7.秣马厉兵 be combat-ready, (feed the horses and sharpen the weapons) make active preparations for war 两支球队明日决赛，双方都在秣马厉兵，争取拿出最好的表现。 The two teams will play in the finals tomorrow....

4.单枪匹马 do something single-handedly 中锋小宋常常单枪匹马带球冲到敌阵，避过重重围阻射门，且十有九中。 Xiao Song, the center forward, takes the ball single-handedly into the rivals court, dodges all obs...

Only music carried Dad away from his world of tools and projects. On a Sunday drive, he turned the radio on immediately. At red lights, Id notice his foot tapping in time. He seemed to hang on every note. 只有音乐会让爸爸远离他的工...

Shortly after, my lessons began with Mr. Zelli. On my first day, with straps straining my shoulders, I felt clumsy in every way. How did he do? my father asked when it was over. Fine for the first lesson, said Mr. Zelli. Dad glowed with hop...

Gradually, to my surprise, I was able to string notes together and coordinate my hands to play simple songs. Often, after supper, my father would request a tune or two. As he sat in his easy chair, I would fumble through Lady of Spain and B...

One July evening I was giving an almost flawless rendition of Come Back to Sorrento, and my parents called me to an open window. An elderly neighbor, rarely seen outside her house, was leaning against our car humming dreamily to the tune. W...

Such humiliation paled, though, beside the impending fall recital. I would have to play a solo on a local movie theaters stage. I wanted to skip the whole thing. Emotions boiled over in the car one Sunday afternoon. I dont want to play a so...

I was speechless. I had rarely heard Dad speak with such feeling about anything, much less the accordion. From then on, I practiced without my parents making me. 我不吱声了。我很少听到爸爸如此语重心长地跟我谈事情，更...

After the concert Mom and Dad came backstage. The way they walked － heads high, faces flushed － I knew they were pleased. My mother gave me a big hug. Dad slipped an arm around me and held me close. You were just great, he said. Then he...

There it remained, a dusty memory, until one afternoon several years later when my two children discovered it by accident. Scott thought it was a secret treasure; Holly thought a ghost lived inside. They were both right. 手风琴一直放在...