平静的心态
Peace of Mind
杰弗里?谢弗 / Jeffrey Shaffer
Peace of mind is something I think about every day. It’s great to have confidence when stepping out my front door that I will be able to move around the local environment without fear and return home safely.
But peace of mind depends on mutual trust from every citizen—that as we walk the streets and conduct our personal affairs we hold the same basic views and values about maintaining a civil society.
Every time a violent crime or terrorist act is perpetrated on unsuspecting victims, when a sniper starts shooting or a bomb explodes, our collective peace of mind is eroded, along with our willingness to trust all the unknown people with whom we share sidewalks, shopping malls, and other public spaces.
Safety precautions and technology may encourage peace of mind but they can’t substitute for it. My neighborhood bank branch was robbed a few years ago. Now thick plastic slabs protect every teller’s window and surveillance cameras monitor the lobby. If I am gunned down while making a deposit, the videotapes will probably help police apprehend the guilty party and bring him or her to swift justice, but that fact doesn’t make me sleep better at night. I would rather have no security cameras and no robbers to worry about in my personal universe.
Forgive my wishful thinking, but you don’t have to look far in this world to see how cultural creativity and dynamism evaporate when people are forced to devote most of their time and energy to self-defense.
We have spent more than 200 years trying to build a society that provides everyone with ongoing opportunities to enjoy life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, and it hasn’t been easy. A 1915 book entitled A History of Travel in Anlerica by Seymour Dunbar described the harsh conditions facing early settlers who crossed the eastern mountain ranges and headed into the western wilderness. It explained how the constant danger and anxiety affected their outlook and behavior.
Writes Dunbar, “They walked with a soft and swinging stride, keeping themselves always well poised. For no man ever knew whether his next move would be a leap to the right or to the left, a dive behind a log, a dash ahead or a rush backward over the path he had come...”
Peace of mind can’t be measured. All I know for sure is that I appreciate every moment I have it. And I am alarmed whenever I get the feeling it may be steadily slipping away.
平静的心态是我每天都要思考的东西。假如每天我都能满怀信心地走出家门,能无忧无虑地在附近闲逛,然后安全回家,那就太好了。
可是,平静的心态在于每个人之间的相互信任。也就是说,当我们走在街上,处理私事时,我们持有同样的基本观点和价值观去维系一个文明的社会。
当毫无戒备的无辜人士受到暴力犯罪或恐怖行动的伤害时,当枪手射出子弹或炸弹爆炸时,我们大家的平静心态就会被削弱;同时,对所有与我们走在同一条人行道上、在同一家商场购物,或是在其他公共场所占用空间的陌生人,我们也都慢慢地失去了信任感。
安全措施和技术或许可以帮助人们获得平静的心态,可是这些不能代替它。多年前,我家附近一家银行的分行曾遭到抢劫。现在,每个出纳员的窗口都用厚重的塑料板保护着,监控器监控着整个营业大厅。假如我在存款时被枪击倒,监控录像带就能提供线索帮警方找到犯罪团伙并立刻将其绳之以法,可是这无法让我在晚上安安稳稳地睡个好觉。我宁可没有安全摄像系统,也不必担心有强盗来破坏我个人的生活空间。
请原谅我一厢情愿的想法。然而,在这个世界上,只要你放眼望去,就能看到人们不得不将自己的大多数时间和精力用在自卫上,有那么多充满智慧的创造力和充沛的精力为此而“蒸发”不见了。
我们用了200多年去试着建立一个社会。这个社会,为每个人提供不断的机会去享受生活、享受自由、追求幸福。可是要实现这个目标,从来就不是件容易的事。1915年,西摩?邓巴写了一本题为《美国旅行史》的书,书中描述了早期的移民在越过东部群山向西部荒野进发时所面临的严酷环境。该书阐释了长时间的危险和焦虑,会对人们的思想和行为产生怎样的影响。
邓巴写道:“他们迈着柔弱、摇摆的步子向前走着,总是努力让自己保持平静,因为没有人知道他下一步是需要向右还是向左,是抓住一根圆木跃入水中还是急冲向前,或者应该沿着来时的路返回……”
心态的平静是不能测量的。可是我能确定的是,我珍惜拥有平静心态的分分秒秒。每当我想到平静的心态也许正在不断地从身边悄悄溜走时,我就会感到焦虑。
在为人处世的时候,我们都需要保持平静的心态。只有这种心态,才能让我们变得自信、从容。
1. But peace of_________ depends on mutual trust from every citizen—that as we walk the streets and conduct our personal affairs we hold the_________ basic views and values about maintaining a civil_________.
2. Forgive my wishful_________, but you don’t have to look far in this world to see how cultural creativity and dynamism evaporate when people are forced to_________ most of their_________ and energy to self-defense.
3. Peace of mind can’t be_________. All I know for sure is that I appreciate every_________ I have it. And I am alarmed whenever I get the feeling it may be steadily slipping_________.
1. 平静的心态是我每天都要思考的东西。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. 安全措施和技术或许可以帮助人们获得平静的心态,可是这些不能代替它。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
3. 心态的平静是不能测量的。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
1. But peace of mind depends on mutual trust from every citizen...
depend on:依靠,依赖;取决于
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. For no man ever knew whether his next move would be a leap to the right or to the left...
to the right:在……右边;向右
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
一生最大的收获
Catch of a Lifetime
佚名 / Anonymous
He was 11 years old and went fishing every chance he got from the dock at his family’s cabin on an island in the middle of a New Hampshire Lake.
On the day before the bass season opened, he and his father were fishing early in the evening, catching sunfish and perch with worms. Then he tied on a small silver lure and practiced casting. The lure struck the water and caused colored ripples in the sunset, then silver ripples as the moon rose over the lake.
When his peapole doubled over, he knew something huge was on the other end. His father watched with admiration as the boy skillfully worked the fish alongside the dock.
Finally, he very gingerly lifted the exhausted fish from the water. It was the largest one he had ever seen, but it was a bass.
The boy and his father looked at the handsome fish, gills playing back and forth in the moonlight. The father lit a match and looked at his watch. It was 10:00 p.m. —two hours before the season opened. He looked at the fish, then at the boy.
“You’ll have to put it back, son.” he said.
“Dad!” cried the boy.
“There will be other fish.” said his father.
“Not as big as this one.” cried the boy.
He looked around the lake. No other fishermen or boats were anywhere around in the moonlight. He looked again at his father. Even though no one had seen them, nor could anyone ever know what time he caught the fish, the boy could tell by the clarity of his father’s voice that the decision was not negotiable. He slowly worked the hook out of the lip of the huge bass and lowered it into the black water.
The creature swished its powerful body and disappeared. The boy suspected that he would never again see such a great fish.
That was 34 years ago. Today, the boy is a successful architect in New York City. His father’s cabin is still there on the island in the middle of the lake. He takes his own son and daughters fishing from the same dock.
And he was right. He has never again caught such a magnificent fish as the one he landed that night long ago. But he does see that same fish again and again—every time he comes up against a question of ethics.
For, as his father taught him, ethics are simple matters of right and wrong. It is only the practice of ethics that is difficult. Do we do right when no one is looking? Do we refuse to cut corners to get the design in on time? Or refuse to trade stocks based on information that we know we aren’t supposed to have?
We would if we were taught to put the fish back when we were young. For we would have learned the truth. The decision to do right lives fresh and fragrant in our memory. It is a story we will proudly tell our friends and grandchildren. Not about how we had a chance to beat the system and took it, but about how we did the right thing and were forever strengthened.
他11岁那年,一有机会就到新汉普郡湖心岛上他家的小屋码头钓鱼。
在鲈鱼季节来临的前一天,他和父亲傍晚很早就开始准备了。他们用小虫做诱饵来钓太阳鱼和鲈鱼。他在银色的钓钩上放好诱饵,开始练习抛线。钓钩撞到水面上,在夕阳中荡起一片金光闪闪的水波。月亮升起来时,水波就变得银光闪闪。
当钓竿弯下去的时候,他知道线的那一端一定钓到了一条大鱼。他灵巧地在码头边沿和那条大鱼周旋。父亲用赞赏的眼神关注着他。
最后,他很小心地将那条筋疲力尽的鱼从水里拉了出来。这可是他所见过的最大的一条鱼,而且还是条鲈鱼。
男孩和他的父亲凝视着这条漂亮的鱼,它的鳃在月光下一张一翕。父亲点燃一根火柴,看了一下表。现在是10点——离鲈鱼季节的开放时间还有两个小时。他看了看鱼,又看了看儿子。
“你要把它再放回去,儿子。”他说。
“爸爸!”男孩喊。
“还会有其他鱼的。”父亲说。
“但肯定不会像这条一样大。”男孩喊道。
他看了看湖的周围。月光下,周围没有其他渔民或船只。他再一次看着父亲。尽管并没有人看着他们,也没有人知道他们是什么时候钓到鱼的,但从父亲那坚定的声音中,男孩知道这个决定是不容更改的。他慢慢地将钓钩从大鲈鱼的唇上拿下来,然后蹲下来把那条鱼再放回水里。
那条鱼摆了摆强健的躯体,消失在水里。男孩怀疑他再也不可能看到那么大的鱼了。
那件事已经过去34年了。而今,男孩已经成为纽约城里一位成功的建筑师。他父亲的小屋仍然伫立于湖心岛上。他也曾带着自己的儿子和女儿回到同一个码头去钓鱼。
他当时的猜想是对的。他再也没有见过那么大的鱼了,就像很久以前的那天晚上所钓到的那样。但是,在他每次面对道德难题时,那条大鱼总会浮现在他的眼前。
因为正如父亲告诉他的那样,道德就是简单的对和错的问题,困难的是付诸行动。在无人旁观时,我们的行为能否仍然正当?为了将图纸及时送到,我们是否会抄近路?或者在明知不应该的情况下,我们是否会将公司股份卖掉?
当我们年轻的时候,如果有人要让我们把鱼放回去,我们应该那样去做,因为我们将从中学到真理。选择去做正确事情的决定将在我们的记忆里变得深刻而清晰。我们可以把这个故事自豪地讲给我们的朋友和后辈听。这并不是关于如何攻击某种体制并战胜它,而是关于如何去做正确的事情,从而不断完善自己。
道德就是简单的对和错的问题,困难的是付诸行动。在无人旁观时,我们的行为能否仍然正当?当我们年轻的时候,如果有人要让我们把鱼放回去,我们应该那样去做,因为我们将从中学到真理。
1. When his peapole doubled over, he knew something_________ was on the other_________. His father watched_________ admiration as the boy skillfully worked the fish alongside the dock.
2. He looked_________ at his father. Even though no one had seen them, nor could anyone ever know what time he caught the_________, the boy could tell by the clarity of his father’s voice that the decision was not negotiable. He slowly worked the hook out of the lip of the huge bass and lowered it into the black_________.
