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小狐 译
In the Middle
刚刚看完文章的题目,脑海里就突然浮现出汤姆·汉克斯的那部电影《幸福终点站》(The Terminal)。故事讲的是,来自东欧某小国的汤姆·汉克斯由于国家政变,突然变成了没有国籍的人,既不能回家又不能进入美国,只能滞留在美国的机场,陷入进退维谷的困境。在英语中,我们用“dilemma”来表示这种尴尬的状态。
其实在现实生活中,我们也常常会陷入这样的“dilemma”,如渔网缠身般进退不得。那么,究竟该用怎样的心态来面对这样的困境呢?汤姆·汉克斯和本文的作者给了我们最好的回答,即享受过程。万物有始必有终,感情如此,人生亦如此。当结局来临的时刻,再回首,往往发现最值得回味的却是那段过程。那么,当你处在过程中的时候,不妨平静下来认真地享受它。或许当你抱着享受的心态时,你会发现要走出这段“dilemma”并非难事。
It's good to be in the middle of life...That's right!
——小狐
on my way over to deliver the gift for my future daughter-in-law’s 1)shower, I decided to stop at a2)florist and pick up some flowers for her.
I headed to this little shop on Main Street near the site of the shower. This was a last minute decision so I really just expected to 3)grab an already 4)made basket or small 5)arrangement.
The couple that owns this place is the6)cutest old couple I know. They are at least in their late 70’s and move 7)at a snail’s pace. But I love them.
“Do you have any arrangements already made?” I asked the old gentleman.
“Yes, I do. Come here. I’ll show you,” he said as he stepped back into the workroom. I followed him until he opened the 8)walk-in9)cooler.
“Go ahead. Take a look,” he said.
Now I said it was a walk-in cooler. I should have said it was a barely-able-to-stand-in cooler. It was10)packed with boxes and flowers.
“Are any of these available?” I asked.
“Yes, we have 11)pompons,” he replied.
Did I mention that they are 12)hard of hearing? It comes with age. I’m there already at 50.
“I mean can I have this one?”
“No! That’s for the church,” he said.
“How about this one?”
“Yes, any of the flowers in there... except that one... and all those and these.”
“So basically these are all taken?”
“Yes.”
Okay, so why did he take me into the cooler anyway?
“Look, do you have roses?”
“Yes.”
“How much are they?”
“They are right in front of you.”
“I know. How much do they cost?”
“I only have red ones.”
“I know. How much are they?”
“$2 each or I’ll give you a dozen for $24.”
That’s $2 either way.
“Okay, give me a dozen.”
“We only have red.”
“Good, that’s what I’m looking for anyway.”
“Why didn’t you say so when you came in?”
So you can see why I love coming here. And there’s no13)charge for entertainment.
He called for his wife to help him cut the14)thorns off and “clean them up” as he put it.
I sat near the front door in clear view of what they were doing. By the time they removed all of the15)bruised 16)petals, extra leaves and of course the thorns, some of the17)buds were no bigger than my thumb.
He called to his wife, “Go get me some greens in the18)box.”
“What?”
“I need greens for the rosesÑin the box.”
“You need a box?”
“No, I need greens from the box19)out front.”
“Wait, where are you going?”
“Out front!”
“For what?”
“I don’t know, you told me to go out front.”
“No, go in the box and get greens.”
She walked to the cooler door and stood there.
“Yes, in the box... get me greens.”
She went in the cooler and a few minutes later came out with 20)a big bunch of21)daisies.
“No, not those... greens...for the roses. You never listen to anything I say.”
She turned around and looked at me and whispered, “He never says anything worth listening to.”
A few minutes later she came out with white 22)gladiolas.
“No! Never mind I’ll get them myself. Close the door. You’re letting the cold air out!”
She went inside and closed the door. She must have been in there five minutes when he walked over, grabbed the handle and said to me, “She drives me crazy. That’s why I’m crazy about her.”
As soon as the door opened I saw this little hand23)snap out, with greens in it.
“Finally!” he said.
It took another 15 minutes to wrap it all up. He walked to the24)register and said,
“I’ll tell you what. I know I told you $2.50 each, but I’ll only charge you $2.”
“Oh, thanks. I appreciate it,” I said. You need to learn to follow along. It’s so much easier.
“It’s for my future daughter-in-law. My son is getting married on Oct 6th.”
“A beginner?”
“Yes, sir. He’s 23 years old and he’s marrying his best friend he tells me.”
“I think I was born married,” the old man said with a smile. “We have been so blessed. Both of us still can handle this business and basically we’re healthy. But this is the other end of life.”
Then he said the words I needed to hear.
“You stand somewhere in the middle. You aren’t a beginner and I don’t think the end is near.”
