可以获得一枚徽章，”布莱克小姐说。 “我一直想要一个徽章！”瑞恩说。 “那你就能挣到一个皮带环，”布莱克小姐说。 腰带环是你放在腰带上的金属环，所以它们有一个完美的名字。 “那么你将获得一张证书，”布莱克小姐说。 “我可以把它挂在墙上！”尼尔说。 “那你就会得到一枚大奖章。”布莱克小姐说。

"I can hang that around my neck!" said Michael. "Then you'll earn a plaque," said Miss Blake. "I have that on my teeth!" I said. "Not that kind of plaque, dumbhead!" said Andrea. "Oh snap!" said Ryan. All that stuff sounded like a bunch of junk to me. I'd rather win nothing, stay home, and play video games. "Finally," said Miss Blake, "I will award the trophy for the Busy Beaver of the Year." She showed us a picture of a big trophy. "Ooooh," we all oohed. The whole time, Andrea was taking notes in a notebook. She carries a notebook everywhere. Andrea loves winning stuff. She doesn't even care

“我可以把它挂在脖子上！”迈克尔说。 “那你就会得到一块牌匾，”布莱克小姐说。 “我的牙齿上有那个！”我说。 “不是那种牌子，笨蛋！”安德烈说。 “哦，糟糕！”瑞恩说。那些东西对我来说都是废话。 我宁愿什么都不赢，待在家里玩电子游戏。 “最后，”布莱克小姐说，“我将颁发奖杯给年度最佳忙碌海狸。” 她给我们看了一张大奖杯的照片。 “哦，”我们都叫了起来。整个过程中，安德里亚都在笔记本上记笔记。 她到哪儿都带着笔记本。 安德里亚喜欢赢东西。 她根本不在乎