1 My fathers government job demanded that he go overseas every few years, so I was used to wrenching myself away from friends.(para1) demanded that he go：(not “went or “goes”) subjunctive mood every few years：used for showing how often sth happens，esp. when there is a regular time between them(每隔几年) wrench yourself away from：to twist and pull yourself away(or free) from,2Loving nature，however，I Was most delighted by the endless patchwork of farms and woodland that surrounded our house(para2) loving nature，however：however，asbecause 1 loved nature a patchwork of farms(fields)：farms that look like small pieces of cloth of different colors when seen from far above woodland：a piece of land covered with trees,3 In the deep woods that verged against our back fence，a network of paths almost everywhere，and pheasants rocketed off into the dense laurels as youwalked(para2) to verge against：to be close to；to be at the edge or border of(This is a rare expression。,Notice how the preposition against is used to mean next to”, “touching or hitting thesurface of”，e.g. A heavy rain was pattering against the windows He stood his stick against the wall The policeman was leaning against the door a net work of：a system of lines，wires，roads，etc. that cross each other and are connected to each other(一种网络),4 I spent most of my time roaming the woods and fields alone, playing Robin Hood(para3) to roam the woods(fields，streets，hills，etc.): idiomatic use of “roam”，as a transitive word Normally it is used as an intransitive verb as in “roam about, or “roam around” “To roam” means to walk or travel and usuwithout any clear purpose,5 Keeping to myself was my way of not forming attachments that l would only have to abandon the next time we moved(para3) l did not try to make many friends because in that way I did not have to give up my friendship the next time I had to move to keep to oneself“to live a very quiet and private life and not do many things involving other people,6through no design of my own(para3) not that I intended to do itnot that I planned it that wayjust by chance,7to roam about his immense property(para4) property：land，buildings，or both together(房地产，庄园),8I started hiking there every weekend，up a long，sloping hill to an almost impenetrable stand of trees called Bear Wood(para4) an almost impenetrable stand of trees：trees growing so thick that they are impossible to go through or enter into stand：a group of trees growing in a given area,9. with tree trunks for pillars：with tree trunks serving or functioning as pillars Draw students attention to the word “for” here More examples： With his torn shirt for paper and his bleeding finger for a pen，he wrote his last letter She just had a banana for breakfast With the green banana for glue，he fixed the radiator,1 0My own breathing rang in my ears，and the slightest stirring of any woodland creature echoed through this private paradise(para4) I could even hear my own breathing，and even the lightest movement of any bird or animal in the wood could be heard throughout this paradise,1 1I proceeded quietly, careful not to alarm a bird that might loudly warn other creatures to hide. (para.5) I moved on quietly creature：anything that is living(but not a plant)，usu. with a particular quality as in the following: all living creatures；a charming creature；a terrible creature；a strange creature,1 2Perhaps this is why the frail old lady I nearly ran into was as startled as I was(para6) frail：thin and weak，espbecause you have become old,13 Then, recovering quickly, she gave a welcoming smile that instantly put me at ease. (para.6) to put sb at ease：to make sb feel relaxed More examples of “at ease”： He always feels ill at ease in front of strangers The professor must be quite popularThe students all look at ease in his presence Also：to make sb at ease；to set sb at ease,1 4A pair of powerful-looking binoculars dangled from her neck(para6) powerful：Here it means“高倍的(望远镜)” Notice the difference between binoculars and telescope or looking-glassBinoculars have two glasses(双筒望远镜)，and the word is made by putting together “bi-, which means “two” and ocular” which means sth related to eyes,1 5. Yes, theyre wary, she said. But then, gamekeepers have been shooting them ever since they got here. Theyre introduced，you know, not native. (para1 1) wary：careful，cautious，watchful，suspiciousalert gamekeeper：sb whose job is to look after birds and animals that are kept to be hunted on private landNotice the use of the word game” to refer to the animals，birds，and fish at are hunted for food or as a sport to be introduced：to be brought into this place from somewhere else for the first time,16Anybody who knew this sort of stuff was definitely cool-even if she was trespassing in my special place (para.12),cool：This informal word is hard to define nowadaysIt is loosely used to mean attractive fashionable，relaxed，etc，in a way people，