We make a living by what we get. We make a life by what we give.
我们依靠我们所得的得以生存，我们凭借我们所付出的得到生命。
A Doll From Santa
来自圣诞老人的洋娃娃
Alice Ferguson
Alice's mother died when she was five years old. Although her nine brother and sisters were loving and caring, they were no replacement for a mother's love.
The year was 1925, and life was hard. Alice, who grew up to be my mother, told me that her family was too poor to even afford to give her a doll.
In the aftermath of her loss, Alice vowed to care for others. First, her father, then her husband, later her three children and then her grandchildren were the main focus of her life. She felt that she could make up for her sad childhood through her dedication to her own family, but an unfilled void seemed to remain.
In December 1982, I had a job at a local bank. One afternoon, we were decorating the tree in the bank lobby and singing carols, getting ready for the Christmas season. One of my customers approached me with a sample of her handiwork: beautiful handmade dolls. She was taking orders for Christmas. I decided to get one for my daughter, Katie, who was almost five years old. Then I had an idea. I asked my customer if she could make me a special doll for my mother—one with gray hair and spectacles: a grandmother doll.
The doll maker felt that this idea was certainly unique and took it on as a creative challenge. So I placed my Christmas order: two dolls, one blonde and one gray-haired for Christmas morning!
Things really started to fall into place when a friend had told me that his dad—who played Santa Claus at various charitable[1] functions in my area—would be willing to make a visit on Christmas morning to our home to deliver my Katie her presents! Knowing that my parents would be there as well, I began to get ready for what would turn out to be one of the most memorable days of my mother's life.
Christmas Day arrived and at the planned time, so did Santa Claus. I had prepared the presents for Santa to deliver, along with one for my mother tucked into the bottom of Santa's bag. Katie was surprised and elated that Santa had come to see her at her own house, the happiest I had ever seen her in her young life.
My mother was enjoying watching her granddaughter's reaction to the visit from this special guest. As Santa turned to leave he looked once more into his knapsack and retrieved one more gift. As he asked who Alice was, my mother, taken aback[2] by her name being called, indicated that she in fact was Alice. Santa handed her the gift, which was accompanied by a message card that read:
For Alice,
I was cleaning out my sleigh[3] before my trip this year and came across this package that was supposed to be delivered on December 25, 1925. The present inside has aged, but I felt that you might still wish to have it. Many apologies for the lateness of the gift.
Love,
Santa Claus
My mother's reaction was one of the most profound and deeply emotional scenes I have ever witnessed. She couldn't speak but only clasped[4] the doll she had waited fifty-seven years to receive as tears of joy coursed down her cheeks. That doll, given by “Santa”, made my mother the happiest “child” alive.
爱丽丝5岁时，她母亲就去世了。尽管她的九个兄弟姐妹都很关心她，对她十分照顾，但他们的关心和照顾都不能取代一个母亲的爱。
那是1925年的时候，生活还十分艰辛。后来，爱丽丝生下了我。她告诉我那时家里一贫如洗，连一个娃娃都买不起。
爱丽丝没有机会享受母爱，就发誓要把自己的爱传递给身边的人。最初是她的父亲、丈夫，后来是她的三个孩子，再后来是她的孙子孙女。这些亲人就是她生命的重心。她觉得她儿时的悲伤能在为家庭的付出中得到弥补，但在她的心中，始终有个无法补全的空白。
1982年12月，我在当地一家银行工作。一天下午，我们在银行大厅装扮圣诞树，唱着颂歌，准备过圣诞节。我的一位顾客给我看了她的手工制品——漂亮的手工娃娃。她正在接受圣诞节礼品订单。我觉得娃娃很不错，也想给我5岁的女儿凯蒂做一个。突然，我有了个主意——为母亲做个特殊的娃娃——一个满头白发、鼻梁上架着一副眼镜的祖母娃娃。我随即便问那位顾客，能否帮我母亲做一个这样的娃娃。
她觉得我的想法十分新奇，就答应了我，并把我的请求当成了一项富有创意的挑战。这样，我便也预订了两件圣诞节礼物：两个娃娃，一个金发碧眼，另一个白发苍苍。
一切都井然有序地进行着。我的一位朋友告诉我，她的父亲在当地的很多慈善场合扮演过圣诞老人，她说她父亲很乐意在圣诞节早晨来我家为凯蒂送礼物。圣诞节那天，我的父母也会在我家，我开始等待着那将要发生的事情，因为那或许会让这一天成为母亲生命中一个最值得铭记的日子。
圣诞节如期而至，圣诞老人也按时出现了。我早已准备好了礼物，包括母亲的礼物，并把它们都塞进了圣诞老人的背包里。圣诞老人的到来令凯蒂惊喜万分，在她年幼的时候，我还从来没有见她这么开心过。
母亲在一旁看着她的孙女因为这位特殊来宾而兴高采烈的样子，脸上也洋溢着浓浓的笑意。圣诞老人转身要走的时候又看了一眼他的包，从里面再拿出了一样礼物。当他询问谁是爱丽丝的时候，我母亲有点吃惊，然后表明就是她自己。圣诞老人把礼物交给她，礼物上面还附有一张卡片。卡片上写着：
致爱丽丝：
在这次出行前我把雪橇打扫了一番，意外发现了这份包裹，它本该在1925年12月25日就要送出的。里面的礼物也已经老旧了，但我觉得你也许还会喜欢它。对于这份迟来的礼物，我感到非常抱歉。
爱你的，
圣诞老人
母亲那时的表情极为复杂，我从未见过母亲有这样的反应。她激动得说不出话来，只是紧紧地抱着这个她已经苦等了57年的娃娃，脸上满是幸福的泪珠。这个圣诞老人送的娃娃，令我的母亲拥有了一个最快乐的“童年”。
Flowers on the Bus
巴士上的鲜花
Jean Hendrichson
We were a very motley crowd of people who took the bus every day that summer 33 years ago. During the early morning ride from the suburb, we sat drowsily[5] with our collars up to our ears, a cheerless and taciturn bunch.
