每年國考都有許多考生悶著頭投入準備，卻屢屢都在閱讀測驗或是單字準備上沒有準備方向，買了很多厚重的閱讀大全卻發現內容編排非常零散而且只是重複練習題目，而永遠沒有學到閱讀的樂趣。如果投機點來說，其實重大的英文檢定考試多半會參考托福或雅思程度的出題為範本，因為不管學術性的豐富背景或是單字要求程度都有相當的水準。但老師在廣播節目上或是大型研討會中所接觸的優秀語言學家們，大多都是利用廣泛閱讀和接觸真正母語人士的英文閱讀內容來著手。所以今天Brian老師特定精選出美國熱門獨立女性精神文章中，談論到非常偉大的「單親媽媽」。或許社會給予很多異樣的眼神或標籤，但這些勇敢的母親不因為家裡沒有丈夫或是少了一筆收入就自暴自棄，反而開始努力經營出自己的事業和鼓勵很多婦女一起靠自己來撐起孩子的未來和生活。常會聽到很多新婚父母抱怨照顧孩子根本是剝奪睡眠的苦差事，隔天還要繼續上班努力掙錢給家裡，但妳有想過獨自撫養小孩的單親媽媽要扛起雙重壓力和責任嗎？這篇文章是國外原文文章由Brian老師親自編譯中文和延伸介紹給各位幸運的同學們，一起來從筆者的親身經驗感受到單親媽媽的辛勞和由衷地感佩如此不凡的精神。好好學習這篇短文的表達和相關詞彙，讓大家對於美國文化深度和社會議題都有很直接的感受和感動。
There Is Nothing Single About a Single Mom
「單親媽媽」：妳不是「單打獨鬥」
Recently I took my two nieces to a movie by myself. The closest I've come to being a mom is being a babysitter, so I thought it would be a walk in the park. As it turns out, a three-hour adventure with two bouncy, sugar-infused, excitable, curly-haired little girls is anything but a walk in the park. More like a walk in the dark of "I don't know what I'm doing!" From wiping noses, to wiping bottoms, to making sure no one ate an entire box of gummy bears while I wasn't looking, to managing to hold two sticky and squirmy little hands while balancing water bottles, backpacks, stuffed animals, and giant bags of popcorn--flying solo with two little baby birds in the nest is no small feat. I walked away from that experience with a renewed respect for moms everywhere, especially single moms.
最近我帶兩個姪女去看電影。說到最貼近當媽的經驗就是保母工作，我起初認為應該就是在公園散散步，結果卻是和兩個糖吃太多而異常興奮蹦蹦碰跳的捲髮女孩的三個小時奮戰，根本和散步天差地別。
倒很像「我壓根不知道自己在做什麼」之公園摸黑亂走中，從幫忙擤鼻涕、擦屁股到確定女孩們別在我沒注意的時候吃了整盒的熊熊軟糖，同時牽著兩隻黏呼呼的手外且需穩著身上掛著的水瓶和包包，以及超大包爆米花─好像隻身飛出巢穴照顧兩隻雛鳥，這還真是不小的壯舉。經歷這些讓我重新用更尊敬的心情看著身邊的母親們，尤其是單親媽媽。
●The closet thing I've come to +V-ing對於我接觸….最類似的事情….
EX.：The closest thing I've come to being a teacher was tutoring my younger brother with math questions.
●Sugar-infused(a.)由糖分攝取所引起的，也有稱這種因為吃太多糖果而有的興奮反應為Sugar High。Infuse有注入的意思。
●anything but= exclude 不包含VS. nothing but=include包含
EX.：I want anything but money.(我什麼都要就是不要錢。)
EX.：I want nothing but money.(我什麼都不要就是要錢。)
●There is no small feat. 不小的壯舉, feat(n.)功勞或戰功。
●Renew(v.)更新； renewal of the driving license駕照更新 VS. revoke吊銷
My sister is not a single mom, and neither was my mom. They've been blessed to have husbands around to help carry the load. Still, after a long day of working, cleaning, cooking, defusing arguments, brushing hair, brushing teeth, bathing, and disciplining, and somehow finding five minutes a day to tend to their own needs, they are often physically and mentally drained. So I can't imagine how much more of a burden single moms must carry around on a daily basis, with the well-being and needs of one or more impressionable, innocent, trusting little people riding squarely on their shoulders. So to the single moms, I salute you.
