10.mp3.docVIP

10.mp3 Lesson Ten TEXT A The Green Banana Donald Batchelder Pre-class Work I Read the text once for the main idea. Do not refer to the notes, dictionaries or the glossary yet. Although it might have happened anywhere, my encounter with the green banana started on a steep mountain road in the central area of Brazil. My ancient jeep was straining up through beautiful countryside when the radiator began to leak, and I was ten miles from the nearest mechanic. The over-heated engine forced me to stop at the next village, which consisted of a small store and a few houses that were scattered here and there. People came over to look. They could see three fine streams of hot water spouting from holes in the jacket of the radiator. Thats easy to fix, a man said. He sent a boy running for some green bananas. He patted me on the shoulder, assuring me that everything would work out. Green bananas, he smiled. Everyone agreed. We chattered casually while all the time I was wondering what they could possibly do to my radiator with their green bananas. I did not ask them, though, as that would show my ignorance, so I talked about the beauty of the land that lay before our eyes. Huge rock formations, like Sugar Loaf in Rio, rose up all around us. Do you see that tall one right over there? asked the man, pointing to a particularly tall, slender pinnacle of dark rock. That rock marks the center of the world. I looked to see if he was teasing me, but his face was serious. He, in turn, inspected me carefully, as if to make sure I grasped the significance of his statement. The occasion called for some show of recognition on my part. The center of the world? I repeated, trying to show interest if not complete acceptance. He nodded. The absolute center. Everyone around here knows it. At that moment the boy returned with an armful of green bananas. The man cut one in half and pressed the cut end against the radiator jacket