3. That was 34 years_________. Today, the boy is a successful architect in New York City. His father’s cabin is still there on the island in the middle of the_________. He takes his own son and daughters_________ from the same dock.
1. 钓钩撞到水面上,在夕阳中荡起一片金光闪闪的水波。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. 道德就是简单的对和错的问题,困难的是付诸行动。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
3. 选择去做正确事情的决定将在我们的记忆里变得深刻而清晰。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
1. The boy and his father looked at the handsome fish, gills playing back and forth in the moonlight.
back and forth:来回地
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. Even though no one had seen them, nor could anyone ever know what time he caught the fish...
even though:尽管,虽然
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
思想的守望者
The Watchman at the Gate
佛罗伦萨?斯高伏尔?西恩 / Florence Scovel Shinn
We must all have a watchman at the gate of our thoughts. The watchman at the gate is the superconscious mind.
We have the power to choose our thoughts.
Since we have lived in the race thought for thousands of years, it seems almost impossible to control them. They rush through our minds like stampeding cattle or sheep.
But a single sheep-dog can control the frightened sheep and guide them into the sheep pen. I saw a picture in the news-reels of a shepherd dog the sheep. He had rounded up all but three. These three resisted and resented. They baaed and lifted their front feet in protest, but the dog simply sat down in front and never took his eyes off them. He did not barks or threaten. He oust sat and looked his determination. In a little while the sheep tossed their heads and went in the pen.
We can learn to control our thoughts in the same way, by gentle determination, not force.
We take an affirmation and repeat it continually, while our thoughts are on the rampage.
We cannot always control our thoughts, but we can control our words, and repetition impresses the subconscious, and we are then master of the situation.
Your success and happiness in life depend upon the watchman at the gate of your thoughts, sooner or later, crystallize on the external. A trumpet is a musical instrument, used in olden times, to draw people’s attention to something—to victory, to order.
You will form the habit of giving attention to every thought and word, when you realize their importance.
The imagination, the scissors of the mind, is constantly cutting out the events to come into your life.
在人类思想的门口,一定有一个守门人,而这个守门人就是每个人的潜意识。
我们有能力按照自己的心愿选择思想。
数千年以来,人类就是用自己的思考能力不断地生活、繁衍。有时,思想在我们的头脑里会像受惊的牛羊四处奔逃。这时的思想,看起来根本无法控制。
可事实上并非如此,面对受到惊吓而疲于奔命的羊群,一只牧羊犬可以轻松地把羊群重新赶回羊圈。
我曾经在一部新闻短片中,看到过一只牧羊犬和三只羊的画面。牧羊犬负责看管整个羊群,可是有三只羊心存不满,蓄意抵抗。它们咩咩地叫着,高高抬起前蹄表示自己的不满。然而牧羊犬只是静静地蹲坐在它们前面,并用眼睛紧紧地盯着它们。牧羊犬既没有朝三只羊狂吠,也没有要恐吓它们的意思,它只是用坚定的信念一动不动地注视着这三只羊。没过多久,这三只羊垂着头,乖乖地回到羊圈。
我们可以用牧羊犬的方法来支配自己的思想——依靠文雅的意志力,而不是粗暴的蛮力。
当陷入暴跳如雷、愤怒难耐的状态中时,我们必须要坚定信念来克服它,并一直坚持下去。
我们当然不可能一直做到情绪稳定,但是至少你可以把握住言语并坚持告诫自己能够控制住潜意识。这样的话,我们便可以控制眼前的局势了。
你思想的“守门人”决定了你能否在生活中取得成功,分享幸福。“守门人”的作用迟早会在你的言行中体现出来。
很久以前,喇叭便作为一种乐器用来吸引人类的注意力——关注胜利,关注秩序。
当你认识到思想和言语的重要时,你就会养成重视思考和言语的习惯。
丰富的想象力作为心灵的剪刀,会孜孜不倦地剪掉那些乏味的生活琐事。
1. He had rounded up_________but three. These three resisted and resented. They baaed and lifted their front_________in protest, but the dog simply sat down in front and_________took his eyes off them. He did not barks or threaten. He oust sat and looked his determination. In a little while the sheep tossed their_________and went in the pen.
2. Your success and happiness in life depend_________the watchman at the gate of your thoughts, sooner or , crystallize on the external. A trumpet is a musical instrument, used in olden times, to draw people’s_________to something—to victory, to order.
1. 我们有能力按照自己的心愿选择思想。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. 数千年以来,人类就是用自己的思考能力不断地生活、繁衍。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
3. 当你认识到思想和言语的重要时,你就会养成重视思考和言语的习惯。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
1. We must all have a watchman at the gate of our thoughts.
at the gate of:在……门口
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. We can learn to control our thoughts in the same way...
in the same way:用同样的方式,同样地,以同样的方法
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
像孩子一样快乐生活
Choose Your Attitude and Expand Your Thinking
佚名 / Anonymous
I don’t know what it is about this time of year that makes me start reflecting over how I’ve spent my time on this whirling orb.
As I think back I realize how hard it is to view the world through the eyes of my childhood. As children every day is filled with awe and wonder. A child’s mind is still filled with the idea that anything and everything is possible. They haven’t begun building the mental walls yet. They haven’t learned to worry what others think.
Watch a child learning to walk and it’s amazing. No matter how many times they fall down, they hop back up because they instinctively know that eventually they’ll be able to walk. They don’t have to worry what others think. They have no need to put up a front. But somewhere along the line they learn to be practical. Their creativity becomes stifled over time, as the world teaches them to fit in. Eventually they don’t bounce back as fast when they fail. Having fun is no longer the goal. Learning and growing are now a chore. Goals are no longer lofty. Goals are now set within the confines of their more limited view of life.
It doesn’t have to be like that. You and I can tear down those walls that are closing in and start fresh. It’s time to bring back that sense of joy and wonder.
When you’re setting your goals for the New Year, think like a child. Expand your thinking. Set your goals as if anything is possible. Don’t worry about what “they” think. It’s your goal and you can achieve it. View the world through the wonder struck eyes of a child.
In the words of Napoleon Hill, “If you can conceive it, you can achieve it.” I know you can do great things. Do you?
我不知道是什么,让我在每年的这个时候都反思自己是怎样在这个大循环中生存的。
当我回忆从前的时候,就会意识到,自己很难再用小时候的眼光来看待这个世界。因为孩提时的每一天都充满了敬畏和新奇。一切皆有可能的思想仍然充斥着孩子的头脑,他们还没有开始构筑精神的防护墙,还不懂得为他人的看法而感到烦恼。
观察一个蹒跚学步的婴儿,你会感到十分惊奇。不管摔倒多少次,他们都会马上爬起来,因为他们本能地知道自己最终一定能走路的。他们不在乎别人的议论,也不注重体面。但是,他们在成长的某个阶段学会了现实。当这个世界教导他们适应环境时,他们的创造力随着时间流逝而变得了无生气。最终,他们不再在失败后迅速恢复元气。拥有快乐已不再是目标,学习和成长成了累赘,目标也不再崇高。现在,他们更被狭隘的生活观限制了自己的目标。
其实无须如此。我们都可以将这些封闭的心墙拆毁,开始新的尝试。恢复那种快乐感和好奇感的时候到了。
当你制订新年目标时,像孩子一样思考吧。拓展你的思维。设定目标时,假设一切皆有可能。不要因为“他们”的看法而感到忧心,这是你的目标,你能够实现。用孩童般充满好奇的眼光来看待世界吧!
拿破仑?希尔曾经说过“心想事成”,我知道你能成就伟业,不是吗?
现在,我们很难用小时候的目光看待世界了。与此同时,我们也失去了一些激情、一些自信。这时,我们需要像孩子一样思考,拓宽我们的思维。相信自己,也相信一切皆有可能。
1. As I think back I realize how_________ it is to view the world through the_________ of my childhood. As children every day is filled with awe and_________. A child’s mind is still filled with the idea that anything and everything is_________. They haven’t begun building the mental walls yet. They haven’t learned to_________ what others think.
2. Expand your_________. Set your goals as if_________ is possible. Don’t worry about what “they” think. It’s your goal_________ you can achieve it. View the world through the wonder struck eyes of a_________.
1. 一切皆有可能的思想仍然充斥着孩子的头脑。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. 其实无须如此。我们都可以将这些封闭的心墙拆毁,开始新的尝试。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
3. 当你制订新年目标时,像孩子一样思考吧。拓展你的思维。设定目标时,假设一切皆有可能。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
1. As children every day is filled with awe and wonder.
be filled with:充满;装满,盛满
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. They hop back up because they instinctively know that eventually they’ll be able to walk.
be able to:能,会,能够;胜任
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
门
On Doors
C.D.莫利 / C. D. Morley
The opening and closing of doors are the most significant actions of man’s life. What a mystery lies in doors!
No man knows what awaits him when he opens a door. Even the most familiar room, where the clock ticks and the hearth glows red at dusk, may harbor surprise. The plumber may actually have called (while you were out) and fixed that leaking faucet. The cook may have had a fit of the vapors and demanded her passports. The wise man opens his front door with humility and a spirit of acceptance.
Which one of us has not sat in some anteroom and watched the inscrutable panels of a door that was full of meaning? Perhaps you were waiting to apply for a job; perhaps you had some “deal” you were ambitious to put over. You watched the confidential stenographer flit in and out, carelessly turning that mystic portal which, to you, revolved on hinges of fate. And then the young woman said, “Mr. Cranberry will see you now.” As you grasped the knob the thought flashed, “When I open this door again, what will have happened?”
There are many kinds of doors. Revolving doors for hotels, shops, and public buildings that are typical of the brisk, bustling ways of modern life. Can you imagine John Milton or William Penn skipping through a revolving door? Then there are the curious little slanted doors that still swing outside denatured bar-rooms and extend only from shoulder to knee. There are trapdoors, sliding doors, double doors, stage doors, prison doors, glass doors. But the symbol and mystery of a door resides in its quality of concealment. A glass door is not a door at all, but a window. The meaning of a door is to hide what lies inside; to keep the heart in suspense.
Also, there are many ways of opening doors. There is a cheery push of an elbow with which the waiter shoves open the kitchen door when he bears in your tray of supper. There is the suspicious and tentative withdrawal of a door before the unhappy book agent or peddler. There is the genteel and carefully modulated recession with which footmen swing wide the oaken barriers of the great. There is the sympathetic and awful silence of the dentist’s maid who opens the door into the operating room, and, without speaking, implies that the doctor is ready for you. There is the brisk cataclysmic opening of a door when the nurses come in, very early in the morning—“It’s a boy!”
