Inside the stone chapel of Welton Academy, a private school nestled inthe remote hills of Vermont, more than three hundred boys, all wearing theacademy blazer1, sat on either side of the long aisle, surrounded byproud-faced parents, and waited. They heard the reverberations of thebagpipes3 as a short, elderly man swathed4 in flowing robes lit a candle andled a procession of students carrying banners, robed teachers, and alumnae5down a long slate6 hallway into the venerable7 chapel.
The four boys who carried banners marched solemnly to the dais8,followed slowly by the elderly men, the last of whom proudly carried thelighted candle.
Headmaster Gale Nolan, a husky9 man in his early sixties, stood at thepodium watching expectantly as the procession concluded.
"Ladies and gentlemen...boys..." he said dramatically, pointing towardthe man with the candle. "The light of knowledge."
威尔顿中学掩映在佛蒙特州的远山之中。这是一所私立学校,学校石砌教堂内,300多名身穿校服的男生坐在长长的走廊两边,四周是扬眉吐气的家长们,他们都在翘首等待着。一位紧裹松垂长袍的上年纪的矮个子男人点亮蜡烛,带领一队举旗的学生、身穿长袍的教师和女毕业生沿着石板长门厅走进气氛庄重的教堂。这时,人们听到了风笛的回荡声。
四名举旗的男生神情庄重地走到讲台边,慢慢地跟在后面的是那些上年纪的男人。最后一名神气十足地举起点亮的蜡烛。
仪式结束时,盖尔·诺兰校长——一个声音沙哑、六十出头的男人——站在讲台边,满怀期望地注视着。
“女士们、先生们……孩子们……”他指着手持蜡烛的那个人激动地说,“知识之光。”
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