One of the passengers was a small grey man who took the bus to the centre for senior citizens every morning. He walked with a stoop and a sad look on his face when he, with some difficulty, boarded the bus and sat down alone behind the driver. No one ever paid very much attention to him.
Then one July morning he said good morning to the driver and smiled short-sightedly down through the bus before he sat down. The driver nodded guardedly. The rest of us were silent.
The next day, the old man boarded the bus energetically, smiled and said in a loud voice: “And a very good morning to you all!” Some of us looked up, amazed, and murmured “Good morning,” in reply.
The following weeks we were more alert. Our friend was now dressed in a nice old suit and a wide out-of-date tie. The thin hair had been carefully combed. He said good morning to us every day and we gradually began to nod and talk to each other.
One morning he had a bunch of wild flowers in his hand. They were already dangling a little because of the heat. The driver turned around smilingly and asked: “Have you got yourself a girlfriend, Charlie?” We never got to know if his name really was “Charlie”, but he nodded shyly and said yes.
The other passengers whistled and clapped at him. Charlie bowed and waved the flowers before he sat down on his seat.
Every morning after that Charlie always brought a flower. Some of the regular passengers began bringing him flowers for his bouquet, gently nudged[6] him and said shyly: “Here.” Everyone smiled. The men started to jest about it, talk to each other, and share the newspaper.
The summer went by, and autumn was closing in, when one morning Charlie wasn't waiting at his usual stop. When he wasn't there the next day and the day after that, we started wondering if he was sick or—hopefully—on holiday somewhere.
When we came nearer to the centre for senior citizens, one of the passengers asked the driver to wait. We all held our breaths when she went to the door.
Yes, the staff said, they knew who we were talking about. The elderly gentleman was fine, but he hadn't been coming to the centre that week. One of his very close friends had died at the weekend. They expected him back on Monday. How silent we were the rest of the way to work.
The next Monday Charlie was waiting at the stop, stooping a bit more, a little bit more grey, and without a tie. He seemed to have shrinked again. Inside the bus was a silence akin to[7] that in a church. Even though no one had talked about it, all those of us, who he had made such an impression on that summer, sat with our eyes filled with tears and a bunch of wild flowers in our hands.
33年前的夏天，我们素不相识，但我们每天清早都在郊区等车，然后乘坐同一辆巴士。在车上，我们都把衣领高高竖起，然后无精打采地倚在座位上打盹。车厢里死气沉沉的。
乘客中有一位头发花白的老人，他每天早晨都会搭这班车去老年中心。他佝偻着背，脸色阴沉，上车时有些步履不便。他独自坐在司机的后面，很少有人会太在意他的存在。
7月的一个早晨，他向司机打了声招呼，还回头朝我们微微地笑了下。司机带着一丝戒备，稍稍点了点头表示回应，而我们都缄默无声。
第二天，这位老人看起来精神抖擞。他大步踏上巴士，带着明亮的微笑，大声向我们问好：“大家早上好！”一些人抬起头朝那老人看了看，表情惊讶，嘴里咕咕嚷嚷地回应道：“早上好。”
接下来的几个礼拜，我们都变得更加机警。我们这位朋友身穿一套笔挺的老式西服，脖子上系着一条宽松的过时领带，稀疏的头发也仔细地梳理过。他每天都向我们问好，渐渐地，我们也开始点头致意并互相攀谈了。
一天早晨，他手里拿了一束野花，由于天气太热，花儿都已经干瘪得东倒西歪了。司机扭过头，笑着问他：“查理，你新交了个女朋友？”我们从来不知道他叫“查理”，不过他羞涩地点头承认了。
有位乘客吹起了口哨，并且轻轻拍了一下查理。他向我们鞠了个躬，挥了挥手中的花，然后才坐下。
从这以后的每个早晨，他都会带着一束花。一些常客也会给他带些花，让他的花束显得更艳丽。他们轻轻地推一下他，然后难为情地说道：“给你。”每个人都笑了。有人开始拿这件事开玩笑，彼此交谈，还有人相互传阅报纸。
炎夏慢慢地消散，萧飒的秋天翩然走近。有天早晨，查理没有在老位置等车，第二天，第三天，都不见他的踪影。我们以为他病了，但更希望他是去哪里度假了。
当车子快要到达老年人中心时，一位乘客要求司机等一等。她走向车门的时候，我们都屏住了呼吸。
“是他。”老年中心的职员说道。他们认识那位老人，还说那位老人很健康，但他那个礼拜没来老年中心，因为他最好的一位朋友在那个周末去世了。他们期望他礼拜一能来。听到了这一消息后，接下来我们都静默无言。
下个礼拜一，查理出现了，依旧在站牌那儿等车。他的背更弯了点，头上新添了好多白发，领带也不见了，看起来更加苍老。公交车上静悄悄地，就像教堂一样肃穆。虽然无人出声，但我们这些在那个夏天深深为他所感动的人，眼里都饱含泪水，手上都拿着一束野花。
Whatever You Need
小小安慰，暖人心田
Martin Rutte
I was working as a consultant in a beer company, helping the president and senior vice-president formulate[8] and implement their new strategic vision. It was an enormous challenge.
