书城成功励志那些给我勇气的句子
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第17章 The Daffodil Principle (3)

I had no idea what to expect,but as I sunk into the large wicker chair beside him,I couldn’t help feeling that he was going to say something profound. After all,if a turtle can change my life,why not a wise old farmer? After a brief hello and a polite introduction,we simply sat in silence and let the sunlight warm our faces. After what seemed like an eternity,he finally spoke.“You know,”he said,“I’ve often thought that the meaning of life is making things a little bit easier for those around us,what do you think?”I was speechless. It felt like I had just been hit on the head again by life’s big karma stick. He went on to tell me his version of“the secrets to life”and how“true happiness can only be found by loving and serving others”. Finally he finished with“Oh,and don’t forget you really gotta’love the one you’re with yourself ”.

Life was obviously trying to tell me something. In the days and weeks that followed,the world looked completely different to me. The more I studied and tested my“kindness creates happiness”theory,the more I was blown away by its life-changing power. I realized that most of my disappointments in life were simply because I had been unkind to others and especially to myself.

After spending much of my life thinking“What’s in it for me?”,my new inner mantra became“Am I being kind?”This one simple question changed my life. So,whenever I feel the need to disagree with my wife,lash out at a rude employee in the mall or even before I shove ten cookies into my mouth,I go within and ask,“Am I being kind?”These four little words have become my source to inner peace. It has created many positive changes in me such as recycling and acting more“green”and consciously respecting all of life. I even stopped setting the mousetraps in the garage. (My wife is going to kill me when she reads that last one.) Another big change in my life was the irresistible urge to perform“spontaneous acts of kindness”. Things like buying coffee for strangers and giving money to the homeless just seemed natural. Each kind act felt like a blissful surge of energy through my chest. But what became even more exhilarating were the intense feelings of warmth towards everyone around me—especially difficult people. Whether there was someone who acted rude in traffic or an inconsiderate person in line at the grocery store,I no longer felt anxious or offended—I simply wished for their happiness. That’s when I realized what it truly meant to be living kindness.

All thanks to an unexpected turtle crossing the street that day.

一只让我悟道的乌龟

麦克·驰思

生活不错,很不错。有时我觉得仿佛坐上了一列善有善报的列车,想下车都不行。我有个人人夸好的妻子,有个给我脸上增光的十几岁的儿子,我们身体健康,家庭美满和睦,还有一帮世上最棒的朋友。我有好多值得感恩的东西。多年来,“感谢老天”已经成了我开始每一天的默祷词。

可是事实上,生活并不总是这么美好。就在不久前,我的人生简历看上去还是迥然不同。曾经一度,我的生活充满了令每个人都想躲避的东西。从让人沮丧的婚姻,到困窘的经济状况,糟糕的健康,抑郁的心情和无穷无尽的坏毛病,都是我每天生活的一部分。似乎不管我怎么努力,快乐总是躲着我走,而失望则如影随形。而且似乎我在亦步亦趋地把日子过成父亲那样,他在54岁的时候自杀了。那一刻成了我人生的转折点,一度失去父亲所受的打击开始消退,慈善和生活的目标感开始支配我的生活。我觉着好像有生以来第一次发现了自己,认识到了生命的真正目的。从那一刻起,我便做了一个重大决定。我不仅要改变自己的生活,而且要令别人的生活改观。

令人茅塞顿开的灵光会以相当奇特的方式出现。佛祖在菩提树下悟道;纳尔逊·曼德拉在狱中觉醒;灵魂大师瑞姆·达斯则在致幻剂中获得升华。我从未曾料到,我的启示会以一只试图穿越马路的硬壳爬行动物的形象出现,它是一只乌龟。

但这可不是一只普通的乌龟,这是世上最乐观的一只乌龟。它不屈不挠地打算穿越一条宽20英尺的柏油马路,路上是川流不息的以时速55英里行驶的车辆。可是今天是它的幸运日。我妻子的快速反应不仅保证了它不会以“乌龟汤”的形式成为今晚的餐桌一景,而且她接下来的善举还成就了我今天要讲述的一切的基础。这听上去要多玄有多玄,一个简单的将车停到路边,把这只小乌龟救离险境并将之归还给大自然的举动引发了我内心深处一场惊天动地的变革。当我站在那里,手捧着这个小生命,一种纯粹的喜悦感席卷了我。那是一种温暖的催人泪下的感觉,往往发生在人生最伟大的时刻,比如坠入爱河,比如婴儿降生。我真的觉得我的心完完全全地向着我周围静止的万物开启。我不想把这称之为“启示”,但它又千真万确就是——帮助这只小乌龟感觉真是太棒了!可是,为什么会这样?它终究不过是一只乌龟嘛,是吧?

