Waking from the Dream 大梦方觉醒（六）

When you see the great ones leave -- not the ones from your childhood, the ones from your crystal-clear adult reference points -- it ages you, too. That is your youth passing, not just theirs. The great ones you saw as a kid, well, they were mythic gods with no human frailties. They might as well have been torn out of the comic book pages. They were superheroes, because you were simply too young to see them as the men they were.

age：这个词我们都很熟悉，是"年龄"的意思，但作动词讲它最基本的意思是"（使）变老，（使）老化"，正如本文中提到的"它也使你变老"。另外它还有"老年；时代，世代"等意思，例如The Chinese people have great respect for age.中国人敬老。石器时代就是"Stone Age"。在口语中还常常表示"很长时间"的意思，比如I haven't seen you for ages.我好久没见到你了。

孩提时代的心中偶像是那么的超凡脱俗，但他们不同。

But the athletic stars of your adulthood were more special, because they were shaped by mature observations. You grew with them. You saw not only their triumphs and shortcomings, but learned a great deal about their character by the way they handled those moments. You were able to understand it wasn't only about flamboyant dunks and stylish, midair body control (though that inevitably caught your eye). What captured your fancy was not only the style, but the substance they contributed to the game.

triumph：胜利；得胜It was the triumph of civilization over mere force.这是文明战胜了蛮力。胜利或成功引起的欢欣He brought home the prize in triumph.他得意洋洋地捧回奖品。The victor marched off in triumph.胜利者得意而归。to return home in triumph凯旋return in triumph胜利归来a triumph for justice正义的胜利胜利；成功We triumphed over all other teams.我们胜过其他队伍。Right will triumph over wrong.邪不胜正。

他们伴随着你成长，你不仅耳闻目睹了他们的阴晴圆缺和卓越才华，而且领会了他们所体现的现代精神。

This was a generation filled with some of the greatest individual stars in the history of basketball, and the enormous athletic egos that accompanied that star status. Yet when they were put together on the same team - when the potential for egos running amok was just about off the charts - they surprised us all.

ego：自我，利己主义absolute [pure] ego绝对 [纯粹] 的自我 自大；自尊心satisfy one's ego满足某人的自尊心。

他们是有史以来最出色的一代球星，并有强烈的自我表现欲。可他们成一个集体时，又能顾全大局。

They bonded and submerged their prideful star status and became the greatest team ever assembled. Having witnessed that '92 Olympic team firsthand, I know for certain that no one complained about playing time. No one grumbled about his role. No one demanded more shots. The only demands that were made were concerning constant, hard effort, winning a gold medal and setting a mind-boggling standard of competitive excellence that would be nearly impossible for subsequent Olympic squads to ever match.

Witness：证明His wounds bear witness to his valour.他的伤证明了他的勇敢。证人；见证人A witness is summoned to appear in court.一个证人被传出庭。a credible witness可信赖的证人a defense witness被告的证人a perjured (lying) witness伪证人证明Her blush witnessed her confusion.她的脸红证明她惶惑不安The two servants witnessed his will.这两个佣人在他的遗嘱上签名作证。目击；目睹He witnessed a murder.他亲眼目睹一起谋杀案件。作证She witnessed to his innocence.她证明他无罪。

他们把明星派头收了起来，都兢兢业业地为梦之队冲锋陷阵