At the same time, my mother was in the final stage of cancer.
I worked during the day and drove 40 miles to be with her every night. It was tiring and stressful, but it was I wanted to do. My commitment was to continue to do excellent consulting during the day, even though my evenings were very hard. I didn't want to bother the president with my situation, yet I felt someone at the company needed to know what was going on. So I told the vice-president of Human Resources, asking him not to share the information with anyone.
A few days later, the president called me into his office. I figured he wanted to talk to me about one of the many issues we were working on. When I entered, he asked me to sit down. He faced me from across his large desk, looked me in the eye and said, “I hear your mother is very ill.”
I was totally caught by surprise and burst into tears. He just looked at me, let my crying subside[9], and then gently said a sentence I will never forget: “whatever you need.”
That was it. His understanding and his willingness to both let me be in my pain and to offer me everything were qualities of compassion that I carry with me to this day.
我曾在一家啤酒公司做咨询顾问，协助总裁和高级副总裁制定和实施一些新的战略方针。这份工作可不轻松。
也就在那段时间，我的母亲已经癌症晚期了。
我白天埋头工作，晚上驱车40英里赶回家陪母亲。我感到压力重重，疲惫不堪，但我心甘情愿。即使晚上会出很多状况，休息不好，但我仍保证继续做好咨询工作，而且不想拿家里的事麻烦总裁。但是我又觉得公司里总该有人知道我的特殊情况，就把事情告诉了人力资源部的副主管，并请求他不要说出去。
几天后，总裁叫我去他的办公室。我猜他可能会和我谈我们正在处理的一些事情。我一进去，他就让我坐下。他坐在那张巨型办公桌后面，看着我的眼睛说道：“听说你的母亲病得不轻啊。”
我惊呆了，眼泪夺眶而出。他只是静静地看着我，让我自己慢慢平静下来，然后非常轻柔地说了一句我永远也不会忘记的话：“需要什么，尽管说。”
仅仅如此而已。但他能理解我，让我在痛苦中发泄悲伤，并给予一切我所需的。正是他这样的同情和体恤之心一直鼓励着我，支撑着我走到现在。
Jessie's Glove
杰西的手套
Rick Phillips
I do a lot of management training each year for the Circle K Corporation, a national chain of convenience stores. Among the topics we address in our seminars[10] is the retention of quality employees—a real challenge to managers when you consider the pay scale in the service industry. During these discussions, I ask the participants, “What has caused you to stay long enough to become a manager?” Some time back a new manager took the question and slowly, with her voice almost breaking, said, “It was a $19 baseball glove.”
Cynthia told the group that she originally took a Circle K clerk job as an interim position while she looked for something better. On her second or third day behind the counter, she received a phone call from her nine-year-old son, Jessie. He needed a baseball glove for Little League. She explained that as a single mother, money was very tight, and her first check would have to go for paying bills. Perhaps she could buy his baseball glove with her second or third check.
When Cynthia arrived for work the next morning, Patricia, the store manager, asked her to come to the small room in back of the store that served as an office. Cynthia wondered if she had done something wrong or left some part of her job incomplete from the day before. She was concerned and confused.
Patricia handed her a box. “I overheard[11] you talking to your son yesterday,” she said, “and I know that it is hard to explain things to kids. This is a baseball glove for Jessie because he may not understand how important he is, even though you have to pay bills before you can buy gloves. You know we can't pay good people like you as much as we would like to; but we do care, and I want you to know you are important to us.”
The thoughtfulness, empathy[12] and love of this convenience store manager demonstrates vividly that people remember more how much an employer cares than how much the employer pays. An important lesson for the price of a Little League baseball glove.