然后事情发生了。我终于明白自己顿悟到了什么。彼时彼刻,思想的潮水汹涌而至。我走回车里,打开笔记本,写下8个字,事后证明这8个字成为了我的人生转折点:“善生乐”,以及“人生须行善”。这就是我孜孜以求的答案。内心宁静和永远快乐的奥秘就是善。不是“偶尔为之”或简单发发善心,而是变成一种生活方式。我已经通过研究许多东方哲学知道了善的妙处,但从没想过要把它变成一种生活方式。

可是,这一天来临了。

就在我小小顿悟完毕的30分钟后,我和妻子到了原定的目的地,那是一个乡村花园展览所。四处走了一小会儿,一个60岁左右的慈眉善目的男人在他的农舍门前向我挥手,好像没什么明显的理由。这一幕完全像是老电影中的场景:老旧的摇椅,烘烤糕点的气息,一只看上去和农舍一样老的长毛猫。“让她随意走走,你过来坐坐。”他说。

我不知道将要发生什么,但当我坐进他身旁那张宽大的藤椅里,不由觉得他会对我说些意味深长的话。毕竟,要是一只乌龟都能改变我的人生,为什么一个睿智的老农不能呢?简单寒暄之后,我们都静静地坐着,阳光温暖地照着脸庞。好像过了一辈子那么久,他终于开口了。“你瞧,”他说,“我常以为,生命的意义是让周围的人过得好一点,你说呢?”我哑口无言。好像脑袋上又挨了人生的一记闷棍。他继续跟我说起他理解的“人生奥秘”,和“真正的快乐只能从关爱和服务他人中获得”。最后他说,“噢,别忘了……你必须得爱你与之相伴的那个人,就是你自己。”

显然,生活会让我领悟到些什么。随后的几天和几个星期,整个世界在我眼中完全变了模样。我越是研究和验证我的“善生乐”理论,我越是为它那改变人生的力量所倾倒。我发现生活中绝大多数失望都是源于我对别人的不善,尤其是对自己的不善。

花了大半辈子琢磨人生的意义,我的新灵魂咒语变成,“我有没有为善?”这个简单的问题改变了我的生活。当我想和妻子争论的时候,当我想对粗鲁的商店售货员训斥的时候,甚至当我想往嘴巴里狂塞饼干的时候,我都会自问,“我有没有为善?”这几个字成为我内心平静的源泉。它在我内心生出许多好的变化,比如循环再利用资源,做环保人士,而且有意识地尊重一切事物。我甚至不再在车库里安置捕鼠器(我妻子要是读到这最后一句可能会杀了我)。另一个大变化是我控制不住地要去做“自然而然的善行”。比如给陌生人买咖啡,把零钱给流浪汉等,这样的行为做起来是那么自然。每个善行都好似一股幸福的能量在我胸膛里汹涌澎湃。但最让人愉快的是对我周围每一个人的强烈的亲切感,尤其是对那些坏脾气的人。不管是粗野无礼的司机,还是食品店排队加塞的家伙,我不再觉得焦灼不安或是怒不可遏,我只是希望他们能快乐。那是当我明白了人生须行善的真意之后。

所有这一切,都要归功于那天的一只不期而至穿过马路的乌龟。

实战提升篇

核心单词

animated [5Animeitid] adj. 栩栩如生的;活跃的;热烈的

sensation [sen5seiFEn] n. 感觉,知觉

generous [dVenErEs] adj. 慷慨的,大方的

delicious [di5liFEs] adj. 美味的;香喷喷的

fabulous [5fAbjulEs] adj. 惊人的;难以置信的

talented [5tAlEntid] adj. 有天才的,有才干的

flashing [5flAFiN] n. 闪光;闪烁

fade [feid] v. 凋谢,枯萎

实用句型

She was almost out of breath when she reached out and softly touched my arm.

当她伸手轻轻抚摸我的臂膀时,已经奄奄一息了。

①这里是由when引导的时间状语从句。

②reach out伸出,类似的表达还有out of reach够不着;reach for伸手去拿等固定搭配。

翻译行不行

1.此房年久失修。(used to)

2.太阳一出来,雾就会消失了。(pass away)

3.幸亏有你了的帮忙,我们才得以按时完成任务。(thanks to)