Be Water向水师法的一代武学宗师──李小龙

Bruce Lee was born in San Francisco in both the year and hour of the Dragon. While growing up in Hong Kong, Lee often got into fights. This was a time when gangs ruled the streets, and the only way to get respect was to be tough. Lee's street fighting continued to a point where his parents decided he should take up martial arts. It was this decision that ended up making Lee a cultural icon.

Lee started studying Wing Chun after he had been beaten up by some bullies. Since he was not completely Asian, many of his Wing Chun classmates were reluctant to train with him. This didn't bother Lee because he was getting private lessons from Yip Man. Even after learning martial arts, he kept getting into fights with locals, so his father decided to move the family to the US. Lee finished high school in Seattle and then attended the University of Washington, where he met his wife Linda. During this time, Lee developed and taught his own style of kung fu and met many martial artists. He even demonstrated some moves like the two-fingered push-up and the one-inch punch at the Long Beach International Karate Championships. This led to Lee getting roles in a few TV shows, which changed his life.

李小龙於龙年龙时在旧金山出生（编按∶龙时即『辰时』，也就是每天早上的七点到九点之间）。他在香港的成长期间常会动手跟人打架。那时候的街头都是由帮派控制，因此唯一能得到尊敬的方法就是要强硬起来。李小龙的街头斗殴不断持续，直到他父母决定他应开始修习武术为止。就是这个决定最终让李小龙成为一位文化偶像。

在被一些恶霸痛殴後，李小龙开始学习咏春拳（编按∶Wing Chun是采取『咏春』的粤语发音而来）。由於他不是个纯种的亚洲人，因此他的许多咏春同门都不愿和他一起习武（编按∶李小龙的母亲有一半血统是白人）。但李小龙并没有被这点困扰，因为他得到了叶问的亲身真传。不过即便在学习武术过後，他依然不断跟当地人斗殴，所以他的父亲决定举家搬至美国。李小龙在西雅图完成高中学业，接著便进入华盛顿大学，并在此处遇见他的妻子琳达。在这段期间，李小龙发展了自己的武道并开馆授徒，而且还遇见许多武术家。他甚至於长滩国际空手道锦标赛中展示了一些武术动作，例如两指伏地挺身以及一寸拳等（编按∶one-inch punch是李小龙为方便向外国人解释而自行发明的说法，这个动作其实源自於咏春中的『寸劲』，也就是离目标极近也能瞬间发力出拳）。李小龙也因此在一些电视节目上得到角色，进而改变他的一生。

tough a. 坚强的，顽强的

For such a tough guy, it is hard to believe that Peter is afraid of mice.

对於像彼得这样一个硬汉来说，很难相信他竟会害怕老鼠。

take up.../take...up（因有兴趣而）学习　从事……

Will took painting up about a month ago, but he quickly lost interest.

威尔大约在一个月前开始学习作画，不过他很快就失去兴趣。

culturala. 文化的

My parents came from different cultural backgrounds, so I grew up with a mix of traditions.

我的父母出身自不同的文化背景，因此我长大时需要遵循两边的各种传统。

beat...up/beat up...痛殴……

beat [ bit ] vt. 打（三态为∶beat, beat, beaten [ `bitN ]。）

The bully and his gang beat up the teenager and took everything he had.

那个恶霸和他的同夥痛打了那名青少年，还把他身上的东西搜刮一空。

be reluctant to + 原形动词不愿意（做）……

reluctanta. 不情愿的

Ethan was reluctant to put on a silly costume and dance in front of the whole school.

伊森不太愿意穿上滑稽的戏服，然後在全校面前跳舞。

attendvt. 上（学）；出席，参加

All employees are required to attend the monthly staff meeting tomorrow morning.

所有职员都要出席明天早上的每月员工会议。

demonstratevt. 展示，示范

The flight attendants demonstrated how to use the life jackets before take-off.

空服员在飞机起飞前示范如何使用救生衣。

lead to...导致　造成……

A Chinese superstition suggests that writing someone's name in red will lead to their death.

中国人有一个迷信，那就是用红笔写某人的名字会害那个人短命。

gang n. 帮派；一夥人

martial art n. 武术（常用复数）

icon n. 偶像；代表性人物

bully n. 恶霸

martial artist n. 武术家

push-up n. 伏地挺身

punch n. 用拳打

karate n. 空手道

It is/was 引导的强势句构

由 It is/was 所引导的强势句构，目的是要强调接在 It is/was 後的人事物，其句型有下列两种状况∶

1. It is/was + 名词　代名词 + 关系代名词 which/who/whom 所引导的形容词子句。此处的 who、whom、which 均可用 that 取代，本文中即为此用法。

It was Andrew who/that came up with the idea of throwing me a surprise party.

（想出替我办惊喜派对这个点子的人就是安德鲁。）

2. It is/was + 时间副词（片语）　介词片语　副词子句 + that 子句。此处的 that 为名词子句连接词，而非关系代名词。

It was around three o'clock in the morning that Jane called to tell us the bad news.

（阿珍打电话来通知我们那项噩耗的时间就是在凌晨三点左右。）