Doors are at the symbol of privacy, of retreat, of the mind’s escape into blissful quietude or sad secret struggle. A room without doors is not a room, but a hallway. No matter where he is, a man can make himself at home behind a closed door. The mind works best behind closed doors. Men are not horses to be herded together. Dogs know the meaning and anguish of doors. Have you ever noticed a puppy yearning at a shut portal ? It is a symbol of human life.
The opening of doors is a mystic act: it has in some flavor of the unknown, some sense of moving into a new moment, a new pattern of human rigmarole. It includes the highest glimpses of mortal gladness: reunions, reconciliations, the bliss of lovers long parted. Even in sadness, the opening of a door may bring relief: it changes and redistributes human forces. But the closing of doors is far more terrible. It is a confession of finality. Every door closed brings something to an end. And there are degrees of sadness in the closing of doors. A door slammed is a confession of weakness. A door gently shut is often the most tragic gesture in life. Every one knows the seizure of anguish that comes just after the closing of a door, when the loved one is still near, with sound of voice, and yet already far away.
The opening and closing of doors is a part of the stern fluency of life. Life will not stay still and let us alone. We are continually opening doors with hope, closing them with despair. Life lasts not much longer than a pipe of tobacco, and destiny knocks us out like ashes.
The closing of a door is irrevocable. It snaps the back-thread of the heart. It is no avail to reopen, to go back. Pinero spoke nonsense when he made Paula Tanqueray say, “The future is only the past entered through another gate.” Alas, there is no other gate. When the door is shut, it is shut forever. There is no other entrance to that vanished pulse of time. “The moving finger writes, and have writ...”
There is a certain kind of door shutting that will come to us all. The kind of door shutting that is done very quietly, with the sharp click of the latch to break the stillness. They will think then, one hopes, of our unfulfilled decencies rather than of our pluperfected misdemeanors. Then they will go out and close the door.
人生最有意义的动作就是开门和关门。门内将会是怎样的神秘景象啊!
没有人知道当他推开一扇门,等待他的是什么。即便是最熟悉的房间,时钟滴答滴答地走着,壁炉的红色火焰在暮色中闪烁,也有可能会发生令人吃惊的事。水管工人可能已经拜访过(就在你不在家的时候),把坏了的水龙头修好了。厨娘没准儿正烦恼郁闷,想请你准予她离开。有头脑的人总是抱着谦虚接受的态度推开他面前的那扇门。
哪个人没有在某间接待室坐过,双眼紧盯着那扇无法预测的意味深长的门?或许你要应聘,或许你迫切地想要成交一笔生意。你看着机密速记员出来进去,毫不在意地旋转着那扇关系着你命运铰链的神秘大门。然后,那个年轻女人说:“克雷伯里先生现在想要见你。”就在你抓住门柄的时候,一个念头一闪而过:“当我再次推开这扇门的时候,将会发生什么呢?”
门的种类有许多。有旅馆、商店和公共建筑的十字形旋转门,这是轻快且繁忙的现代生活方式的象征。你能想象得出约翰?弥尔顿或威廉?佩恩从一扇旋转门匆匆走过吗?还有一些古怪而倾斜的小门,依然在变了质的酒吧外摇摆,并且只有膝盖到肩膀这么高。还有活板门、滑门、双折门、舞台门、监狱门和玻璃门。但是一扇门的象征和神秘之处就体现在它的隐蔽性上。玻璃门仅仅是一扇窗,根本就不是门。门的意义就是把门内的一切隐藏起来,让你的心处于焦虑之中。
与此同时,开门的方式也有许多。其中一种是用胳膊肘轻快地一推,比如服务员端着你的晚餐,打开厨房的门时。一个不开心的书商或小贩拉开门时,是犹豫和存有戒心的。上流社会细心、谨慎的男仆会退步而出为重要人物敞开栎木大门。或者富有同情心的女牙医助手轻轻推开手术室的门,然后什么也不说,暗示你医生已经准备好了。此外还有,大清早,护士轻快且忽然地推开门进来,喊道:“是个男孩!”
门意味着隐私、退却、心灵退避到幸福的平静或伤心的秘密挣扎。一个房间没有门就不算房间,只是一个走廊。一个人待在一扇关闭着的门后,不管是在哪儿,他都能让自己感觉像是在家里。人的思维在关闭着的门后状态最为活跃。人不是马,要成群地在一起。狗知道门所带来的意义和苦恼。你是否留意到一只小狗对一扇关着的门充满向往?这象征着人类的生活。
开门的动作是神秘的,充满着一些不可预知的滋味,投进新的一瞬的感觉,一种人类冗长繁乱的新形式。它显示出最高境界的快乐:团圆、和解、久别重逢的恋人的欣喜。即使是悲哀,打开的门也会给你以安慰,它改变并重组人的力量。可是,关门是骇人的,它彰显的是结束。每一扇门的关闭都意味着一些事情的终结。关门也有着不同程度的悲哀。“砰”地把门关上是虚弱的象征,轻轻把门带上往往是一生中最悲壮的动作。每个人都明白,苦痛随后即到。就在关上门后,深爱的人虽近在咫尺,仍能听到声音,却已渐渐远去。
开门和关门是严肃且匆匆而逝的一生中的一部分。生命不会停滞不前,弃我们于不顾。我们满怀希望不断地开门,却常常带着失望关门。人的一生不过一管烟的长度,我们就像烟灰一样被命运击倒。
关上一扇门是不可避免的。它猛然折断心脏的血管,重新打开,再放回去,也是徒劳。皮尼罗让波拉?坦克瑞说:“未来只是过去通过另一道门进来了。”这简直是谬论。唉,没有其他的门!当这扇门关上了,它就永远地闭上了。那消失了脉搏的时间,再也没有其他的入口。“手指运动,在纸上写下字迹……”
我们都会遇到这么一类关门。这种门是静静关上的,打破寂静的只有弹簧锁的咔嗒声。但愿当时他们所想的不是我们曾经做过的坏事,而是我们尚未完成的正事。那么,他们将会走出去……
门,象征着隐私,意味着神秘。一扇门的开启,总给我们以无限遐想。人的一生有无数次的开门关门,有的门开了可以关,关了还可以再开。但有一扇门开了,就再也关不上了,这就是死亡之门。所以,我们要珍惜活着的每分每秒,珍爱生命。
1. Which one of us has not_________ in some anteroom and watched the inscrutable panels of a door that was full of ? Perhaps you were waiting to apply for a job;_________you had some “deal” you were ambitious to put over.
2. No matter where he is, a man can make himself at home behind a_________ door. The mind works_________behind closed doors. Men are not horses to be herded . Dogs know the meaning and anguish of .
3. Alas, there is no other . When the door is , it is shut forever. There is no other entrance to that vanished pulse of .
1. 开门的动作是神秘的,充满着一些不可预知的滋味,投进新的一瞬的感觉,一种人类冗长繁乱的新形式。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. 可是,关门是骇人的,它彰显的是结束。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
3. 开门和关门是严肃且匆匆而逝的一生中的一部分。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
1. ...perhaps you had some “deal” you were ambitious to put over.
put over:推迟;驶过;使被接受
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. Perhaps you were waiting to apply for a job...
apply for:申请;请求
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
铭记微笑的力量
Remember the Power of a Smile
佚名 / Anonymous
I placed the items on the moving belt. Slowly my packages moved towards the cash register.
The cashier was tired. I could see it on her face. It was towards the end of her shift. She had no doubt been standing and ringing the cash register all day. I know the cash registers don’t ring anymore, they are computerized, but when I worked as a cashier, they rang.
My two-year-old son, Josees, was with me.
She performed her job with all of the speed-tired muscles and weary spirit could summon.
Josees stood in front of her across the belt. His tiny frame was inches below the top of the moving belt. I don’t know what made him move away from me and stand there. Children can at times move more on instinct than logic.
He stood there looking up. Sensing something.
She looked down. “Oh, my God, look at that smile!” she exclaimed.
She changed. The tiredness left. The dreariness left. She appeared as fresh as if she had just walked through the door.
Josees continued standing and smiling. She continued to revived.
I saw not the power of a child, but the power of a pure smile.
Remember, you have the same power.
Each day you will meet someone who is tired, weary, and dreary. For many, the tired, weary, dreary person you meet will be in the mirror.
Even in the mirror, the power of a smile still works.
When you smile, the muscles of your face contract on a special gland in the brain which release a hormone in the brain that eases stress and causes a slight euphoric high.
Smile real big right now and see if that gland is in your brain too.
She was still bubbling as we walked out of the store.
Josees never said a word. He only smiled.
Remember Josees when you meet your weary person each day. Remember someone needs smile.
我把选购的商品放在传送带上,慢慢地,我的东西移向收银员。
收银员很疲倦,我从她的脸上就看出来了。她换班的时间要到了,毫无疑问,她已经站在那里摁了一天的收银机。我知道,收银机全部是电脑化处理的,不再响铃了。要知道,我做收银员那会儿,收银机还是响铃的呢。
我两岁的儿子乔斯和我在一起。
收银员强打精神做着她的工作。
隔着传送带,乔斯站在她面前,他矮小的身材离传送带的顶部还有几英尺。我不知道是什么使他离开我,站在收银员的面前。有时候,孩子更多的是依靠本能活动,而不是逻辑思维。
他仰着头站在那里,收银员似乎感觉到了什么。
她低头看看。“哦,我的天哪,看看这微笑!”她惊叫道。
她发生了转变,疲倦和阴郁一下子消失得无影无踪,看上去就像刚开始工作一样神采奕奕。
乔斯依旧站在那里,微笑着,收银员的状态也很好。
我知道,那不是一个孩子的力量,而是一个纯真微笑的力量。
记住,你也拥有这样的力量。
每天你都会遇到某个人,他疲惫、厌烦、阴郁。而对于大多数人来说,镜子中那个疲惫、厌倦、阴郁的人正是他们自己。
即便是在镜子里,微笑的力量也依然会产生效力。
在你微笑的时候,你面部的肌肉刺激大脑中的某一特定腺体收缩,在大脑中分泌激素来减轻压力的效用,产生一种轻微的快感。
马上放声开怀大笑吧,看看你的大脑中是否也存在这样的腺体。
我们走出超市的时候,收银员依旧喜气洋洋。
乔斯一句话也没有说,他只是微笑。
每天当你遇到疲惫的人时,请想起乔斯吧。请记住,有人需要微笑。
1. She had no_________ been standing and ringing the_________ register all day. I know the cash registers don’t ring anymore, they are computerized, but_________ I worked as a cashier, they rang.
2. Josees_________ in front of her across the belt. His tiny frame was inches below the top of the moving belt. I don’t know_________ made him move away from me and stand there. Children can at times move more on instinct_________ logic.
3. Each day you will_________ someone who is_________, weary, and dreary. For many, the tired, weary, dreary person you meet will be in the_________.