Finally someone has helped me discover where I am on this road. I’m half way between falling in love and falling over dead.
It’s good to be in the middle of life.
“I said it’s good to... Oh, you heard me!”
我带着礼物,走在去未来儿媳妇的送礼
会的路上,突然决定去花店买些花送给她。
我走进位于梅茵街的这间小花店,它距离举行送礼会的地方并不远。因为是临时决定要买花,所以我只想进去随便买个现成的花篮或者小花束。
这间小花店的店主夫妇是我见过的最可爱的老俩口。他们至少都快80岁了,走路慢吞吞的,但是我非常喜欢他们。
“你们这里有现成的花束吗?”我问那位老先生。
“有,请到这边来,我指给你看。”他边说边走进后面的工作间。我跟着他走了进去,他打开一间大得可以容人进出的冷藏库的门。
“进来吧,随便看看,”他说。
我刚说过,这是一间大得能够容人进出的冷藏库。也许我应该说这是一间让人仅有立足之地的冷藏库——里面堆满了盒子和鲜花。
“这里所有的花我都能挑吗?”我问道。
“是的,我们有绒球菊花。”他回答说。
我有没有向你们提过,这老俩口耳背?年纪大了,听力便会逐年衰退。我才50岁,也已经出现这种迹象了。
“我的意思是我能不能买这束花?”
“那束不行!那是为教堂准备的。”他说。
“那这束呢?”
“可以,那边随便哪束都行……就是除了那束以外……还有那些和这些也不行。”
“那基本上这里所有的花都已经被人订下了?”
“是啊。”
好吧,那他带我到冷藏库来干吗?
“那么,你们有玫瑰卖吗?”
“有啊。”
“怎么卖?”
“它们就在你面前。”
“我知道。怎么卖呢?”
“我这里只有红玫瑰。”
“我知道。怎么卖呢?”
“2美元一枝,要是买一打的话只要24美元。”
那还是2美元一枝嘛。
“好吧,给我一打。”
“我们只有红玫瑰。”
“行啊,我就是想要红玫瑰。”
“那你进来的时候怎么不早说?”
现在,你该明白我为什么喜欢到这里来了吧?而且这种娱乐是不需要付钱的。
他拿着那些玫瑰花,叫他的老伴来帮他把花上的刺剪掉,并且把花“清理干净”。
我坐在前门旁边的某个地方,可以清楚地看到他们在干什么。他们去掉了所有破损的花瓣、多余的叶子、当然还有花刺,以及一些还不及我拇指大的花蕾。
他大声对他的老伴说:“去帮我从小房间里拿些绿叶过来。”
“什么?”
“我需要一些绿叶来搭配玫瑰——绿叶在小房间里。”
“你想要个盒子?”
“不是,我要外面小房间里的那些绿叶。”
“等等,你去哪里啊?”
“外面呀!”
“去干吗?”
“我怎么知道?你叫我去外面的。”
“不是,我是叫你到小房间里去给我拿些绿叶。”
她走到冷藏库的门边,停了下来。
“对,就在那个小房间里……帮我拿些绿叶来。”
她走进冷藏库,几分钟过后,拿着一大束雏菊走了出来。
“不,不是要那些……要绿叶……搭配玫瑰用的。你从来都不认真听我说话。”
她转身看了看我,低声说:“他从来没有说过任何值得认真听的话。”
又过了几分钟,她出来了,拿来了一些白剑兰。
“不对!算了,我自己去拿吧。把门关上,你把冷气都放跑了!”
于是她又走进了冷藏库,并把门关上了。她在里面待了足有5分钟。他终于忍不住走过去,边抓住门把手,边对我说:“她简直要让我发疯了。可能这就是为什么我这么迷恋她的原因。”
冷藏库的门打开时,我看到一只小手突然伸出来,手里握着一把绿叶。
“终于拿对了!”他说道。
把花整个包起来又花了差不多一刻钟。然后男店主走向收款处,说道:
“告诉你,我想我跟你说过这花是2.5美元一枝的,不过我只收你2美元。”
“噢,谢谢了。非常感谢您!”我说道。你要学会顺着他的话讲,这样会容易很多。
“这是为我未来的儿媳妇买的。我儿子10月6号就要结婚了。”
“是新婚吗?”
“是的,先生。他才23岁,他对我说新娘是他最好的朋友。”
“我想我已经结婚很久了,”老人笑着说,“我们太有福气了。我们俩现在基本上还算健康,还能打理这间花店。不过现在已经快到人生的终点了。”
接着,他说的话让我受益匪浅。
“你现在正处于人生的中途——既不是一个新手,离终点也还相当远。”
终于有人帮我找到了我现在所处的位置——我正处于坠入爱河和走向死亡的中途。
处于人生的中途,感觉真好!
“我说……真好,噢,你都听到了!”