我每年都会为CK便利店——一家全国连锁式便利店集团培训众多管理人员。在我们的研讨会上，其中有一个话题是关于如何留住优秀员工。对管理者来说，在服务行业制定员工薪级是一件棘手的事情。在讨论中，我问与会者这样一个问题：“是什么使你决心长期留在公司，最后成为管理层的一员？”过了一会，一位新上任的经理用几乎发颤的声音缓慢地回答道：“一双价值19美元的棒球手套。”
她叫辛西娅。她告诉我们，起初她只是在CK便利店做临时工，同时还在找更好的工作。在她上班后的两三天，辛西娅接到了她9岁儿子杰西打来的电话。儿子在电话里说要买一个棒球手套去参加少年棒球联合会。她向我们解释说，身为一个单亲妈妈，经济总是非常紧张，收到的第一笔钱一定要用来支付账单。也许她能用第二笔或第三笔钱给儿子买手套。
第二天早上，辛西娅去商店上班，她的经理帕特丽夏把她叫到了商店后面的小间办公室。她思前想后，纳闷自己是不是犯了什么错，亦或是昨天没按时完成工作任务。她困惑极了。
帕特丽夏递给她一个盒子，说道：“我昨天不小心听到了你和你儿子的对话，我也知道你很难向孩子解释这些事情。这手套是给杰西的。杰西也许并不明白他在你心中是多么宝贵，尽管你还得在给他买手套前先付清账单。你明白，我们不能随意给像你这样的优秀人才支付我们想给的薪水，但这并不意味着我们不重视你。我现在想让你知道，你在我们心中也是何等的宝贵。”
这家便利店对员工的体贴、同情和关爱，形象生动地告诉了我们，比起雇主支付的薪水，员工更多地记住的是雇主的关怀。这就是棒球手套给我们上的重要一课。
Roses for a Dime
售价一毛的玫瑰
Thomas Pucci
Bobby was getting cold sitting out in his backyard in the snow. Bobby didn't wear boots; he didn't like them and anyway he didn't own any. The thin sneakers he wore had a few holes in them and they did a poor job of keeping out the cold.
Bobby had been in his backyard for about an hour already. And, try as he might, he could not come up with an idea for his mother's Christmas gift. He shook his head as he thought, “This is useless, even if I do come up with an idea, I don't have any money to spend.”
Ever since his father had passed away three years ago, the family of five had struggled. It wasn't because his mother didn't care, or try, there just never seemed to be enough. She worked nights at the hospital, but the small wage that she was earning could only be stretched so far.
What the family lacked in money and material things, they more than made up for in love and family unity. Bobby had two older and one younger sister, who ran the household in their mother's absence.
All three of his sisters had already made beautiful gifts for their mother. Somehow it just wasn't fair. Here it was Christmas Eve already, and he had nothing.
Wiping a tear from his eye, Bobby kicked the snow and started to walk down to the street where the shops and stores were. It wasn't easy being six without a father, especially when he needed a man to talk to.
Bobby walked from shop to shop, looking into each decorated window. Everything seemed so beautiful and so out of reach. It was starting to get dark and Bobby reluctantly[13] turned to walk home when suddenly his eyes caught the glimmer[14] of the setting sun's rays reflecting off of something along the curb. He reached down and discovered a shiny dime.
Never before has anyone felt so wealthy as Bobby felt at that moment. As he held his newly found treasure, warmth spread throughout his entire body and he walked into the first store he saw. His excitement quickly turned cold when salesperson after salesperson told him that he could not buy anything with only a dime.
He saw a flower shop and went inside to wait in line. When the shop owner asked if he could help him, Bobby presented the dime and asked if he could buy one flower for his mother's Christmas gift. The shop owner looked at Bobby and his ten cent offering. Then he put his hand on Bobby's shoulder and said to him, “You just wait here and I'll see what I can do for you.”
As Bobby waited, he looked at the beautiful flowers and even though he was a boy, he could see why mothers and girls liked flowers.
The sound of the door closing as the last customer left jolted Bobby back to reality. All alone in the shop, Bobby began to feel alone and afraid.
Suddenly the shop owner came out and moved to the counter. There, before bobby's eyes, lay twelve long stem, red roses, with leaves of green and tiny white flowers all tied tighter with a big silver bow. Bobby's heart sank as the owner picked them up and placed them gently into a long white box.
“That will be ten cents, young man.” the shop owner said, reaching out his hand for the dime. Slowly, Bobby moved his hand to give the man his dime. Could this be true? No one else would give him a thing for his dime! Sensing the boy's reluctance, the shop owner added, “I just happened to have some roses on sale for ten cents a dozen. Would you like them?”
This time Bobby did not hesitate[15], and when the man placed the long box into his hands, he knew it was true. Walking out the door that the owner was holding for Bobby, he heard the shop keeper say, “Merry Christmas, son.”
As he returned inside, the shop keeper's wife walked out. “Who were you talking to back there and where are the roses you were fixing?”
Staring out the window, and blinking the tears from his own eyes, he replied, “A strange thing happened to me this morning. While I was setting up things to open the shop, I thought I heard a voice telling me to set aside a dozen of my best roses for a special gift. I wasn't sure at the time whether I had lost my mind or what, but I set them aside anyway. Then just a few minutes ago, a little boy came into the shop and wanted to buy a flower for his mother with one small dime.”
“When I looked at him, I saw myself, many years ago. I too, was a poor boy with nothing to buy my mother a Christmas gift. A bearded[16] man, whom I never knew, stopped me on the street and told me that he want to give me ten dollars.”
“When I saw that little boy tonight, I knew who that voice was, and I put together a dozen of my very best roses.”
The shop owner and his wife hugged each other tightly, and as they stepped out into the bitter cold air, they somehow didn't feel cold at all.
