The Wolf Boy of Spain: 12 Years in the Wild

Welcome back to Learn English with Podcasts! Sarah, what if you were raised by wolves?欢迎回到 Learn English with Podcasts！Sarah，如果你是被狼群养大的，会怎样？

It is not a fairy tale. On August 15, a man in Spain died at 80. His name was Marcos Rodriguez Pantoja. People called him the Wolf Boy of Spain.这不是童话。8月15日，西班牙一位80岁的老人去世了。他叫马科斯·罗德里格斯·潘托哈。人们叫他西班牙狼孩。

He did. For 12 years. From age 7 to age 19. Alone in the Sierra Morena mountains in southern Spain.真的，整整12年。从7岁到19岁。独自在西班牙南部的塞拉莫雷纳山脉里。

His early life was very hard. His mother died when he was 3. His father married again, but his stepmother was cruel to him. His family was too big and too poor, so they sent him to the mountains to herd goats with an old man.他的童年非常艰难。3岁时母亲去世，父亲再婚，但继母对他很残忍。家里人口太多又很穷，所以把他送到山上跟一位老人一起放羊。

The old man died when Marcos was 7. Suddenly the boy was completely alone. No family, no house, no human voice.老人去世时，马科斯才7岁。男孩突然完全孤身一人。没有家人，没有房子，没有人的声音。

At first he just watched animals. He watched what they ate — wild fruits, roots, leaves. He copied them. That was how he stayed alive.一开始他只是观察动物。看它们吃什么——野果、根茎、树叶。他模仿它们。就是这样活了下来。

He said a mother wolf found him. She had just fed her cubs and then she threw a piece of meat toward him.他说是一只母狼发现了他。它刚喂完自己的幼崽，就朝他扔了一块肉。

He was terrified. He thought the wolf would attack him. He did not dare to touch the meat. But the wolf just pushed the meat toward him with her nose.他吓坏了。以为狼要攻击他，不敢碰那块肉。但母狼只是用鼻子把肉推到他面前。

Exactly. He picked up the meat and ate it. He was sure the wolf would bite him. But instead, she licked him. And from that moment, he became part of the family.没错。他捡起肉吃了，以为狼会咬他。但它却舔了他。从那一刻起，他就成了这个家庭的一员。

Yes, with the whole pack. He learned to live like a wolf. He also had another strange friend — a snake. He fed it goat milk, and the snake followed him everywhere.是的，跟整个狼群一起。他学会了像狼一样生活。他还有另一个奇怪的朋友——一条蛇。他喂它羊奶，蛇就到处跟着他。

It actually became a movie. In 2010, his story was made into a film called Entrelobos, or Among Wolves. But the real story after that is much sadder.真的被拍成了电影。2010年，他的故事被拍成电影《与狼共伍》。但之后的真实故事要悲伤得多。

In 1965, the Spanish Civil Guard was searching the mountains. A young man crawled out of the forest. He was 19, naked, barefoot, walking on all fours. His feet were covered with hard, thick skin. And he could not speak.1965年，西班牙国民警卫队在山里搜寻。一个年轻人从丛林里爬了出来。他19岁，赤身裸体，光着脚，四肢着地。脚上长满了厚厚的老茧。而且他不会说话。

The guards forced him down the mountain. He howled and bit like a wolf. They had to tie his hands and feet and cover his mouth.警卫队员强行把他从山上拖下来。他像狼一样嚎叫和撕咬。他们不得不绑住他的手脚、堵住他的嘴。

Later he said, returning to human society was the most frightening experience of his life. Worse than being alone in the forest.后来他说，重返人类社会是他一生中最可怕的经历。比独自在森林里还要可怕。

To an orphanage. Nuns taught him to walk upright, to sit at a table, to use a knife and fork. He said walking on two legs felt strange. On all fours felt more comfortable.送到一家孤儿院。修女们教他直立行走、坐在桌前吃饭、如何使用刀叉。他说用两条腿走路感觉很奇怪。四肢着地反而更舒服。

Slowly, he learned to speak again. And he could finally tell his story. He said those 12 years with the wolves were the happiest years of his life.慢慢地，他重新学会了说话。终于能讲述自己的故事。他说，和狼群在一起的12年是他一生中最快乐的时光。

He tried to go back. Years later, he went to the mountains to find his pack. But the cave where he lived had been turned into a house. And the wolves did not accept him anymore.他试过回去。几年后，他回到山里去找他的狼群。但他住过的洞穴已经被改成了别墅。而且狼群也不再接纳他。

That is the part that stays with me. The forest gave him food and family when humans gave him nothing. And when humans took him back, the forest closed its door.这正是最让我难忘的部分。当人类什么都没给他时，森林给了他食物和家庭。而当人类把他带回去后，森林却关上了门。

Maybe the wolves knew something we forget. Family is not about blood. It is about who pushes the meat toward you, and who licks you instead of biting you.也许狼懂得一些我们遗忘的事。家庭不在于血缘。而在于谁会把肉推向你，谁会选择舔你而不是咬你。

Haha, right. Your cat is not adopting you. But Marcos's story makes you think. Next time life feels noisy and cold, maybe happiness is simpler — a piece of meat shared, a tongue that says you belong.哈哈，对。你的猫可不会收养你。但马科斯的故事让人思考。下次当生活感到嘈杂寒冷时，也许快乐很简单——一块分享的肉，一个告诉你你属于这里的舔舐。

See you next time. And be kind — you never know who needs a little meat pushed their way.下期见。记得善良一点——你永远不知道谁正需要有人把一块肉推到他面前。