我姊不是單親媽媽，我母親也不是。她們都很幸運有著丈夫可以幫忙分擔工作。再者，一天工作辛勞後，你還得打掃、煮菜、化解爭吵、梳頭髮、幫忙刷牙、幫小孩洗澡和管教生活禮節，而最後只能勉強擠出五分鐘給自己，那時候早就筋疲力盡了！所以我根本無法想像一個單親媽媽要怎麼獨自處理這每天日復一日的負荷，還要一邊兼顧著的甜蜜包袱─那令人疼愛、天真又全心仰賴著妳的孩子的健康和需求。
因此所有的單親媽媽，我非常尊敬妳們！
But you put on quite a show, really had me going／But now its time to go, curtains finally closing／ That was quite a show, very entertaining／But its over now／Go on and take a bow／Oh, and the award for the best liar goes to you／For making me believe that you could be faithful to me／Let's hear your speech out／How about a round of applause？／A standing ovation？
You have likely never received a standing ovation, but you deserve one. You are the silent heroes. You are on the front lines of a long and hard-fought battle to raise strong, intelligent, healthy, moral, productive children. You put your own needs second without even pausing to think about it, and you take the small piece of cake (both literally and figuratively) so your little ones can have the bigger one every time without fail. You don't date anyone who can't handle a package deal because it's no longer just about you--you're thinking and living for two (or more). You face a million different challenges every single day, and you don't back down. You never even waver. You cry, but only when no one else can see. You hold the hardest and least-paid job there will ever be, and you do so without complaining. And when push comes to shove, you become a dad out of love. You are a doctor, a teacher, a nurse, a maid, a cook, a referee, a heroine, a provider, a defender, a protector, a true Superwoman. Wear your cape proudly.
妳的努力可能從未被讚揚，但絕對功不可沒。
妳是無名英雄，總是站在前線去拚命扶養出強壯、聰慧、能辨是非和充滿創意的孩子們。把自己的需求放一邊，甚至拋諸腦後，而且總給自己最小份的蛋糕(實質或比喻都是)來讓小孩們分到比較大塊的享用。妳絕不跟無法接受妳有孩子的人約會，因為這已經並不是妳而已而是關係到一個或更多的孩子們。面對每天接踵而至的挑戰一點也不退卻，「動搖」這兩個字不在妳的字典裡。妳不願別人看到妳的眼淚。妳的工作是全世界最困難和超低報酬，但妳只是吞下一切的苦楚。出於愛護孩子的心態，在關鍵時刻妳總是化身為父親挺身而出。
妳身兼醫生、老師、護士、傭人、廚師、裁判、女英雄、養家活口的人、捍衛者、保護者，也是個名副其實的「女超人」。
驕傲地穿著妳的披風吧！
●Standing ovation指表演讓全場觀眾感動到起身鼓掌的畫面
●On the front line站在最前線(通常是拿來比喻戰場中的士兵)→bear the brunt首當其衝；You are crossing the line你太過分了！
●Out of 出於…sympathy憐憫心/rage盛怒
●Productive(a.)多產的(作家/孕婦皆可)
●without fail可以達成(母親希望孩子可以開心吃到蛋糕而不會失望)
●package(n.)通常都是指套裝內容，這邊是指有孩子的單親媽媽，若將來結婚新的配偶也是要照顧自己的孩子。Deal原來也可以指「生意或協議」的概念，在這裡點綴的非常有意思，希望對方可以盡責任不只是口頭承諾。
今天我們要講的習慣用語有一個共同的詞：push. 這個詞的意思是「推」。我們要學的第一個習慣用語是：push around. Push somebody around這個短語從字面解釋就是把一個人推得團團轉。你在學校的操場上有時會看到大男孩把小個子男孩當胸一推。他是在尋釁打架。我們也可以說： He's pushing him around. 不知有沒有人也在把你push around？你可能會說沒這回事，因為你已經不小了，但是push around並不光是指肢體行動或者動武，有時辦公室的上級不必動手也會把下級push around. 他的手段可能是高聲喝令，或者為了雞毛蒜皮的小事動不動就發脾氣等等。我們接下來要看的就是這樣一個例子：
例句1：I'm sick of Mr. Jones pushing us around. I'm going to find another job, and when I do, I'll go in and tell him what I think of him and then slam the door on my way out.他說：我實在討厭Jones先生這樣擺佈欺負我們。我要去找新工作，找到後，我會到他辦公室去告訴他我對他的為人有什麼看法，然後走出來的時候把他的房門重重地關上。聽了這段話裡，你可以體會push around有仗勢欺人的意思。我們要學的第二個帶有push這個詞的習慣說法是：pushover, Pushover是復合詞。Pushover是指容易接受他人影響或者聽從勸告的人。有時pushover也可能是個軟心腸又富有同情心的人。例如我們下面要說的Peter就是這樣一個人：
例句2：My friend Peter is a pushover for anybody in trouble. Yesterday on our way back from lunch he saw an old man begging. And he immediately handed him a ten-dollar bill.他說：我的朋友Peter對受苦的人心腸很軟，昨天我們吃了中飯回來的路上看到一個老人在乞討， 他馬上給了那老人十美元。從這段話可以看出pushover也可以解釋軟心腸的人。
我們要學的第三個習慣用語是：when push comes to shove. Shove, 它的意思是使勁猛推，舉動往往還帶點粗暴。我們剛才說過push意思只是「推」，顯然shove動作的強度要大得多，情況也來得嚴重。when push comes to shove意思就是面臨最後緊要關頭、沒有任何迴旋餘地的時刻。
例句3：Mr. Blank is getting a lot of letters and phone calls from people on this bill and he won't say how he'll vote. But when Congress votes Tuesday and push comes to shove, I think he'll vote in favor of it.他說：Blank先生收到了好多有關這個議案的信和電話，只是目前他還不願意表態，然而到星期二國會表決的時候他可就沒有絲毫迴旋餘地了。我認為他將投贊成票。