鲍比在院子里的雪地上坐着，慢慢地觉得冰凉刺骨。鲍比赤着脚——他不喜欢穿靴子，但就算想穿，他也没有靴子可穿。鲍比脚上的塑胶鞋很薄，上面还漏了几个洞，根本很难抵抗严寒的侵袭。
鲍比已经在院子里呆了大约一个小时了，他绞尽脑汁地想着该送妈妈什么圣诞礼物。尽管如此，还是没有一点头绪。“算了吧，”他一边摇着脑袋一边想，“这有什么用呢，就算我想到该送什么，我也掏不出一毛钱来。”
自从鲍比的爸爸在三年前去世后，他们一家五口就一直在苦苦地挣扎着。并不是她母亲不在意，或是不努力，只是花销实在是太大了。她晚上在医院工作，但这微薄的薪水对于他们家来说也只能是杯水车薪。
这个家庭所缺乏的金钱和物质的东西，他们用爱和团结加倍地弥补。鲍比有两个姐姐和一个妹妹，她们包办了母亲不在家时的一切家务。
三个姐妹都为母亲准备了漂亮的礼物，即便它们看上去十分简陋。已经是平安夜了，鲍比却仍旧两手空空。
鲍比擦去了脸上的一滴眼泪，踢了一脚雪堆，然后朝商店林立的大街上走去。对6岁的鲍比来说，没有父亲真是一件难受的事，特别是在他需要向一个男人倾诉的时候。
鲍比从一家店逛到另一家店，眼睛一直盯着那些装扮华美的窗户，这一切都是那么美妙，又是那么遥不可及。暮色渐浓，但鲍比还是不想回家。忽然，他的眼睛前金光一闪，原来是路边某个物体受到落日光线的照射而发出了闪光。他走过去一看，发现了一枚金光闪闪的一毛钱硬币。
那一刻，鲍比感到了从未有过的富足感。他拿着这笔刚刚发现的财富，一股暖流流遍了全身。他迫不及待地冲进第一家他看到的店。但是，当店员告诉他一毛钱什么也买不到时，他犹如被当头泼了一盆冷水，热情瞬间被浇灭了，心也好像跌入了冰窟窿。
他又走进一家花店，在人群后面排着队。轮到他时，店主问他需要什么，鲍比胆怯地拿出那一毛钱，低声询问他是否能用这枚硬币给他母亲买一份圣诞节礼物。店主看着鲍比和他的钱，想了一会儿，随后把手放在鲍比的肩上，说：“你在这等会儿，我去看看我能为你做些什么。”
等待的时候，鲍比往四处看了看，到处都是美丽的鲜花。即使他还是个小男孩，他也明白了为什么鲜花对母亲和女孩这么有吸引力。
当最后一位顾客离开时，关门的声响把鲍比从幻想中拉回了现实。他发现店里只剩下他一人了，不禁感到了一丝孤独和恐惧。
突然，店主出现了，朝着柜台走了过来。鲍比看到他拿着12支修长的红玫瑰，带着嫩绿的叶子，中间还点缀着一些娇小的白色花朵，外面用一个银色蝴蝶结将它们紧紧扎在一起。当店主把玫瑰放进一只白色长条盒子里时，鲍比的心沉到了谷底。
“小伙子，这些花售价一毛。”店家一边说，一边伸出手来向鲍比要那一毛钱。这会是真的吗？没有人会愿意为了他那一毛钱而把任何一样商品卖给他的。店主好像看出了他的心思，又说道：“我刚好有一些一毛钱一打的玫瑰，你不喜欢它们吗？”
这一次鲍比没有犹豫。当店主把那个长条盒子放到他手里时，他意识到，这一切都是真的。鲍比离开时，店主拥抱了他，向他告别道：“孩子，圣诞节快乐。”
店主回到店里后，他的妻子走了出来，问道：“刚才你在和谁说话呢？还有，你拾掇好的花呢？”
店主看着窗外，眨了眨眼睛，想把眼泪挤出去。他回答道：“今天早晨我碰到了一件怪事，在我准备开店时，我好像听到一个声音，告诉我要我拿出一打最珍贵的玫瑰花，来作为一件特殊的礼物。当时，我心里没底，以为是我产生了幻觉或是什么，但我并没理会。就在几分钟前，一个小男孩来到店里，想用一毛钱买一朵花当作礼物送给她母亲。”
“我看到他的时候，就想起了几十年前，那时我也是个小穷光蛋，也想为母亲买一份圣诞节礼物。我在大街上漫无目的地闲逛时，一个胡子拉碴的陌生人叫住了我，给了我10美元。”
“今晚看到这个小男孩时，我意识到那个声音是从哪儿来的了，我马上把这一打最好的玫瑰装了起来。”
店主和她的妻子紧紧相拥在一起。他们走进外面的冰天雪地，竟感受不到一丝冷意。
The Smile
微笑的力量
Antoine de Saint-Exupery
It is this story which I'd like to share with you now. It isn't clear whether or not he meant this to be autobiographical or fiction. I choose to believe it to be the former. He said that he was captured by the enemy and thrown into a jail cell. He was sure that from the contemptuous[17] looks and rough treatment he received from his jailers he would be executed the next day.
From here, I'll tell the story as I remember it in my own words.
I was sure that I was to be killed. I became terribly nervous and distraught. I fumbled in my pockets to see if there were any cigarettes which had escaped their search. I found one and because of my shaking hands, I could barely get it to my lips. But I had no matches, they had taken those. I looked through the bars at my jailer. He did not make eye contact with me. After all, one does not make eye contact with a thing, a corpse. I called out to him “Have you got a light, por favor?” He looked at me, shrugged and came over to light my cigarette. As he came close and lit the match, his eyes inadvertently[18] locked with mine. At that moment, I smiled. I don't know why I did that. Perhaps it was nervousness, perhaps it was because, when you get very close, one to another, it is very hard not to smile. In any case, I smiled.