1. 我知道,那不是一个孩子的力量,而是一个纯真微笑的力量。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. 即便是在镜子里,微笑的力量也依然会产生效力。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
3. 请记住,有人需要微笑。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
1. Josees stood in front of her across the belt.
in front of:在……前面
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. I don’t know what made him move away from me and stand there.
move away from:从……离开;抛弃
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
真实的高贵
True Nobility
欧内斯特?海明威 / Ernest Hemingway
In a calm sea every man is a pilot.
But all sunshine without shade, all pleasure without pain, is not life at all. Take the lot of the happiest—it is a tangled yarn. Bereavements and blessings, one following another, make us sad and blessed by turns. Even death itself makes life more loving. Men come closest to their true selves in the sober moments of life, under the shadows of sorrow and loss.
In the affairs of life or of business, it is not intellect that tells so much as character, not brains so much as heart, not genius so much as self-control, patience, and discipline, regulated by judgment.
I have always believed that the man who has begun to live more seriously within begins to live more simply without. In an age of extravagance and waste, I wish I could show to the world how few the real wants of humanity are.
To regret one’s errors to the point of not repeating them is true repentance.
There is nothing noble in being superior to some other man. The true nobility is in being superior to your previous self.
风平浪静的大海上,每个人都是领航员。
但是,只有阳光而无阴影,只有欢乐而无痛苦,那就不是人生。以最幸福的人的生活为例——它是一团纠缠在一起的麻线。丧亲之痛和幸福祝愿,彼此相接,使我们一会儿伤心一会儿高兴,甚至死亡本身也会使生命更加可亲。在人生的清醒时刻,在哀痛和伤心的阴影之下,人们与真实的自我最接近。
在人生或者职业的各种事务中,性格的作用比智力大得多,头脑的作用不如心情,天资不如由判断力所掌控的自制、耐心和纪律。
我始终相信,开始在内心生活得更严肃的人,也会在外表上开始生活得更朴素。在一个奢华浪费的年代,我希望能向世界表明,人类真正需要的东西是非常微小的。
悔恨自己的错误,而且力求不再重蹈覆辙,这才是真正的悔悟。
优于别人,并不高贵,真正的高贵应该是优于过去的自己。
1. But all sunshine without , all pleasure_________pain, is not life at all. Take the lot of the happiest—it is a tangled yarn. Bereavements and blessings, one following , make us sad and blessed by turns. Even_________itself makes life more loving.
2. In the affairs of life_________of business, it is not intellect that tells so_________as character, not brains so much as , not genius so much as self-control, patience, and discipline, regulated by judgment.
3. In an_________of extravagance and waste, I wish I could_________to the world how few the real wants of humanity are.
1. 开始在内心生活得更严肃的人,也会在外表上开始生活得更朴素。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. 我希望能向世界表明,人类真正需要的东西是非常微小的。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
3. 真正的高贵应该是优于过去的自己。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
1. Bereavements and blessings, one following another, make us sad and blessed by turns.
by turns:轮流;交替
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. There is nothing noble in being superior to some other man.
superior to:优于,比……优越
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
这只是摔倒
A Lesson about Courage
佚名 / Anonymous
One afternoon, many years ago, I went to pick up my mother from work. I got there a little early so I parked the car by the curb, across the street from where she worked, and waited for her.
As I looked outside the car window to my right, there was a small park where I saw a little boy, around one and a half to two years old, running freely on the grass as his mother watched from a short distance. The boy had a big smile on his face as if he had just been set free from some sort of prison. The boy would then fall to the grass, get up, and without hesitation or without looking back at his mother, run as fast as he could, again, still with a smile on his face, as if nothing had happened.
However, with kids (especially at an early age), when they fall down, they don’t perceive their falling down as failure, but instead, they treat it as a learning experience (as just another result/outcome). They feel compelled to try and try again until they succeed. (The answer must be... they have not associated “falling down” with the word “failure” yet, thus they don’t know how to feel the state accompanies failure. As a result, they are not disempowered in anyway. Plus, they probably think to themselves that it’s perfectly okay to fall down, that it’s not wrong to do so. In other words, they give themselves permission to make mistakes, subconsciously. Thus they remain empowered.) While I was touched by the boys persistence, I was equally touched by the manner in he ran. With each attempt, he looked so confident... so natural. No signs of fear, nervousness, or of being discouraged—as if he didn’t give a care about the world around him.
His only aim was to run freely and to do it as effectively as he could. He was just being a child—just being himself—being completely in the moment. He was not looking for approval or was not worrying about whether someone was watching or not. He wasn’t concerned about being judged. He didn’t seem to be bothered by the fact that maybe someone would see him fall (as there were others in the park aside from him and his mother) and that it would be embarrassing if he did fall. No, all that mattered to him was to accomplish the task or activity at hand to the best of his ability. To run... and to feel the experience of running fully and freely. I learned a lot from that observation and experience, and have successfully brought that lesson with me in my many pursuits in life.
Since then, I’ve always believed that in each of us is a little child with absolute courage. A child that has the ability to run freely (or express himself fully and freely)—without a care for anything external —without a care for what people would say if he/she experiences a fall. I believe that that courageous part of us, that courageous child within us all, will always be with us for as long as we live. We only need to allow it to emerge more fully. We only need to once again connect with that child within us—and give that child permission to run freely, just like that boy in the park.
多年前,有一天下午,我去接妈妈下班。到了那儿后,时间还有些早。于是,我把车子停在路边,在她工作单位的街对面等着。
我从右侧的车窗往外望去,看见一个小公园里有一个小男孩,大约一岁半到两岁之间。他正在草地上自由奔跑,他的妈妈在附近注视着他。小男孩笑得非常灿烂,好像刚从某种监禁中释放出来一样。偶尔,他在草地上摔倒了,但又毫不犹豫地爬起来继续跑,也不回头看他的妈妈,就像什么也没发生过似的,仍面带微笑地继续以最快的速度奔跑。
对于小孩子来说(尤其是幼童),当他们摔倒在地,并不认为那是失败。相反,他们会像对待学习经验一样(或者只是另一种结果甚至成就),不断地去尝试,直到成功(原因一定是他们并不把“摔倒”与“失败”联系起来,他们并不知道如何去感受这种情形伴随而来的失败。所以,无论如何,他们都不会有挫败感。另外,他们可能认为自己摔倒也没什么,这样并没有什么错。换言之,在他们的潜意识里,容许自己犯错。这样,他们总是充满活力)。小男孩的坚持打动了我,他奔跑的方式也同样令我深深地感动。他的每一次尝试,看起来都那么自信,那么自如,没有一丝恐惧、紧张或气馁——好像对他周围的世界毫不在意。
自由奔跑是他唯一的目标,他只是尽全力地去跑。他只是一个孩子——在那个时刻,完完全全地表现他真正的自我。他没有寻求称赞,也不担心是否有人在看着他,更不在乎他人的评判。他看上去并不为自己摔倒可能会被别人看到而感到难堪(因为在公园里,他和妈妈旁边还有其他人)。他全心全意地去完成任务,或者说尽最大的能力完成手头上的活动,去奔跑……全身心地去感受自由自在的奔跑。从那次观察及其感受中,我得到了很多启示,并把这些启示成功地运用到我的许多人生追求当中。
从那以后,我总是相信,我们每一个人都有一颗绝对勇敢的童心。一个孩子能全心投入地自由奔跑(或毫不掩饰地表现真我)——对外在环境毫不在意——即使摔倒,对别人的言论也毫不在意。我相信,我们都有这样的勇气,都有这样一颗勇敢的童心,这种勇敢会伴随我们一生。我们只要全身心投入地表露出来,只要再次连接这颗童心——让孩子般的宽大放任身心自由奔跑,就像公园里的那个小男孩一样。
1. The boy had a big_________on his face as if he had just been set_________from some sort of prison. The boy would then_________to the grass, get up, and without hesitation or without looking back at his mother, run as_________as he could, again, still with a smile on his face, as if nothing had .
2. While I was_________by the boys persistence, I was equally touched by the_________in he ran. With each attempt, he looked so confident... so natural. No signs of , nervousness, or of being discouraged—as if he didn’t give a care about the world_________him.
3. Since , I’ve always believed that in each of us is a little_________with absolute courage.
1. 当他们摔倒在地,并不认为那是失败。相反,他们会像对待学习经验一样。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. 自由奔跑是他唯一的目标,他只是尽全力地去跑。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
3. 我总是相信,我们每一个人都有一颗绝对勇敢的童心。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
1. I parked the car by the curb, across the street from where she worked, and waited for her.
wait for:等候,等待
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. ...running freely on the grass as his mother watched from a short distance.
from a distance:从远处;隔开一段距离(或时间)
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
领悟人生
Word of Wisdom
佚名 / Anonymous
I’ve learned that sometimes all a person needs is a hand to hold and a heart to understand.
I’ve learned that the Lord didn’t do it all in one day. What makes me think I can?
I’ve learned that love, not time, heals all wounds .
I’ve learned that everyone you meet deserves to be greeted with a smile.
I’ve learned that there’s nothing sweeter than sleeping with your babies and feeling their breath on your cheeks.
I’ve learned that no one is perfect until you fall in love with them.
I’ve learned that opportunities are never lost; someone will take the ones you miss.
I’ve learned that when you harbor bitterness, happiness will dock elsewhere.
I’ve learned that I wish I could have told my Mom that I love her one more time before she passed away.
I’ve learned that one should keep his words both soft and tender, because tomorrow he may have to eat them.
I’ve learned that a smile is an inexpensive way to improve your looks.
I’ve learned that I can’t choose how I feel, but I can choose what I do about it.
I’ve learned that everyone wants to stand on top of the mountain, but all the happiness and growth occurs while you’re climbing it.
I’ve learned that it is best to give advice in only two circumstances: when it is requested and when it is a
life-threatening situation.
I’ve learned that the less time I have to work with, the more things I get done.
我知道了有时一个人想要的只是一只可握的手和一颗感知的心。
我知道了上帝并非一天完成所有的事,我又怎么可能呢?
我知道了治愈一切创伤的并非时间,而是爱。
我知道了每一个与你相遇的人都值得你笑脸相迎。
我知道了和孩子睡在一起并用脸颊感觉他们的呼吸是最甜蜜的事。
我知道了只有当深爱一个人时,才会认为他(她)是完美的。
我知道了机会从来不会自行消逝,别人会抓住你错过的机会。
我知道了当你给痛苦提供港湾时,幸福就会到别的地方停靠。
我知道了我多么希望能在母亲去世之前再说一次我爱她。
我知道了一个人应谨慎地许下诺言,因为第二天他可能不得不食言。
我知道了微笑是改善容貌的一种并不昂贵的方式。
我知道了我无法改变想法,但我可以选择做法。
我知道了每个人都想高居山顶,但所有幸福和成长皆存在于爬山的过程中。
我知道了最好只在以下两种情况给人以忠告:别人要求时和性命攸关时。
我知道了急功近利只能让目标更遥远。
1. I’ve learned that everyone you meet deserves to be_________ with a smile.
I’ve learned that there’s nothing sweeter_________ sleeping with your babies and feeling their_________ on your cheeks.
