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 yarn①. Bereavements②and blessings， one following anther， make us sad and blessed by turns. Even death itself makes life more loving. Men come closest to their true selves in the sober③moments 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， regulated④by judgment.
I have always believe that the man who has begun to live more seriously within begins to live more simply without. In an age of extravagance⑤and 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 repentance⑥. There is nothing noble in being superior to some other man. The true nobility is in being superior to your previous self.
① yarnn. 纱，纱线
② bereavementn. （亲人）丧亡
③ soberadj. 严肃的，持重的
④ regulatev. 管制，控制
⑤ extravagancen. 奢侈，过度放纵
⑥ repentancen. 后悔，悔改
真正的高贵
风平浪静的大海上，每个人都是领航员。
但只有晴天没有阴霾，只有快乐没有悲伤，那就全然不是人生。就拿最幸福的人来说吧——他们的命运就是一团纠缠不清的纱线。丧亲之痛和神恩赐福此起彼伏，让我们悲欢交替。甚至连死亡本身也使生命更加珍贵。人们在生命的庄严时刻，在哀伤和丧亲的阴影之下，最接近真实的自我。
在生活或事业中，性格比才智更能指导我们，心灵比头脑更能引导我们，而由判断而得的克制、耐心和教养比天分更能让我们受益。
我一向认为，内心开始生活得更为严谨的人，他外在的生活会开始变得更为简朴。在物欲横流的年代，但愿我能向世人表明：人类的真正需求少得多么可怜。
反思自己的过错以至于不重蹈覆辙才是真正的悔悟。高人一等并没有什么值得夸耀的。真正的高贵是超越原来的你。