In that instant, it was as though a spark jumped across the gap between our two hearts, our two human souls. I know he didn't want to, but my smile leaped through the bars and generated a smile on his lips, too. He lit my cigarette but stayed near, looking at me directly in the eyes and continuing to smile. I kept smiling at him, now aware of him as a person and not just a jailer. And his looking at me seemed to have a new dimension, too.
“Do you have kids?” he asked. “Yes, here, here.” I took out my wallet and nervously fumbled for the pictures of my family. He, too, took out the pictures of his ninos and began to talk about his plans and hopes for them. My eyes filled with tears. I said that I feared that I'd never see my family again, never have the chance to see them grow up. Tears came to his eyes, too. Suddenly, without another word, he unlocked my cell and silently led me out. Out of the jail, quietly and by back routes, out of the town. There, at the edge of town, he released me. And without another word, he turned back toward the town.
My life was saved by a smile. Yes, the smile—the unaffected, unplanned natural connection between people.
I tell this story in my work because I'd like people to consider that underneath all the layers we construct to protect ourselves, our dignity, our titles, our degrees, our status and our need to be seen in certain ways—underneath all that, remains the authentic, essential self. I'm not afraid to call it the soul. I really believe that if that part of you and that part of me could recognize each other, we wouldn't be enemies. We couldn't have hate or envy or fear. I sadly conclude that all those other layers, which we so carefully construct through our lives, distance and insulate[19] us from truly contacting others.
我现在想讲一个故事，但我也不确定它是作者的亲身经历还是虚构的事。不过，我还是愿意相信它是由真实事件改编的。故事的主人公称他在一次战斗中被俘，然后被关进监狱。有一天，他从看守那轻蔑的表情和粗鲁的态度中确信，第二天自己就要被处决了。
接下来，我将用自己的话叙述这个故事。
毫无疑问，我的死期快到了。恐惧、焦躁压迫着我，我坐立不安。我在口袋里摸索，希望能有几根香烟逃过敌人的搜查。很走运，我找到了一根。由于手颤抖得太厉害，我费了好大的劲才把香烟放到嘴边。但这时我才发现自己没有火柴，都被他们搜走了。我看了一下牢房外面的看守，但他没有注意到我。也对，谁会去管一个行将要死的人呢。我叫了他一声：“能借个火么？”他回头看了看，耸了耸肩，然后走过来为我点烟。他靠近我，在点燃火柴的瞬间，不经意间与我四目相触。那一刻，我微微地笑了。我也不知道为什么会笑，也许是因为紧张，也许是离人很近的时候一定得笑。总之，我笑了。
那一刻，仿佛有一束火花跨越了我们两人心灵间的鸿沟。我知道他强忍着笑意，但我的笑意好像越过了栅栏的阻挡，跳到了他的脸上。于是，他也笑了。他为我点了烟，但没走开，而是看着我的眼睛，脸上还带着微笑。我也朝着他笑，意识到他跟我一样，也是个有感情的人，而不是一个残忍的狱卒。他看着我，好像对我的印象也有所改变。
他问我说：“你有孩子么？”“当然有了，看这里。”我拿出钱包，小心翼翼地把我家人的照片拿给他看。他也拿出了他小孩的照片，说了一大堆对他们的计划和期望。听着听着，我的眼里竟盈满了泪水。我说，恐怕我是要和家人永别了，再也没有机会看着我的孩子长大了。他也流泪了。突然，他默默地打开了牢房的锁，示意我出来。我静静地跟在他后面，他把我一直领出了监狱。在监狱的出口，他摆摆手，让我离开这里。他没说一句话就转身走了回去。
一个微笑竟然挽救了我的生命。千真万确，正是那个微笑，那个只有真挚、没有计划过的微笑，将人自然地紧密联系在一起。
我说这个故事是为了让人们意识到，尽管我们把自己包裹得严严实实，以此来保护自己的尊严、名誉、身份和需求，但在这层层的包裹之中，仍然有着最真实的东西。我敢说，这就是灵魂。我相信，如果你的灵魂和我的相会，我们就不会彼此为仇，也不会再有恨意、嫉妒和恐惧。不幸的是，我发觉，在这些包裹之中，我们费尽全力建设自己的人生，但它们却拦阻我们与他人交流，使我们离群索居。
A Homeless Man's Gift
流浪汉的礼物
Anonymous
On New Year's Eve my husband and I stopped in San Francisco for dinner on our way back from a retreat. While eating we felt that we should do something different this year. I took a $20 bill and asked the restaurant owner to give me $5 bills.
After dinner, we headed out on the streets to find homeless people. The first guy we came across was sitting with a paper cup in his hand. We dropped in a $5 bill and moved on. Right across the street we saw another man sitting outside a club with his guitar. We requested him to play some music for us and he obliged, after which we dropped a bill in his cup.
Then my husband asked me if I would pose with the man for a picture. Initially[20], I hesitated although I thought that was a great idea. After some more coaxing from my husband, I asked the man for his permission. He agreed with a big smile on his face and insisted that I prop the guitar around my neck. There was something special about his smile—it was wholesome, from his heart, and we felt blessed.