2. I’ve learned that I wish I could have told my Mom that I_________ her one more_________ before she passed away.
I’ve learned that one should keep his_________ both soft and tender, because tomorrow he may have to_________ them.
3. I’ve learned that the_________ time I have to work with, the more things I get_________.
1. 我知道了治愈一切创伤的并非时间,而是爱。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. 我知道了微笑是改善容貌的一种并不昂贵的方式。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
3. 我知道了我无法改变想法,但我可以选择做法。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
1. I’ve learned that everyone you meet deserves to be greeted with a smile.
deserve to:应受;值得
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. ... I love her one more time before she passed away.
pass away:(时间等)消磨掉;过去;去世;终止
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
知足常乐,尽享人生
I Wish You Enough
佚名 / Anonymous
At an airport I overheard a father and daughter during their last moments together. Her flight was ready for boarding and they were standing near the departure gate. She said, “Daddy, our life together has been more than enough. Your love is all I ever need. I wish you enough, too, Daddy.”
They kissed goodbye and she left. The man walked over towards the window near where I was seated. I could see that he wanted and needed to cry.
I tried not to intrude upon his privacy, but he welcomed me by asking, “Have you ever said goodbye to someone knowing that it would be forever?”
“Yes, I have.” Saying that brought back memories I had of expressing my love and appreciation for all that my Dad had done for me. Recognizing that his days were numbered, I took the time to tell him, face-to-face, how much he meant to me. So I knew what this man was going through.
“Forgive me for asking, but why is this goodbye forever?” I asked.
“I am old and she lives much too far away. I have challenges ahead and the reality is, her next trip back will be for my funeral . ” He said.
“I heard you say, ’I wish you enough?’ May I ask what that means?”
He began to smile. “That is a wish that has been handed down through the generations. My parents used to say it to everyone.”
The man paused a moment, then looked up, as if trying to remember the details.
“Then we say I wish you enough. We want the other persons to have a life filled with enough good things to sustain them.”
He then turned me and shared the following, as if he were reciting it from memory:
I wish you enough sun to keep your attitude bright.
I wish you enough rain to appreciate the sun more.
I wish you enough happiness to keep your spirits up.
I wish you enough pain so that the smallest joys in life appear much bigger.
I wish you enough gain to satisfy your wanting.
I wish you enough loss to appreciate all that you possess.
I wish enough hellos to get you through the final Goodbye.
The man then began to sob and walked away.
在机场,我无意中听到一对父女离别前最后的对话。他们就站在飞机门附近,女儿正准备登机,她说:“爸爸,我们一起生活了这么久,我感到很满足。您给我的爱,我知足了。爸爸,希望您也知足常乐。”
吻别后,女儿上了飞机。父亲朝窗子走来,我就坐在这附近,可以看出他欲哭的表情。
我尽力不触及他的隐私,他却主动问道:“明知道是永别,却还要说再见,你曾经有过这样的经历吗?”
“是的,有过。”我不禁回忆起从前,对于父亲为我所做的一切,我曾经向他表达过我对他的爱和感激。我知道父亲时日不多,所以特意当面告诉他,他对我是多么重要。现在,我也完全能理解这个男人的感受。
“冒昧地问一句,为什么这是永别呢?”我问。
“我老了,她住得太远。我以后的日子充满挑战,事实上,她下次回来就是参加我的葬礼了。”他说。
“我听你们说’希望你知足常乐?’能问一下,那是什么意思吗?”
他开始笑起来:“那是我们家族代代相传的愿望。我父母过去常对每个人这样说。”
那个人顿了顿,抬起头来,像是沉浸在过去琐碎的回忆里。
“后来,我们都说要知足常乐,希望其他人的生活里充满更多的美好,支撑鼓励他们好好生活。”
然后,他转向我,说了下面的话,好像是从记忆深处背诵出来的。
愿你拥有足够的阳光,让你乐观向上。
愿你拥有足够的雨水,让你更加感激阳光。
愿你拥有足够的幸福,使你精神高昂。
愿你拥有足够的痛苦,这样,生命中再微小的欢乐都会显得巨大。
愿你收获更多,满足你的需求。
愿你失去更多,让你知道珍惜一切。
愿你在永别后,能交更多的朋友。
那个人开始呜咽起来,然后走开了。
知足常乐,尽享人生——我希望你生活中的一切都是有益的、让你幸福的,为此我愿付出我的所有来祈祷。这就是至深而无私的爱!
1. She said, “Daddy, our life together has been more than_________. Your_________ is all I ever need. I wish you enough, too, Daddy.”
2. “Then we_________ I wish you enough. We want the_________ persons to have a life filled with enough_________ things to sustain them.”
3. I wish you enough gain to satisfy your_________.
I wish you enough_________ to appreciate all that you possess.
I wish enough hellos to get you through the_________ Goodbye.
The man then began to sob and walked_________.
1. 我不禁回忆起从前,对于父亲为我所做的一切,我曾经向他表达过我对他的爱和感激。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. 那个人顿了顿,抬起头来,像是沉浸在过去琐碎的回忆里。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
3. 愿你拥有足够的痛苦,这样,生命中再微小的欢乐都会显得巨大。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
1. Recognizing that his days were numbered, I took the time to tell him, face-to-face, how much he meant to me.
face-to-face:面对面
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. My parents used to say it to everyone.
used to do:过去常常
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
你的玻璃杯重吗
Put the Glass Down
佚名 / Anonymous
A lecturer was giving a lecture to his students on stress management. He raised a glass of water and asked the audience, “How heavy do you think this glass of water is?”
The students’ answers ranged from 20g to 500g.
“It does not matter on the absolute weight. It depends on how long you hold it. If I hold it for a minute, it is OK. If I hold it for an hour, I will have an ache in my right arm. If I hold it for a day, you will have to call an ambulance. It is the exact same weight, but the longer I hold it, the heavier it becomes.
“If we carry our burdens all the time, sooner or later, we will not be able to carry on, the burden becoming increasingly heavier.
“What you have to do is to put the glass down, rest for a while before holding it up again.”
We have to put down the burden periodically, so that we can be refreshed and are able to carry on.
So before you return home from work tonight, put the burden of work down. Don’t carry it back home. You can pick it up tomorrow.
Whatever burdens you are having now on your shoulders, let it down for a moment if you can.
Life is short, enjoy it!
一位老师正在给学生们讲解如何处理压力。他把一杯水举起来,问大家:“你们估计这杯水会有多重?”
学生们的答案从20克到500克不等。
“这杯水的重量其实由你举的时间来决定,而与它的实际重量无关。我要是举一分钟,肯定没问题;但要是举一小时,右臂就会酸疼;若举一天,那你们就该叫救护车了。它的实际重量并没有改变,只是我举的时间越长,就会觉得它越沉重。
“如果我们始终都肩负担子,总会有熬不住的时候,担子也会变得更加沉重。
“你只需放下杯子,歇息一会儿后再举起来。”
我们一定要不时地将负担放下,这样才有利于精力的恢复,继续新的征程。
因此,今晚下班回家后,不要再去想工作的事情,不要把工作压力带回家。你可以第二天再担负起它。
不管你此刻肩负怎样的重担,如果可以,都要将其卸下,休息一会儿。
生命短暂,尽情享受吧!
我们一定要不时地将负担放下,这样才有利于精力的恢复,继续新的征程。
1. A lecturer was giving a_________to his students on stress management. He_________a glass of water and asked the audience, “How_________do you think this glass of water is?”
2. It does not_________ on the absolute weight. It depends on how_________you hold it. If I hold it for a minute, it is OK. If I hold it for an , I will have an ache in my right arm. If I hold it for a day, you will have to_________an ambulance. It is the exact_________weight, but the longer I hold it, the heavier it becomes.
3. So before you return home_________work tonight, put the burden of work . Don’t carry it back home. You can pick it up .
1. 我们一定要不时地将负担放下,这样才有利于精力的恢复,继续新的征程。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. 不管你此刻肩负怎样的重担,如果可以,都要将其卸下,休息一会儿。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
3. 生命短暂,尽情享受吧!
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
1. Rest for a while before holding it up again.
hold up:举起;提出;支持住;阻挡
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. If we carry our burdens all the time, sooner or later, we will not be able to carry on, the burden becoming increasingly heavier.
sooner or later:迟早,早晚
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
痛苦的根源
The Cobbler and the Banker
拉?封丹 / La Fontaine
A cobbler passed his time in singing from morning till night; it was wonderful to see, wonderful to hear him; he was more contented in making shoes than was any of the seven sages. His neighbor, on the contrary, who was rolling in wealth, sung but little, and sleepless. He was a banker; when by chance he fell into a doze at day-break, the cobbler awoke him with his song. The banker complained sadly that Providence had not made sleep a saleable commodity, like edibles or drinkables. Having at length sent for the songster, he said to him, “How much a year do you earn, Master Gregory?”
“How much a year, Sir?” said the merry cobbler laughing, “I never reckon in that way, living as I do from one day to another; somehow I manage to reach the end of the year; each day brings its meal.”
“Well then! How much a day do you earn, my friend?”
“Sometimes more, sometimes less; but the worst of it is, and, without that our earnings would be very tolerable, a number of days occur in the year on which we are forbidden to work; and the curate, moreover, is constantly adding some new saint to the list.”
The banker, laughing at his simplicity, said, “In the future I shall place you above want. Take this 100 crowns, preserve them carefully, and make use of them in time of need.”
The cobbler fancied he beheld all the wealth which the earth had produced in the past century for the use of mankind. Returning home, he buried his money and his happiness at the same time. No more singing; he lost his voice, the moment he acquired that which is the source of so much grief. Sleep quitted his dwelling; and cares, suspicions, and false alarms took its place. All day, his eye wandered in the direction of the treasure; and at night, if some stray cat made a noise, the cat was robbing him. At length the poor man ran to the house of his rich neighbor; “Give me back,” said he, “sleep and my voice, and take your 100 crowns.”
一个皮匠以歌自娱,在歌声中度过每一天。每一个见到他,或听到他歌声的人都甚感愉快。他满足于自己的制鞋工作,甚至觉得比做希腊七圣还满足。他的邻居是一个家财万贯的银行家,与他相反,银行家很少唱歌,睡眠也不好,偶尔在天快亮时才打个盹,又被皮匠的歌声吵醒了。他痛苦地抱怨上帝没有把睡眠也变成商品,他多想睡眠也像食品和饮料那样能随意购买啊。最后,银行家把这个歌唱者请过来,对他说:“格雷戈里师傅,您一年能赚多少钱啊?”
