A man took¹ a pair of shoes to a shoe repair² shop and said³ to the shoemaker, "I'd like you to repair these shoes for me, please."

一个人把一双鞋子拿到一家鞋店，并对修鞋匠说，“请帮我修这双鞋子。”

"Certainly⁴, sir," the shoemaker said.“

当然可以，先生，”鞋匠说。

"When will they be ready?" the man asked.“

什么时候能修好？”那个人问。

"I'm a bit⁵ busy, but they'll be ready for you on Thursday." he said.

我有点忙，但到星期四我会修好鞋子的。”他说

That's fine," the man said, and left the shop.

很好，”那人说，并离开了那家店。

The next morning he received⁶ a letter, offering⁷ him a job in another country. Within⁸ 24 hours he was on an airplane⁹ to his new job.

第二天早上，他收到一封信，提供他一份在国外的工作。24小时内，他登上飞机去接受那份新工作。

Twenty years passed and he returned¹⁰ to his hometown¹¹.

二十年过去了，他回到了故乡。

He remembered his shoes.

他记起了那双鞋。

"They were a good pair of shoes," he thought¹². "I wonder¹³ if the shoemaker is still there and still has them. I'll go and see.擾He was pleased¹⁴ to see that the shoemaker was still in the same shop ,although¹⁵ he was an old man by now.“

那是一双好鞋，”他想，“我想知道鞋匠是否还在那儿，是否还有那双鞋。我要去看看。他很高兴看到鞋匠还在那家店里，虽然他已很老了。

"Good morning," he said to him. "Twenty years ago, I brought¹⁶ in a pair of shoes to be repaired¹⁷. Do you think you've still got¹⁸ them?"

“早上好，”他对鞋匠说，“二十年前，我拿了一双鞋子来修。你记得还有那双鞋吗？”

"Name?" the old shoemaker asked.

名字？”老鞋匠问。

"Smith," the man said.

史密斯，”那人回答。

"I'll go and see. They may be out back.“

我去瞧瞧，或许在后面呢。

The shoemaker went out to the back of his shop -and a few minutes later¹⁹ returned ,carrying the pair of shoes.

鞋匠回到店的后面去，几分钟后又回来了，手里提着那双鞋子

"Here we are," he said. "One pair of brown shoes to be repaired. I'm a bit busy now, but they'll probably²⁰ be ready on Thursday."

“在这呢，”他说，“一双棕色的鞋子要修。我有点忙，但可以到星期四把鞋子修好。