We crossed the street and came across the first guy again and we thought, let's take a picture here as well. I asked this man, if I could take a picture with him and he too agreed with a big smile. He took off his hat to pose for the picture, and we felt a warm, lovely smile.
We continued on our walk looking for more people and we came across another man with his guitar. He was collecting beads which had scattered[21] on the ground from his broken necklace. I offered him a $5 bill and in return he gave me a can of Dr. Pepper and I said I didn't need it. He then offered it to my husband and he too politely refused. We requested that he sing a song for us instead. He said sure and offered both of us a seat on the street. It was remarkably thoughtful—he had broken a chair in half. He placed the top back rest on the floor, on which he sat. The rest of the chair with the seat was on the pavement for his audience.
He sang a beautiful song, I remember a few words from it: “Why do you wait for the sunrise, the sun is always there. Look in your heart, it is always there.” We were deeply touched by his song. I wished him a great year ahead and he said to me “life is beautiful,” with a big smile on his face. I took a picture with this man too but this time my husband too wanted to be in the picture. At this point a drunk man was passing by and he offered to take our picture, which he did.
I gave my last $5 bill to the guitarist and said goodbye. But he would not let me go empty-handed. He gave me as many beads as he could pick up in his cupped hands and asked me to make a bracelet out of it. I took it with gratitude and we both felt that the people we met today had give us much more than we had given—a heartfelt smile brimming with joy.
新年前夜，我和丈夫暂留在旧金山。吃晚饭时，我们突发奇想，决定在今年的最后一天做点有意义的事情。我拿出了20美元，向餐馆老板换了几张5美元的钞票。
饭后，我们就到大街上寻找流浪汉。过了不久，我们遇到了第一位流浪汉，他手上拿着一个纸杯。我们扔下了5美元后转身离开。在对面的街道上，我们又碰到了一位流浪者。他抱着一把吉他，坐在一家俱乐部的外面。我们请他为我们弹奏一曲。我们在他的纸杯中投入5美元后，他开始了他的表演。
一曲落幕，丈夫提议我和这位流浪艺人合影留念。一开始，我有些犹豫，尽管我也觉得这个主意不错。禁不住丈夫不断的鼓动，我上前询问是否可以合影。他答应了，脸上浮现出笑容，还坚持把吉他挂在我的脖子上。他的笑脸与众不同，那是从心底所散发出的自然、纯真的笑容，我们深受感动。
我们离开后，在途中再一次碰到了第一位流浪汉。我们想，不妨也和他合个影吧。我问他能否同他合影，他也答应了，并绽开了笑颜。他把帽子摘下，面对照相机，摆好姿势，脸上浮现出真挚、温馨的笑容。
拍完照后，我们继续往前，寻找更多的流浪汉。不一会儿，又一位带着吉他的流浪艺人映入了我们眼帘。他的项链破了，珠子散了一地，他正从地上把它们捡起来。我给了他5美元，作为回报，他塞给了我一个辣椒罐。我表示自己不需要，他就递给我的丈夫，但也遭到了婉拒。为了避免尴尬，我们就请他为我们唱首歌。他欣然应允，非常体贴地把一张椅子拆成两半，把有靠背的那部分倚在地上，自己坐了上去，把另一半给我们，让我们坐在人行道上欣赏他的表演。
他的歌声悦耳动听，如同天籁，深深地抓住了我们的心。我还记着几句歌词：“何必等那日出，太阳永不落下；看看你的心，它永远在那儿。”我向他祝福，希望他来年顺利安康。他开心地笑了，“生活是多姿多彩的。”他对我说道。我请求和他合影，不过这次我的丈夫也要和我们一起合影。正在这时，一个醉汉路过这里，他主动为我们拍了照片。
我把最后的5美元钞票给了这位吉他表演家，并跟他道别。但他却不肯让我空手离开。他把他搜集起来的珠子都塞给了我，并嘱咐我用这些珠子做一个手镯。我满怀感激，收下了他的礼物。在这个特殊的夜晚，我们从流浪汉那里收获了洋溢着纯真欢乐的微笑，这让我们觉得，我们的付出远没有我们所得到的多。
Love Is in the Moment
爱在此时此刻
Annie
It was early morning, yet already it had been a stupendously[22] bad day. One thing after another. The downward spiral continued when a large pitcher of orange juice slid from my hands and smashed to the floor. Glass and sticky juice spewed to the farthest corners of the kitchen, slithering down cabinets and appliances, puddling at my feet.
Stunned, I looked at the mess. Then I dropped dejectedly down to the floor, my eyes filling with overdue tears. The tears came from begrudging and angry acceptance that “today is just not my day.”
Bad day or not, errands had to be done. Filled with angst and negative mental baggage, I got in my car to drive into town. In the few minutes it took to travel to the bank I made a decision. I would be careful not to pass my bad day off to anyone else. I would be cordial and polite. And I would not retaliate when that harried driver pulled quickly and rudely in front of me causing me to slam on my breaks, dumping the contents of my drink onto the front car seat!
Standing in line at the bank, I was silently talking to myself. Actually, I was scolding[23] myself. All of the events that had accumulated and contributed to my bad day were, in reality, so very minor and trivial. I was over-reacting. I was indulging in self-pity. I tried to imagine the innumerable[24] individual lives that had been effected by 9/11, by the war in Iraq, by the tsunami.
