By Nancy
A Fox one day spied a beautiful bunch of ripe grapes hanging from a vine trained along the branches of a tree. The grapes seemed ready to burst with juice, and the Fox’s mouth watered as he gazed longingly at them.
The bunch hung from a high branch, and the Fox had to jump for it. The first time he jumped he missed it by a long way. So he walked off a short distance and took a running leap at it, only to fall short once more. Again and again he tried, but in vain.
“What a fool I am,” he said. “Here I am wearing myself out to get a bunch of sour grapes that are not worth gaping for.”
(Source from read.gov, Library of Congress)
Tongue Twister: Four fluffy foxes fully found fifty flying fairies!
“a vine trained along the branches of a tree” —- 我理解为 “攀绕于树枝上的一茎葡萄” （因为葡萄是攀援植物），“trained along…” 应该是“顺着（树干、树枝）而攀” 的意思。我的理解。🙂
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Thanks for the wonderful episode. I noticed, for the first time, the usage of the phrase “trained along”. Should we gauge its meaning literally? Does “trained along” mean lined-up like a train on a track?
Webster’s dictionary says “to direct the growth of (a plant) usually by bending, pruning, and tying”
That makes sense. Thanks for the lesson