“一年赚多少钱吗,先生?”快乐的皮匠笑道,“我可从来没有统计过,我天天如此,每天挣足三餐,总能撑到年底。”
“啊,朋友,那么,你一天挣多少呢?”
“有时候挣得多,有时又少点儿,我们的收入还可以。最难过的日子就是每年总有些时候不让我们工作,而牧师又常吸纳新的圣徒。”
银行家被皮匠的直率逗乐了,他说:“今后,我将满足你的一切需求,你把这100枚钱币拿去存好,需要时就拿出来用。”
皮匠觉得自己好像看到了几个世纪以来,大地为人类所需创造出来的所有财富。他回家后,把这笔钱埋了起来,同时,也埋葬了他的欢乐。从此,他不再唱歌。在他得到钱这个痛苦根源的那刻起,就失去了歌喉。担心、怀疑、虚惊让他不能安稳地入睡。他的目光整天游移在藏钱的地方。晚上,就是野猫弄出点儿声响,他也会以为有人来抢他的宝贝。最后,这个可怜的人跑到他富有的邻居那里:“还我的睡眠和歌喉吧,把你的100枚钱币拿回去。”
1. His neighbor, on the contrary, who was rolling in wealth, sung but , and sleepless. He was a ; when by_________he fell into a doze at day-break, the cobbler awoke him with his song.
2. “Sometimes more, sometimes ; but the worst of it is, and, without that our earnings would be very tolerable, a number of days occur in the year on_________we are forbidden to work; and the curate, moreover, is constantly adding some new saint to the .”
3. No more ; he lost his voice, the_________he acquired that which is the source of so much grief. Sleep quitted his dwelling; and cares, suspicions, and false alarms took its .
1. 他痛苦地抱怨上帝没有把睡眠也变成商品。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. 我可从来没有统计过,我天天如此,每天挣足三餐,总能撑到年底。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
3. 皮匠觉得自己好像看到了几个世纪以来,大地为人类所需创造出来的所有财富。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
1. He was more contented in making shoes than was any of the seven sages.
be contented in:满足于……
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. In the future I shall place you above want.
in the future:在将来
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
人生的清单
On Peace of Mind
约叔亚?罗斯?李普曼 / Joshua Loth Liebman
Once, as a young man full of exuberant fancy, I undertook to draw up a catalogue of the acknowledged “goods” of life. As other men sometimes tabulate lists of properties they own or would like to own, I set down my inventory of earthly desirables: health, love, beauty, talent, power, riches, and fame.
When my inventory was completed I proudly showed it to a wise elder who had been the mentor and spiritual model of my youth. Perhaps I was trying to impress him with my precocious wisdom. Anyway, I handed him the list. “This,” I told him confidently, “is the sum of mortal goods. Could a man possess them all, he would be as a god.”
At the corners of my friend’s old eyes, I saw wrinkles of amusement gathering in a patient net. “An excellent list,” he said, pondering it thoughtfully. “Well digested in contented and set down in not-unreasonable order. But it appears, my young friend, that you have omitted the most important element of all. You have forgotten the one ingredient, lacking which each possession becomes a hideous torment. ”
“And what,” I asked, peppering my voice with truculence, “is that missing ingredient ? ”
With a pencil stub he crossed out my entire schedule. Then, having demolished my adolescent dream structure at a single stroke, he wrote down three syllables: peace of mind. “This is the gift that God reserves for His special protégés, ” he said.
“Talent and beauty He gives to many. Wealth is commonplace, fame not rare. But peace of mind—that is His final guerdon of approval, the fondest insignia of His love. He bestows it charily. Most men are never blessed with it; others wait all their lives—yes, far into advanced age—for this gift to descend upon them. ”
曾经,当我是一个充满了丰富幻想的年轻人时,我着手起草了一份被公认为人生“幸福”的目录。就像别人有时会将他们所拥有或想要拥有的财产列成表一样,我将世人希求之物列成表:健康、爱情、美丽、才智、权力、财富和名誉。
当我完成清单后,我自豪地将它交给一位睿智的长者,他曾是我少年时代的良师和精神楷模。或许我是想以此来加深他对我早熟智慧的印象。无论如何,我把单子递给了他。我充满自信地对他说:“这是人类幸福的总和。一个人若能拥有这些,就和神差不多了。”
在我的朋友老迈的眼角处,我看到了感兴趣的皱纹,汇聚成一张耐心的网。他深思熟虑后说:“是一张出色的表单,内容整理详细,记录顺序也合理。但是,我的年轻朋友,好像你忽略了最重要的一个要素。你忘了那个要素,如果缺少了它,每项财产都会变成可怕的折磨。”
我立即暴躁地逼问:“那么,我遗漏的这个要素是什么?”
他用一小段铅笔划掉我的整张表格。在一拳击碎我的少年美梦之后,他写下三个字:心之静。“这是上帝为他特别的子民保留的礼物。”他说道。
“他赐予许多人才能和美丽。财富是平凡的,名望也不稀有,但心灵的宁静才是他允诺的最终赏赐,是他爱的最佳象征。他施予它的时候很谨慎。多数人从未享受过,有些人则等待了一生——是的,一直到高龄,才等到赏赐降临到他们身上。”
财富是平凡的,名望也不稀有,唯有心灵的宁静最难能可贵。
1. Perhaps I was trying to impress him_________my precocious wisdom. Anyway, I handed him the . “This, ” I told him confidently, “is the_________of mortal goods. Could a man possess them all, he would be_________a god.”
2. “Well digested in contented and set down in not-unreasonable . But it appears, my young friend, that you have omitted the most_________ele-ment of all. You have forgotten the one ingredient, lacking_________each possession becomes a hideous torment. ”
3. But peace of —that is His final guerdon of approval, the fondest insignia of His .
1. 在我的朋友老迈的眼角处,我看到了感兴趣的皱纹,汇聚成一张耐心的网。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. 他用一小段铅笔划掉我的整张表格。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
3. 财富是平凡的,名望也不稀有,但心灵的宁静才是他允诺的最终赏赐。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
1. At the corners of my friend’s old eyes, I saw wrinkles of amusement gathering in a patient net.
at the corner of:在……的角落
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. Most men are never blessed with it; others wait all their lives—yes, far into advanced age—for this gift to descend upon them.
descend upon:降临
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
容颜与人生
Face and Fortune
弗朗西斯?帕金森?凯丝 / Frances Parkinson Keyes
There is a story about a proposed appointment in Lincoln’s cabinet that I have always liked very much. One of his advisers urgently recommended a candidate and Lincoln declined to follow the suggestion. So he was asked to give his reasons.
“I don’t like the man’s face.” Lincoln explained briefly.
“But the poor man is not responsible for his face.” his advocate insisted.
“Every man over forty is responsible for his face.” Lincoln replied, and turned to the discussion of other matters.
Recently, at the instigation of my publisher, I had some photographs taken. It was a long time, he reminded me, since I had supplied him with a new one; I could not go on using the same pose indefinitely. I do not enjoy the process of being photographed, and when I saw the results of this latest ordeal, I enjoyed these still less. I compared the new photograph with one that had been taken 25 years ago, and my feminine vanity suffered an acute pang at the thought of being presented to the public as I am today. My first instinct was to have the prints “touched up,” though I have never “touched up” my own face or my own hair because I have always maintained that women who did this deceived no one except themselves. As I thoughtfully considered the photographs, I knew that as till more important principle was involved.
A quarter century of living should put a great deal into a woman’s face besides a few wrinkles and some unwelcome folds around the chin. In that length of time she has become intimately acquainted with pain and pleasure, joy and sorrow, life and death. She has struggled and survived, failed and succeeded. She has lost and regained faith. And, as a result, she should be wiser, gentler, more patient and more tolerant than she was when she was young. Her sense of humor should have mellowed , her outlook should have widened, her sympathies should have deepened. And all this should show. If she tries to erase the imprint of age, she runs the risk of destroying, at the same time, the imprint of experience and character.
I know I am more experienced than I was a quarter century ago and I hope I have more character. I released the pictures as they were.
我很喜欢一个故事,那是有关推荐林肯内阁职务的。他的一位顾问极力向他推荐一位候选人,但是林肯拒绝接受这个建议。因此,这位顾问要求林肯给出原因来。
“我不喜欢那人的面相。”林肯简明扼要地回答道。
“可是那个可怜的人不应对他的长相负责。”推荐人坚持道。
“一个人一旦过了40岁就应该对自己的长相负责。”林肯答复完就转而讨论其他的事情了。
最近在出版商的游说下,我拍了一些照片。他提醒我,我已经很久没给他新照片了,我不能总使用同样的姿势。我不喜欢拍照的过程,当我看到最近一次痛苦经历的结果后,就更不喜欢这些照片了。我把新照片和25年前的一张照片比较之后,想到我要以现在的面貌面对公众时,我的女性虚荣心开始遭受剧痛。我的第一个直觉就是“修饰”一下这些照片,虽然我从不修饰自己的脸或头发,因为我一直认为女人这么做,除了骗自己之外谁也骗不了。但当我深思过之后,我明白这其中蕴含着一个更重要的原则。
四分之一世纪的生活在女人脸上除了留下一些皱纹及不受欢迎的皱痕之外,还有更多的东西。在这段漫长的时间里,她已经饱尝痛苦与欢乐、开心与伤心以及生生死死。她经历了生存与斗争、失败与成功,曾经失去又重获信心。因此,有过这些经历,她应该比年轻时更明智、高雅、耐心和宽容。她的幽默感应该成熟起来了,视野应该被拓宽,同情心也应该加深了。而所有的这一切都会在她的面貌上表现出来。如果她试图抹去这些岁月的痕迹,同时也是在冒摧毁经验与性格印痕的危险。
我知道自己比25年前更有经验了,也希望我比以前更有个性,所以我按照原样发布了我的照片。
1. I do not_________the process of being photographed, and when I saw the_________of this latest ordeal, I enjoyed these_________less. I compared the new photograph with one that had been taken 25 years , and my feminine vanity suffered an acute pang at the thought of being presented to the public_________I am today.
2. In that length of_________she has become intimately acquainted with pain and pleasure, joy and , life and death. She has struggled and survived, failed and . She has lost and regained faith. And, as a , she should be wiser, gentler, more patient and more tolerant than she was when she was .