For the second time that day my eyes filled with tears as I realized how disconnected I felt from all those individuals who are trying to cope with truly traumatic events in their lives. They all seemed so distant and unknowable, and this justified and intensified my belief that I was being self-centered and selfish. I was sure that all my efforts to be a caring and loving person were for naught.
A voice broke through my mental distractions. Somehow I had mechanically finished my bank transaction and the teller was trying to get my attention. “Young lady,” she was saying, “Young lady!”
I looked up and into the eyes of the bank teller, a silver-haired grandmother with a gentle beauty. Her keen eyes reflected concern as she leaned forward and softly said, “I don't know what is happening inside of you, but please, believe me when I tell you that—everything will be okay.”
And then she did something quite marvelous. My hands were resting on the counter. She took her hands and placed them gently on top of mine. The touch was quick but electric. And in that moment my world shifted.
In the moment of her touch my self-doubt vanished[25]. I found understanding and acceptance. I knew that love was being channeled through the heart of this beautiful woman directly into my heart. I was infused with a profound awareness—that I am loved. I was speechless. I smiled. It was my first smile of the day. But it would not be my last, as from that moment on my entire day was transformed.
Perhaps without even knowing it, the kind-hearted bank teller allowed herself to be a conduit of divine love. She was instrumental in transforming a day that seemed destined to be a day of tears into a day of smiles. The seemingly small gesture of this gentle woman not only changed the course of my day, it became a powerful reminder in my life. The profound effect of that one simple, loving touch remains in my heart to this day.
More people than not scoff at the idea of world peace. Laugh if you wish. As for myself, I believe it is possible to transform our world…one act of loving kindness at a time.
Remember: A simple smile. A warm handshake. A kind word. A gentle hug. Through these, we open the transformative power of love.
那真是糟糕透顶的一天，倒霉事一件接着一件。首先是早上，一大罐橘子汁忽然从我手中滑落，摔在了地上，玻璃渣和粘稠的果汁四处飞散，遍布厨房的每一个角落，连橱柜和电器也未能幸免。
我站在一滩汁水中，看着这一片狼藉的景象，整个人呆若木鸡。过了一会儿，我沮丧地蹲在地板上，眼泪不自觉地流了下来。我不得不愤怒又无奈地承认，今天是我的倒霉日。
幸运也好，倒霉也罢，该做的事情还是要做。打扫完厨房后，我让司机送我去了镇里，在车上，我还在担心接下来还会发生什么，就这样胡思乱想了一路。在去银行的短短几分钟里，我决定一定要小心一点，避免把自己的霉运传给其他人。我会热情和礼貌地对待大家，还有，我也不会责怪我那个鲁莽的司机。他还没等我坐稳就猛踩了一脚油门，我一个没拿稳，我的早餐——一杯饮料就洒在了前面的座位上。
在银行排队等候时，我在心里默默地跟自己说话，事实上，我是在责备自己。这些所谓的倒霉事其实都是些微不足道的小事而已，是我太敏感，太顾影自怜了。为了摆脱搅扰，我开始努力想象在“9.11”事件、伊拉克战争和海啸中那无数遭遇不幸的人。
当我意识到，与那些努力应对生活中真正的惨痛事件的人们相比，我的不幸是多么微不足道时，我的眼泪再一次奔涌而出，他们看起来似乎离我很遥远，也很陌生，但这一点也不妨碍我得出结论——我既以自我为中心，又无比自私。我敢肯定，我想要成为一个关爱他人、富有爱心的人所付出的一切努力都化成了泡影。
突然，一个声音把我从幻想中唤醒了。原来我已在恍惚之间机械地完成了银行业务，而那个银行柜员正努力想要引起我的注意。她向我喊道：“女士，这位年轻女士！”
我抬头一看，望着她的眼睛，她已经是当祖母的年纪了，满头银发，慈祥和蔼。她热切的目光中透着关怀，身子微微前倾，柔声向我说道：“虽然我不知道你遭遇了什么，但请相信我，一切都会好起来的。”
接下来，她做了件美妙绝伦的事情。那时，我的手放在柜台上，她把她的手轻柔地覆盖在我的手上面，那碰触虽是转瞬之间，但就在接触的一刹那，仿佛有一股电流贯穿了我的全身。那一刻，我的世界从黑暗转向了光明。
那一瞬间的碰触，我的自怨自艾就烟消云散了。我懂得了理解和接纳。我知道爱的暖流从那位和蔼的女人身上传递到了我的心中。我深深地意识到了被爱着的喜悦。我静静地笑了，那是我在那天第一次微笑。但我知道，这不是最后一次微笑，因为从那一刻起，这一天已经变得完全不同了。
也许她并不知道，她的热心肠足以让她成为神圣之爱的使者，把一个注定充斥着泪水的日子变成了一个充满欢笑的一天。这位温柔的女士看似微小的举动，不仅改变了我的一天，更成为了我人生中一个有力的提醒。那次微小但充满爱意的触碰，直到今天仍然对我的内心影响深远。
提起世界和平，很多人不免忍不住哑然失笑。想笑的人就笑吧，但我却坚信，世界是可以改变的，一个简单的善行就足够。
请记住，一个简单微笑，一次温暖握手，一句善意话语，一个轻柔拥抱，都能让我们开启足以改变世界的爱的魔力。
