擁抱此刻時光
Tucked away in our subconscious is an idyllic vision. We see ourselves on a long trip that spans the continent. We are traveling by train. Out the windows, we drink in the passing scene of cars on nearby highways, of children waving at a crossing, of cattle grazing on a distant hillside, of smoke pouring from a power plant, of row upon row of com and wheat, of flatlands and valleys, of mountains and rolling hillsides, of city skylines and village halls.
我們的潛意識里隱藏著。一派田園詩般的風光。我們仿佛身處一次橫貫大陸的漫漫旅程之中。乘著火車,我們領略著車窗外流動的景色:附件高速公路上奔馳的汽車、十字路口處招手的孩童、遠處山坡上吃草的牛群、源源不斷地從電廠排放出的煙塵、一片片的玉米和小麥、平原與山谷、群山與綿延的丘陵、天空映襯下城市的輪廓,以及鄉(xiāng)間的狀元宅第。
But uppermost in our minds is the final destination. On a certain day at a certain hour, we will pull into the station. Bands will be playing and flags waving. Once we get there, so many wonderful dreams will come true and the pieces of our lives will fit together like a completed jigsaw puzzle. How restlessly we pace the aisles, damning the minutes for loitering--waiting, waiting, waiting for the station.
然而我們心里想得最多的卻是最終的目的地。在某一天的某一時刻,我們將會抵達進站。迎接我們的將是樂隊和飄舞的彩旗。一旦到了那兒,多少美夢將成為現(xiàn)實,我們的生活也將變得完整,如同一塊拼好了的拼圖??墒俏覀儸F(xiàn)在在過道里不耐煩地踱來踱去,咒罵火車的拖拖拉拉。我們期待著,期待著,期待著火車進站的那一刻。
When we reach the station, that will be it! we cry. "When I'm 18." "When I buy a new 450SL Mercedes Benz!" "When I put the last kid through college." "When I have paid off the mortgage!" "When I get a promotion" "hen I reach the age of retirement, I shall live happily ever after! "
“當我們到站的時候,一切就都好了!”我們呼喊著。“當我18歲的時候。”“當我買了一輛新450SL梅賽德斯。奔馳的時候。”“當我供最小的孩子念完大學的時候。”“當我償清貸款的時候。”“當我官升高任的時候。”“當我到了退休的時候,就可以從此過上幸福的生活啦。”
Sooner or later, we must realize there is no station, no one place to arrive at once and for all. The true joy of life is the trip. The station is only a dream. It constantly outdistances us.
可是我們早晚會認識到人生的旅途中并沒有車站,也沒有能夠“一勞永逸”的地方。生活的真正樂趣在于旅行的過程,而車站不過是個夢,它始終遙遙領先于我們。
Relish the moment is a good motto, especially when coupled with Psalm 118 :24:"This is the day which the Lord hath made: we will rejoice and be glad in it." It isn't the burdens of today that drive men mad. It is the regrets over yesterday and the fear of tomorrow. Regret and fear are twin thieves who rob us of today.
“享受現(xiàn)在”是句很好的箴言,尤其是當它與《圣經(jīng)•詩篇》中第118頁24行的一段話相映村的時候,更是如此:“今日乃主所創(chuàng)造;生活在今日我們將歡欣、高興。”真正令人發(fā)瘋的不是今日的負擔,而是對昨日的悔恨及對明日的恐懼?;诤夼c恐懼是一對孿生竊賊,將今天從你我身邊偷走。
So stop pacing the aisles and counting the miles. In stead, climb more mountains, eat more ice cream, go barefoot more often, swim more rivers, watch more sunsets, laugh more, cry less. Life must be lived as we go along. The station will come soon enough.
那么就停止在過道里徘徊吧,別老惦記著你離車站還有多遠。何不換一種活法,將更多的高山攀爬,多吃點兒冰淇淋,經(jīng)常光著腳板兒溜達溜達,在更多的河流里暢游,多看看夕陽西下,多點歡笑哈哈,少讓淚水滴答。生活得一邊過一邊瞧。車站很快就會到達。