1. 一个人一旦过了40岁就应该对自己的长相负责。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. 四分之一世纪的生活在女人脸上除了留下一些皱纹及不受欢迎的皱痕之外,还有更多的东西。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
3. 她应该比年轻时更明智、高雅、耐心和宽容。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
1. I compared the new photograph with one that had been taken 25 years ago...
compare with:与……相比较
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. ... she runs the risk of destroying...
run the risk of:冒……的危险;冒……的风险
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
放飞心灵
Free to Soar
佚名 / Anonymous
One windy spring day, I observed young people having fun using the wind to fly their kites. Multicolored creations of varying shapes and sizes filled the skies like beautiful birds darting and dancing. As the strong winds gusted against the kites, a string kept them in check.
Instead of blowing away with the wind, they arose against it to achieve great heights. They shook and pulled, but the restraining string and the cumbersome tail kept them in tow, facing upward and against the wind. As the kites struggled and trembled against the string, they seemed to say, “Let me go! Let me go! I want to be free!” They soared beautifully even as they fought the restriction of the string. Finally, one of the kites succeeded in breaking loose . “Free at last,” it seemed to say. “Free to fly with the wind.”
Yet freedom from restraint simply put it at the mercy of an unsympathetic breeze. It fluttered ungracefully to the ground and landed in a tangled mass of weeds and string against a dead bush. “Free at last”, free to lie powerless in the dirt, to be blown helplessly along the ground, and to lodge lifeless against the first obstruction.
How much like kites we sometimes are. Heaven gives us adversity and restrictions, rules to follow from which we can grow and gain strength. Restraint is a necessary counterpart to the winds of opposition. Some of us tug at the rules so hard that we never soar to reach the heights we might have obtained. We keep part of the commandment and never rise high enough to get our tails off the ground.
Let us each rise to the great heights, recognizing that some of the restraints that we may chafe under are actually the steadying force that helps us ascend and achieve.
一个春风拂面的日子,一群年轻人正在放风筝。天空中满是各种颜色、形状和大小的风筝,犹如穿梭飞舞着的漂亮鸟儿。强劲有力的风吹着风筝,牵引线控制着它们。
风筝并不是随风而去,而是迎风飘往高处。狂风使它们摇晃着、拉扯着,但牵引线和笨重的尾翼让它们始终处于控制之中。它们挣扎着、抖动着,似乎在说:“放开我!放开我!我要自由!”就是在与牵引线抗争之时,它们也依然优雅地飞翔着。终于,其中一只风筝成功地挣脱了线的束缚,它好像在说:“终于自由了,终于可以随风自由飞翔了。”
然而,没有束缚的自由让它完全处于风的无情摆布之下。它笨拙地坠落到地面,落在一堆乱草之中,线也缠在一丛枯死的灌木上了。“终于自由了”——自由到无力地躺在泥土中,自由到无助地任由风吹得满地跑,自由到撞到第一个障碍物就搁浅,毫无生气可言。
有时候,我们与风筝是多么相似啊!上天让我们经历逆境,体验束缚,并定下规则约束我们,让我们从中成长起来,获得人生所需的力量。逆风而行时,束缚是不可或缺的。有些人强硬地抵制这些规则,那就永远也飞不到本可以达到的高度。只遵从部分规则,我们绝不可能飞得很高。
每个人都飞到高处吧,同时也要认识到——某些令人恼怒的约束,实际上是帮助我们攀升、飞跃和达到目标的强大力量。
断了线的风筝终将落在地上。有些约束,有些规则,正是支持我们攀升、飞跃和腾达的强大力量。
1. As the_________ struggled and trembled against the string, they_________ to say, “Let me go! Let me go! I want to be_________!” They soared beautifully even as they fought the restriction of the string._________, one of the kites succeeded_________ breaking loose.
2. How much_________ kites we sometimes are. Heaven gives us adversity and restrictions, rules to_________ from which we can_________ and gain strength. Restraint is a necessary counterpart to the winds of opposition. Some of us tug at the rules so hard that we never soar to_________ the heights we might have obtained.
1. 天空中满是各种颜色、形状和大小的风筝,犹如穿梭飞舞着的漂亮鸟儿。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. 风筝并不是随风而去,而是迎风飘往高处。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
3. 某些令人恼怒的约束,实际上是帮助我们攀升、飞跃和达到目标的强大力量。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
1. Instead of blowing away with the wind, they arose against it to achieve great heights.
blow away:吹走;驱散
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. Yet freedom from restraint simply put it at the mercy of an unsympa-thetic breeze.
at the mercy of:受……支配
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
心灵的语言
A Simple Way to Make a Good First Impression
戴尔?卡耐基 / Dale Carnegie
At a dinner party in New York, one of the guests, a woman who had inherited money, was eager to make a pleasing impression on everyone. She had squandered a modest fortune on sables, diamonds and pearls. But she hadn’t done anything whatever about her face. It radiated sourness and selfishness. She didn’t realize what everyone knows: namely, that the expression one wears on one’s face is far more important than the clothes one wears on one’s back.
Charles Schwab told me his smile had been worth a million dollars. And he was probably understating the truth. For Schwab’s personality, his charms, his ability to make people like him, were almost wholly responsible for his extraordinary success; and one of the most delightful factors in his personality was his captivating smile.
Actions speak louder than words, and a smile says, “I like you, you make me happy. I am glad to see you.” That is why dogs make such a hit. They are so glad to see us that they almost jump out of their skins. So, naturally, we are glad to see them.
A baby’s smile has the same effect. Have you ever been in a doctor’s waiting room and looked around at all the glum faces waiting impatiently to be seen? Dr.Stephen K. Sproul, a veterinarian in Raytown, Missouri, told of a typical spring day when his waiting room was full of clients waiting to have their pets inoculated. No one was talking to anyone else, and all were probably thinking of a dozen other things they would rather be doing than“wasting time” sitting in that office. He told one of our classes:
“There were six or seven clients waiting when a young woman came in with a nine-month-old baby and a kitten. As luck would have it, she sat down next to a gentleman who was more than a little distraught about the long wait for service. The next thing he knew, the baby just looked up at him with that great big smile that is so characteristic of babies. What did that gentleman do?
“Just what you and I would do, of course; he smiled back at the baby. Soon he struck up a conversation with the woman about her baby and his grandchildren, and soon the entire reception room joined in, and the boredom and tension were converted into a pleasant and enjoyable experience.”
An insincere grin? That doesn’t fool anybody. We know it is mechanical and we resent it. I am talking about a real smile, a heartwarming smile, a smile that comes from within, the kind of smile that will bring a good price in the marketplace.
Professor James V. McConnell, a psychologist at the University of Michigan, expressed his feelings about a smile. “ People who smile,” he said , “ tend to manage teach and sell more effectively, and to raise happier children. There’s far more information in a smile than a frown. That’s why encouragement is a much more effective teaching device than punishment. ”
The employment manager of a large New York department store told me she would rather hire a sales clerk who hadn’t finished grade school, if he or she has a pleasant smile, than to hire a doctor of philosophy with a somber face.
The effect of a smile is powerful—even when it is unseen Telephone companies throughout the United States have a program called “phone power” which is offered to employees who use the telephone for selling their services or products. In this program they suggest that you smile when talking on the phone. Your “smile” comes through in your voice.
The chairman of the board of directors of one of the largest rubber companies in the United States told me that, according to his observations, people rarely succeed at anything unless they have fun doing it. This industrial leader doesn’t put much faith in the old adage that hard work alone is the magic key that will unlock the door to our desires, “ I have known people, ” he said, “The one who succeeded because they had a rip-roaring good time conducting their business. Later, I saw those people change as the fun became work. The business had grown dull, they lost all joy in it, and they failed.”
You must have a good time meeting people if you expect them to have a good time meeting you.
在纽约举行的一个宴会上,有一位得到大笔遗产的女宾客迫切想要给每一个人留下一个好印象。她不惜重金买来貂皮、钻石和珍珠,但是在自己的脸上却没有下任何工夫—— 一脸的尖酸刻薄、自私自利。她没有意识到一个众所周知的道理:一个人的面部表情要比身上的衣服重要得多。
史考伯对我说,他的笑容值一百万美元,他也许是在有意淡化这一事实。史考伯的个性和魅力以及让人喜欢他的能力几乎是他取得非凡成就的全部原因所在。并且他个性中最令人愉快的因素之一就是他那迷人的微笑。
行动比语言更有力。一个微笑表达的是:“我喜欢你,你让我感到很开心,我非常高兴见到你。”这就是小狗得宠的原因。小狗见到我们会表现出欣喜若狂的高兴劲儿,所以,我们见到小狗自然也感觉很开心。
婴儿的微笑也有同样的效果。你曾经在医生的候诊室里留意过那些等待看病的阴郁面孔吗?密苏里州雷顿市的兽医史蒂芬?史波尔告诉过我一件事:在某年的一个春天,他的候诊室里排满了前来给宠物接种疫苗的人,没有人闲聊,他们大概都在想着其他事情,而不是待在候诊室里“浪费时间”。他对我说:“有六七个人在等着给他们的宠物接种疫苗时,一个年轻女人带着一个九个月大的婴儿和一只小猫走进来。事有巧合,她坐在已经等得有些发狂了的男人旁边。当他扭过头时,婴儿正用那天真无邪的笑容注视着他。那个男人会做什么呢?”
“当然,他和你我的反应一样,扭过头去朝着婴儿微笑。很快他就和那个女人攀谈起来,聊起了她的孩子和他自己的孙子。不多一会儿,整个候诊室的人都参与了进来,厌倦和紧张变成了快乐和享受。”
那虚假的笑容呢?那是不可能欺骗任何人的。我们都知道那种笑是机械的,我们厌恶它。我所要谈的是真诚的、暖人心房的、发自内心的微笑,它是人际关系中的无价之宝。
密歇根大学的心理学家詹姆斯?麦克奈尔教授表达了他对微笑的看法:“面带微笑的人们会在管理、教学和营销方面卓有成效,也会培养出心情愉悦的孩子。微笑比蹙眉能更好地传达信息。这就是为什么在教育上奖励要比惩罚更有效的原因。”
一位纽约超市的人事经理对我说,她宁愿聘用一个没有学历但有着舒适微笑的人,也不愿聘用一个满面冰霜的哲学博士。
微笑的力量是巨大的——即使它是无形的。遍布全美的电话公司有一个叫“电话力量”的项目,就是要求员工用电话来销售他们的服务和产品。在此项目中,公司建议员工在打电话时要面带微笑。你的“微笑”会通过你的声音传递给客户。
美国一家大型橡胶公司的董事长告诉我,他通过观察发现,除非对自己所做的事有兴趣,否则人们很难获得成功。这位商业巨头对于“努力是通向成功之门的唯一钥匙”这句古语并不赞同。他说:“我所认识的一些人,他们的成功是因为做了自己感兴趣的工作。后来,他们对工作渐渐没了兴趣,于是生意萧条了,最终失败了。”
如果你希望他人在见到你时心情是愉悦的,那你也必须在见到他们时心情是愉悦的。
1. Actions speak louder than , and a smile says , “ I like you, you make me . I am glad to see you.” That is_________dogs make such a hit. They are so glad to see us that they almost jump_________of their skins. So, naturally, we are_________to see them.