In the Middle
刚刚看完文章的题目,脑海里就突然浮现出汤姆·汉克斯的那部电影《幸福终点站》(The Terminal)。故事讲的是,来自东欧某小国的汤姆·汉克斯由于国家政变,突然变成了没有国籍的人,既不能回家又不能进入美国,只能滞留在美国的机场,陷入进退维谷的困境。在英语中,我们用“dilemma”来表示这种尴尬的状态。
其实在现实生活中,我们也常常会陷入这样的“dilemma”,如渔网缠身般进退不得。那么,究竟该用怎样的心态来面对这样的困境呢?汤姆·汉克斯和本文的作者给了我们最好的回答,即享受过程。万物有始必有终,感情如此,人生亦如此。当结局来临的时刻,再回首,往往发现最值得回味的却是那段过程。那么,当你处在过程中的时候,不妨平静下来认真地享受它。或许当你抱着享受的心态时,你会发现要走出这段“dilemma”并非难事。
It's good to be in the middle of life...That's right!
——小狐
on my way over to deliver the gift for my future daughter-in-law’s 1)shower, I decided to stop at a2)florist and pick up some flowers for her.
I headed to this little shop on Main Street near the site of the shower. This was a last minute decision so I really just expected to 3)grab an already 4)made basket or small 5)arrangement.
The couple that owns this place is the6)cutest old couple I know. They are at least in their late 70’s and move 7)at a snail’s pace. But I love them.
“Do you have any arrangements already made?” I asked the old gentleman.
“Yes, I do. Come here. I’ll show you,” he said as he stepped back into the workroom. I followed him until he opened the 8)walk-in9)cooler.
“Go ahead. Take a look,” he said.
Now I said it was a walk-in cooler. I should have said it was a barely-able-to-stand-in cooler. It was10)packed with boxes and flowers.
“Are any of these available?” I asked.
“Yes, we have 11)pompons,” he replied.
Did I mention that they are 12)hard of hearing? It comes with age. I’m there already at 50.
“I mean can I have this one?”
“No! That’s for the church,” he said.
“How about this one?”
“Yes, any of the flowers in there... except that one... and all those and these.”
“So basically these are all taken?”
“Yes.”
Okay, so why did he take me into the cooler anyway?
“Look, do you have roses?”
“Yes.”
“How much are they?”
“They are right in front of you.”
“I know. How much do they cost?”
“I only have red ones.”
“I know. How much are they?”
“$2 each or I’ll give you a dozen for $24.”
That’s $2 either way.
“Okay, give me a dozen.”
“We only have red.”
“Good, that’s what I’m looking for anyway.”
“Why didn’t you say so when you came in?”
So you can see why I love coming here. And there’s no13)charge for entertainment.
He called for his wife to help him cut the14)thorns off and “clean them up” as he put it.
I sat near the front door in clear view of what they were doing. By the time they removed all of the15)bruised 16)petals, extra leaves and of course the thorns, some of the17)buds were no bigger than my thumb.
He called to his wife, “Go get me some greens in the18)box.”
“What?”
“I need greens for the rosesÑin the box.”
“You need a box?”
“No, I need greens from the box19)out front.”
“Wait, where are you going?”
“Out front!”
“For what?”
“I don’t know, you told me to go out front.”
“No, go in the box and get greens.”
She walked to the cooler door and stood there.
“Yes, in the box... get me greens.”
She went in the cooler and a few minutes later came out with 20)a big bunch of21)daisies.
“No, not those... greens...for the roses. You never listen to anything I say.”
She turned around and looked at me and whispered, “He never says anything worth listening to.”
A few minutes later she came out with white 22)gladiolas.
“No! Never mind I’ll get them myself. Close the door. You’re letting the cold air out!”
She went inside and closed the door. She must have been in there five minutes when he walked over, grabbed the handle and said to me, “She drives me crazy. That’s why I’m crazy about her.”
As soon as the door opened I saw this little hand23)snap out, with greens in it.
“Finally!” he said.
It took another 15 minutes to wrap it all up. He walked to the24)register and said,
“I’ll tell you what. I know I told you $2.50 each, but I’ll only charge you $2.”
“Oh, thanks. I appreciate it,” I said. You need to learn to follow along. It’s so much easier.
“It’s for my future daughter-in-law. My son is getting married on Oct 6th.”
“A beginner?”
“Yes, sir. He’s 23 years old and he’s marrying his best friend he tells me.”
“I think I was born married,” the old man said with a smile. “We have been so blessed. Both of us still can handle this business and basically we’re healthy. But this is the other end of life.”
Then he said the words I needed to hear.
“You stand somewhere in the middle. You aren’t a beginner and I don’t think the end is near.”
Finally someone has helped me discover where I am on this road. I’m half way between falling in love and falling over dead.
