Round about the beginning of each year，the women of the Song Valley make a special pilgrimage （朝圣）into the oak（橡树）forests.
They hold a religious festival and plant seedlings（树苗）that will grow into new trees.And for the rest of the year they keep guard on the forests，banning cattle and goats，and regulating（控制）the cutting of grass and lopping（修剪）of branches.
To Western eyes it may seem a charming example of concern for nature.To the women themselves it is a matter of sheer（绝对的）survival.
For all over India the forests are falling，As the trees come down，there is nothing to hold the soil on to the land，or to stop the rains running straight off the mountainsides.Crop yields（产量）fall，water sources dry up，and fodder（草料）and firewood from the forests disappear.It is the women，who fetch the water and wood，and do most of the work on the land，who suffer the most.
Even in normal circumstances，the women carry the greatest burden.Indian women work longer hours than their men，and they get less to eat.They work for 14 to 16 hours a day——even when pregnant（怀孕的）.They work up to the beginning of their labor——and start again four or five days after delivery.
Women are the last to be fed in Indian households，eating only after their husbands and children have finished.So they receive much less of what they need than other members of the family.They have so much work to do that they often do not have the time to seek health care.They will not take the time to go until they are extremely sick，and then often do not have the strength to get there.
As the trees come down and the water sources dry up，women have to work still longer，andwalk still further.
Tired，overworked，under-nourished（营养不良的），unrepresented，powerless and unorganized，and the future，unless the present is greatly changed，promises only more of the same.

Round about the beginning of each year，the women of the Song Valley make a special pilgrimage （朝圣）into the oak（橡树）forests.
They hold a religious festival and plant seedlings（树苗）that will grow into new trees.And for the rest of the year they keep guard on the forests，banning cattle and goats，and regulating（控制）the cutting of grass and lopping（修剪）of branches.
To Western eyes it may seem a charming example of concern for nature.To the women themselves it is a matter of sheer（绝对的）survival.
For all over India the forests are falling，As the trees come down，there is nothing to hold the soil on to the land，or to stop the rains running straight off the mountainsides.Crop yields（产量）fall，water sources dry up，and fodder（草料）and firewood from the forests disappear.It is the women，who fetch the water and wood，and do most of the work on the land，who suffer the most.
Even in normal circumstances，the women carry the greatest burden.Indian women work longer hours than their men，and they get less to eat.They work for 14 to 16 hours a day——even when pregnant（怀孕的）.They work up to the beginning of their labor——and start again four or five days after delivery.
Women are the last to be fed in Indian households，eating only after their husbands and children have finished.So they receive much less of what they need than other members of the family.They have so much work to do that they often do not have the time to seek health care.They will not take the time to go until they are extremely sick，and then often do not have the strength to get there.
As the trees come down and the water sources dry up，women have to work still longer，andwalk still further.
Tired，overworked，under-nourished（营养不良的），unrepresented，powerless and unorganized，and the future，unless the present is greatly changed，promises only more of the same.

Round about the beginning of each year，the women of the Song Valley make a special pilgrimage （朝圣）into the oak（橡树）forests.
They hold a religious festival and plant seedlings（树苗）that will grow into new trees.And for the rest of the year they keep guard on the forests，banning cattle and goats，and regulating（控制）the cutting of grass and lopping（修剪）of branches.
To Western eyes it may seem a charming example of concern for nature.To the women themselves it is a matter of sheer（绝对的）survival.
For all over India the forests are falling，As the trees come down，there is nothing to hold the soil on to the land，or to stop the rains running straight off the mountainsides.Crop yields（产量）fall，water sources dry up，and fodder（草料）and firewood from the forests disappear.It is the women，who fetch the water and wood，and do most of the work on the land，who suffer the most.
Even in normal circumstances，the women carry the greatest burden.Indian women work longer hours than their men，and they get less to eat.They work for 14 to 16 hours a day——even when pregnant（怀孕的）.They work up to the beginning of their labor——and start again four or five days after delivery.
Women are the last to be fed in Indian households，eating only after their husbands and children have finished.So they receive much less of what they need than other members of the family.They have so much work to do that they often do not have the time to seek health care.They will not take the time to go until they are extremely sick，and then often do not have the strength to get there.
As the trees come down and the water sources dry up，women have to work still longer，andwalk still further.
Tired，overworked，under-nourished（营养不良的），unrepresented，powerless and unorganized，and the future，unless the present is greatly changed，promises only more of the same.

Round about the beginning of each year，the women of the Song Valley make a special pilgrimage （朝圣）into the oak（橡树）forests.
They hold a religious festival and plant seedlings（树苗）that will grow into new trees.And for the rest of the year they keep guard on the forests，banning cattle and goats，and regulating（控制）the cutting of grass and lopping（修剪）of branches.
To Western eyes it may seem a charming example of concern for nature.To the women themselves it is a matter of sheer（绝对的）survival.
For all over India the forests are falling，As the trees come down，there is nothing to hold the soil on to the land，or to stop the rains running straight off the mountainsides.Crop yields（产量）fall，water sources dry up，and fodder（草料）and firewood from the forests disappear.It is the women，who fetch the water and wood，and do most of the work on the land，who suffer the most.
Even in normal circumstances，the women carry the greatest burden.Indian women work longer hours than their men，and they get less to eat.They work for 14 to 16 hours a day——even when pregnant（怀孕的）.They work up to the beginning of their labor——and start again four or five days after delivery.
Women are the last to be fed in Indian households，eating only after their husbands and children have finished.So they receive much less of what they need than other members of the family.They have so much work to do that they often do not have the time to seek health care.They will not take the time to go until they are extremely sick，and then often do not have the strength to get there.
As the trees come down and the water sources dry up，women have to work still longer，andwalk still further.
Tired，overworked，under-nourished（营养不良的），unrepresented，powerless and unorganized，and the future，unless the present is greatly changed，promises only more of the same.

     When John and Victoria Falls arrived in New York City for one-year stay，they did not bring very many things with them.They had planned either to live in a furnished apartment or to buy used furniture.But they soon learned about a new system that more and more people are using.The renting of home furnishings（bed，tables，dishes，and so on）has become one of America's fastest growing businesses.
     What kinds of people rent their home furnishings instead of buying them？People who are international business or government officials，foreign students，airline workers，young married couples-people whose job or business may force them to move frequently from one city to another.They save a lot of trouble and the cost of moving their furniture each time.They simply rent new furniture when they reach their new homes.Young people with little money do not want to buy cheap furniture that they may soon dislike.They prefer to wait until they have enough money to buy furniture they really like.Meanwhile，they find they can rent better quality furniture than they could afford to buy.
     One family，who now have a large，beautiful home of their own，liked their rented furniture so much that they decided to keep renting it instead of buying new things.But usually people don't like to tell others about it.The idea of renting home furnishings is still quite new，and they are not sure what their neighbors might think.