2. “ what you and I would do, of course; he smiled_________at the baby. Soon he struck up a conversation with the_________about her baby and his grandchildren, and soon the entire reception room joined in, and the boredom and tension were converted into a_________and enjoyable experience.”
1. 一个人的面部表情要比他身上的衣服重要得多。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. 我所认识的一些人,他们的成功是因为做了自己感兴趣的工作。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
3. 如果你希望他人在见到你时心情是愉悦的,那你也必须在见到他们时心情是愉悦的。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
1. ...he struck up a conversation with the woman about her baby and his grandchildren...
strike up:开始演奏;使开始;建立起
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. ...a woman who had inherited money, was eager to make a pleasing impression on everyone.
be eager to:盼望、渴望要做
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
常怀感恩之心
Be Grateful to Life
佚名 / Anonymous
Once President Roosevelt’s house was broken into and lots of things were stolen. Hearing this, one of Roosevelt’s friends wrote to him and advised him not to take it to his heart so much. President Roosevelt wrote back immediately, saying, “Dear friend, thank you for your letter to comfort me. I’m all right now. I think I should thank God. This is because of the following three reasons: firstly, the thief only stole things from me but did not hurt me at all; secondly, the thief has stolen some of my things instead of all my things; thirdly, most luckily for me, it was the man rather than me who became a thief...”
It was quite unlucky for anyone to be stolen from. However, President Roosevelt had such three reasons to be so grateful. This story tells us how we can learn to be grateful in our life.
Being grateful is an important philosophy of life and a great wisdom. It is impossible for anyone to be lucky and successful all the time so long as he lives in the world. We should learn how to face failure or misfortune bravely and generously and to try to deal with it. If so, should we complain about our life and become frustrated and disappointed ever since then or should we be grateful for our life, rise again ourselves after a fall? William Thackeray, a famous British writer, said, “Life is a mirror. When you smile in front of it, it will also smile and so will it when you cry to it.” If you are grateful to life, it will bring you shining sunlight. If you always complain about everything, you may own nothing in the end. When we are successful, we can surely have many reasons for being grateful, but we have only one excuse to show ungratefulness if we fail.
I think we should even be grateful to life whenever we are unsuccessful or unlucky. Only by doing this can we find our weakness and shortcomings when we fail. We can also get relief and warmth when we are unlucky. This can help us find our courage to overcome the difficulties we may face, and receive great impetus to move on. We should treat our frustration and misfortune in our life in the other way just as President Roosevelt did. We should be grateful all the time and keep having a healthy attitude to our life forever, keep having perfect characters and enterprising spirit. Being grateful is not only a kind of comfort, not an escape from life and nor thinking of winning in spirit like Ah Q. Being grateful is a way to sing for our life which comes just from our love and hope.
When we put a small piece of alum into muddy water, we can see the alum can soon make the water clear. If each of us has an attitude of being grateful, we’ll be able to get rid of impulse, upset, dissatisfaction and misfortune. Being grateful can bring us a better and more beautiful life.
美国总统罗斯福的家曾经失窃,财物损失严重。朋友闻此消息,就写信安慰他,劝他不必把这件事放在心上。罗斯福总统很快回信说:“亲爱的朋友,谢谢你来信安慰我,我一切都很好。我想我应该感谢上帝,因为:第一,我损失的只是财物,人却毫发未损;第二,我只损失了部分财物,而非所有财产;第三,最幸运的是,做小偷的是那个人,而不是我……”
对任何人来说,家中失窃绝非幸事。但是,罗斯福总统却能找到三个感恩的理由。这个故事告诉我们:生活中,我们应该学会感恩。
感恩是一项重要的处世哲学,是生活的大智慧。人生在世,不可能事事顺通。对于各种失败和不幸,我们要豁达大度,勇敢地面对失败和不幸,并想办法解决。面对困难,我们是懊恼抱怨、沮丧气馁、陷入绝望,还是对生活满怀感恩之心,跌倒后再爬起来呢?英国著名作家威廉?萨克雷说过:“生活是一面镜子,你对它笑,它也会对你笑;你对它哭,它也会对你哭。”如果对生活感恩,你的生活将充满灿烂的阳光;如果一味怨恨,终将一无所获。我们成功时,有千万个理由感恩生活;而失败时,只要一个借口就会表现出忘恩负义。
我想,不论是遭遇失败还是不幸,我们都应该感谢生活。只有这样,失败后,我们才能发现自己的缺点和不足;不幸时,我们还能感受到安慰和温暖。这些就能帮我们找回勇气,战胜困难,并获取前进的强大推动力。我们应像罗斯福总统那样,换一个角度去看待生活中的失败和挫折,永远对生活充满感恩之心,才能时刻保持健康的心态,积极地生活,并能保持完美的人格和不断进取的精神。感恩不仅仅是一种精神慰藉,也不是对现实的逃避,更不是阿Q的精神胜利法。感恩源于我们对生活的热爱和希望,它是我们歌颂生活的一种方式。
把一小块明矾放入混沌的水中,我们发现,水很快就澄清了。如果人人都有一颗感恩的心,就能沉淀许多浮躁和不安,消融许多不满和不幸。感恩能让我们的生活变得更加美好。
生活是一面镜子,你对它笑,它也会对你笑;你对它哭,它也会对你哭。如果对生活感恩,你的生活将充满阳光;如果一味怨恨,终将一无所获。
1. It is_________ for anyone to be lucky and successful_________ the time so long as he lives in the world. We should learn how to face_________ or misfortune bravely and generously and to try to deal_________ it.
2. I think we should even be grateful to life_________ we are unsuccessful or unlucky. Only by doing this_________ we find our weakness and shortcomings when we fail. We can also get relief and_________ when we are unlucky.
3. When we put a small piece of alum into muddy_________, we can see the alum can soon make the water clear._________ each of us has an attitude of being_________, we’ll be able to get rid of impulse, upset, dissatisfaction and misfortune.
1. 生活是一面镜子,你对它笑,它也会对你笑;你对它哭,它也会对你哭。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. 我们成功时,有千万个理由感恩生活;而失败时,只要一个借口就会表现出忘恩负义。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
3. 感恩是一项重要的处世哲学,是生活的大智慧。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
1. Once President Roosevelt’s house was broken into and lots of things were stolen.
break into:闯入,破门而入
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2. It is impossible for anyone to be lucky and successful all the time so long as he lives in the world.
so long as:只要;如果;既然;由于
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非走不可的弯路
The Tortuous Path One Has to Take
佚名 / Anonymous
When I arrive and stand at the turning to Youth, a small path comes into view off and on as if beckoning me.
Mother steps in my way pleading, “Don’t take the path. It’s formidable.”
I don’t believe.
“I’ve traversed it. No reason not to believe me.”
“Since you’ve passed it, why can’t I?”
“I don’t want you to go such a tortuous way. ”
“But I like the experience. I’m not afraid.”
Mother looks at me sadly and sighs, “All right. Go if you insist, you stubborn child. The path is rough going. Do take care all the way.”
When I’m on my way I find mother’s right. The road is rough and tortuous. Sometimes I come to a dead end, sometimes I take a wrong turn, I tumble or even fall headlong and have my head covered with bumps and bruises. Still I keep on going and eventually I pass it.
I sit down to get my breath back. At this time I see a girl, very young, standing at the turning where I used to do and ready to go. I can’t help shouting, “No, you must not take that path.” But she shows distrust.
“My mother passed it, so did I.”
“As both of you’ve done so, why shouldn’t I?”
“I don’t want you to go the same tortuous way.”
“But I don’t mind.”
I look at her and look back at myself, smiling, “Then take good care all the way.”
I feel deeply grateful to her for she reminds me of my youth gone. I’m now a has-been that can tell what to do or not to. I’ve already played such a role, with the obsession of advising against doing the same thing one did before.
On one’s life’s journey there’s a path one has to take the tortuous path of Youth. Without stumbling, bumping, or even being badly battered , how can one grow and become as solid and strong as iron and steel?
当我站在青春的路口时,一条若隐若现的小路出现在我的面前,我仿佛听到了它的召唤。
母亲阻拦我,恳求地说:“这是一条艰难的路,走不得。”
我不相信。
“我就是从那条路走来的,你还不信吗?”
“你都可以走过来,我为什么不能?”
“我不想让你走这样一条曲折的路。”
“但我喜欢亲身体验,我不怕。”
母亲用心疼的眼神看了看我,叹息道:“好吧,你这个孩子真倔强。既然你坚持,那就去吧。这条路艰难坎坷,一路保重。”
当我踏上旅途时,我发现母亲是对的。这条路坎坷曲折。尽管有时会走进死胡同,有时会转错弯,有时会摔倒,甚至跌得头破血流,但我仍坚持走下去,最终走了过来。
我坐下来让自己的呼吸恢复平静。这时,我看到一个非常年轻的女孩站在我曾经站过的地方,准备出发。我不由得喊了出来:“那条路走不得。”但她不信。
“我和我母亲都走过这条路。”
“既然你们都走过了,我为什么不能呢?”
“我不愿意让你走同样的弯路。”
“但我不介意。”
我看了看她,又回头看看自己,笑着说:“那一路保重。”
我非常感激她,因为她让我想起自己已不再年轻。我现在也扮演着过来人的角色,也在告诫年轻人什么能做,什么不能做。
在每个人的生命旅途中都有一条非走不可的弯路,那就是青春的弯路。没有跌倒、碰壁,或摔得头破血流,一个人又怎能长大,又怎能变得像钢铁般坚强呢?
1. “I’ve traversed it. No reason not to_________ me.”
“Since you’ve passed it,_________ can’t I?”
“I don’t want you to go_________ a tortuous way. ”
“But I like the experience. I’m not afraid.”
2. I feel_________ grateful to her for she reminds me of my youth gone. I’m now a has-been that can tell_________ to do or not to. I’ve already played such a_________, with the obsession of advising against doing the_________ thing one did before.
1. 当我站在青春的路口时,一条若隐若现的小路出现在我的面前,我仿佛听到了它的召唤。
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2. 在每个人的生命旅途中都有一条非走不可的弯路,那就是青春的弯路。
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3. 没有跌倒、碰壁,或摔得头破血流,一个人又怎能长大,又怎能变得像钢铁般坚强呢?
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1. When I arrive and stand at the turning to Youth, a small path comes into view off and on as if beckoning me。
off and on:断断续续;时不时地
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2. I can’t help shouting, “No, you must not take that path.” But she shows distrust.
can’t help doing:忍不住,情不自禁
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