It’s good to be in the middle of life.
“I said it’s good to... Oh, you heard me!”
我带着礼物,走在去未来儿媳妇的送礼
会的路上,突然决定去花店买些花送给她。
我走进位于梅茵街的这间小花店,它距离举行送礼会的地方并不远。因为是临时决定要买花,所以我只想进去随便买个现成的花篮或者小花束。
这间小花店的店主夫妇是我见过的最可爱的老俩口。他们至少都快80岁了,走路慢吞吞的,但是我非常喜欢他们。
“你们这里有现成的花束吗?”我问那位老先生。
“有,请到这边来,我指给你看。”他边说边走进后面的工作间。我跟着他走了进去,他打开一间大得可以容人进出的冷藏库的门。
“进来吧,随便看看,”他说。
我刚说过,这是一间大得能够容人进出的冷藏库。也许我应该说这是一间让人仅有立足之地的冷藏库——里面堆满了盒子和鲜花。
“这里所有的花我都能挑吗?”我问道。
“是的,我们有绒球菊花。”他回答说。
我有没有向你们提过,这老俩口耳背?年纪大了,听力便会逐年衰退。我才50岁,也已经出现这种迹象了。
“我的意思是我能不能买这束花?”
“那束不行!那是为教堂准备的。”他说。
“那这束呢?”
“可以,那边随便哪束都行……就是除了那束以外……还有那些和这些也不行。”
“那基本上这里所有的花都已经被人订下了?”
“是啊。”
好吧,那他带我到冷藏库来干吗?
“那么,你们有玫瑰卖吗?”
“有啊。”
“怎么卖?”
“它们就在你面前。”
“我知道。怎么卖呢?”
“我这里只有红玫瑰。”
“我知道。怎么卖呢?”
“2美元一枝,要是买一打的话只要24美元。”
那还是2美元一枝嘛。
“好吧,给我一打。”
“我们只有红玫瑰。”
“行啊,我就是想要红玫瑰。”
“那你进来的时候怎么不早说?”
现在,你该明白我为什么喜欢到这里来了吧?而且这种娱乐是不需要付钱的。
他拿着那些玫瑰花,叫他的老伴来帮他把花上的刺剪掉,并且把花“清理干净”。
我坐在前门旁边的某个地方,可以清楚地看到他们在干什么。他们去掉了所有破损的花瓣、多余的叶子、当然还有花刺,以及一些还不及我拇指大的花蕾。
他大声对他的老伴说:“去帮我从小房间里拿些绿叶过来。”
“什么?”
“我需要一些绿叶来搭配玫瑰——绿叶在小房间里。”
“你想要个盒子?”
“不是,我要外面小房间里的那些绿叶。”
“等等,你去哪里啊?”
“外面呀!”
“去干吗?”
“我怎么知道?你叫我去外面的。”
“不是,我是叫你到小房间里去给我拿些绿叶。”
她走到冷藏库的门边,停了下来。
“对,就在那个小房间里……帮我拿些绿叶来。”
她走进冷藏库,几分钟过后,拿着一大束雏菊走了出来。
“不,不是要那些……要绿叶……搭配玫瑰用的。你从来都不认真听我说话。”
她转身看了看我,低声说:“他从来没有说过任何值得认真听的话。”
又过了几分钟,她出来了,拿来了一些白剑兰。
“不对!算了,我自己去拿吧。把门关上,你把冷气都放跑了!”
于是她又走进了冷藏库,并把门关上了。她在里面待了足有5分钟。他终于忍不住走过去,边抓住门把手,边对我说:“她简直要让我发疯了。可能这就是为什么我这么迷恋她的原因。”
冷藏库的门打开时,我看到一只小手突然伸出来,手里握着一把绿叶。
“终于拿对了!”他说道。
把花整个包起来又花了差不多一刻钟。然后男店主走向收款处,说道:
“告诉你,我想我跟你说过这花是2.5美元一枝的,不过我只收你2美元。”
“噢,谢谢了。非常感谢您!”我说道。你要学会顺着他的话讲,这样会容易很多。
“这是为我未来的儿媳妇买的。我儿子10月6号就要结婚了。”
“是新婚吗?”
“是的,先生。他才23岁,他对我说新娘是他最好的朋友。”
“我想我已经结婚很久了,”老人笑着说,“我们太有福气了。我们俩现在基本上还算健康,还能打理这间花店。不过现在已经快到人生的终点了。”
接着,他说的话让我受益匪浅。
“你现在正处于人生的中途——既不是一个新手,离终点也还相当远。”
终于有人帮我找到了我现在所处的位置——我正处于坠入爱河和走向死亡的中途。
处于人生的中途,感觉真好!
“我说……真好,噢,你都听到了!”