雙語散文幾則

In a calm sea every man is a pilot.

風平浪靜的大海上，每個人都是領航員。

But all sunshine without shade, all pleasure without pain, is not life at all. Take the lot of the happiest—it is a tangled yarn. Bereavements and 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 sober moments of life, under the shadows of sorrow and loss.

但只有晴天沒有陰霾，只有快樂沒有悲傷，那就全然不是人生。就拿最幸福的人來說吧——他們的命運就是一團糾纏不清的紗線。喪親之痛和神恩賜福此起彼伏，讓我們悲歡交替。甚至連死亡本身也使生命更加珍貴。人們在生命的莊嚴時刻，在哀傷和喪親的陰影之下，最接近真實的自我。

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, regulated by judgment.

在生活或事業中，性格比才智更能指導我們，心靈比頭腦更能引導我們，而源自於判斷的剋制，耐心和自制力比天分更能讓我們受益。

I have always believed that the man who has begun to live more seriously within begins to live more simply without. In an age of extravagance and waste, I wish I could show to the world how few the real wants of humanity are.

我一向認爲，只有自內心開始生活得更爲嚴謹的人，他外在的生活纔會變得更爲簡樸。在物慾橫流、揮霍浪費的年代，但願我能向世人表明：人類的真正需求少得可憐。

To regret one’s errors to the point of not repeating them is true repentance. There is nothing noble in being superior to some other man. The true nobility is in being superior to your previous self.

反思自己的過錯而不重蹈覆轍纔是真正的悔悟。高人一等並不等於高尚，真正的高尚是超越原來的你。

My Father's Music

我父親的音樂

by Wayne Kalyn

韋恩凱林

I remember the day Dad first lugged the heavy accordion up our front stoop, taxing his small frame. He gathered my mother and me in the living room and opened the case as if it were a treasure chest. "Here it is," he said. "Once you learn to play, it'll stay with you for life."

記得有一天，身材瘦小的父親揹着一架沉重的手風琴，費力地走到前門廊。他把媽媽和我叫進廳裏，打開了那隻盒子，好象那是一個百寶箱似的。“就這個，”他說，“你一旦學會，它將伴隨你一生。”

If my thin smile didn't match his full-fledged grin, it was because I had prayed for a guitar or a piano. For the next two weeks, the accordion was stored in the hall closet. Then one evening Dad announced that I would start lessons the following week. In disbelief I shot my eyes toward Mom for support. The firm set of her jaw told me I was out of luck.

如果說我勉強的微笑與他發自內心的笑容不和諧的話，那是因爲我一直想要一把吉他或一架鋼琴。隨後的兩個星期，那架手風琴一直放在大廳的櫥子裏。一天晚上，爸爸宣佈下週我開始上琴課。疑惑中，我把視線急忙投向媽媽求助。她緊繃的下巴告訴我：我倒運了。

Spending $300 for an accordion and $5 per lesson was out of character for my father. He was practical always － something he learned growing up on a Pennsylvania farm. Clothes, heat and sometimes even food were scarce.

花300元買一架手風琴，每次上課再花3美元，這可不像父親的作風。他一直是很實際的——這是他在賓夕法尼亞農場成長過程中學來的。那時候，衣服、暖氣，有時甚至連食物都短缺。

Dad was a supervisor in a company that serviced jet engines. Weekends, he tinkered in the cellar, turning scraps of plywood into a utility cabinet or fixing a broken toy with spare parts. Quiet and shy, he was never more comfortable than when at his workbench.

爸爸是一家爲噴氣式飛機引擎提供服務的公司的主管。週末，他在地下室裏修修補補，把膠合板的邊角料做成一個實用的小櫃子，或者用一些零件把壞了的玩具修好。他不喜張揚，不愛說話。最讓他感到舒服的，莫過於在工作臺旁邊。

Only music carried Dad away from his world of tools and projects. On a Sunday drive, he turned the radio on immediately. At red lights, I'd notice his foot tapping in time. He seemed to hang on every note.

只有音樂會讓爸爸遠離他的工具和計劃的世界。一個星期天駕車外出，一上車他就打開了收音機。遇到紅燈時，我注意到他的腳在打着拍子，似乎能跟得上每一個節拍。

Still, I wasn't prepared when, rummaging in a closet, I found a case that looked to me like a tiny guitar's. Opening it, I saw the polished glow of a beautiful violin. "It's your father's," Mom said. "His parents bought it for him. I guess he got too busy on the farm to ever learn to play it." I tried to imagine Dad's rough hands on this delicate instrument － and couldn't.

然而，我還是沒有思想準備，那是我在櫥子裏翻找東西時，發現一隻像是裝小吉它的盒子。打開一看，是一把鋥亮的、漂亮的小提琴。“那是你爸爸的，”媽媽說。“他父母給他買的。我想他在農場裏太忙了，沒有時間學。”我試圖想象爸爸粗糙的雙手放在這精緻的樂器上的情景——無法想象。

Shortly after, my lessons began with Mr. Zelli. On my first day, with straps straining my shoulders, I felt clumsy in every way. "How did he do?" my father asked when it was over. "Fine for the first lesson," said Mr. Zelli. Dad glowed with hope.

不久，澤利先生開始教我拉手風琴。第一天，手風琴揹帶壓着我的肩膀，我感到渾身不自在。“他學得怎麼樣？”結束時，父親問。“第一堂課，這已經很不錯。”澤利先生說。爸爸眼中閃着希望的光芒。

I was ordered to practice half an hour every day, and every day I tried to get out of it. My future seemed to be outside playing ball, not in the house mastering songs I would soon forget. But my parents hounded me to practice.

爸爸命令我每天練半個小時，可每天我都想賴掉。我的將來似乎應在戶外打球，而不是在屋內練那些很快就會忘掉的曲子。然而父母不斷地督促我練習。

Gradually, to my surprise, I was able to string notes together and coordinate my hands to play simple songs. Often, after supper, my father would request a tune or two. As he sat in his easy chair, I would fumble through "Lady of Spain" and "Beer Barrel Polka."

漸漸地，讓我吃驚的是，我竟然能把幾個音符連起來了。手指的協調性也好點了，還能拉出幾首簡單的曲子。晚飯後，父親常常會要我拉上一、兩首曲子。他躺在安樂椅裏，我則笨拙地拉完“西班牙女郎”和“啤酒桶波爾卡”。

"Very nice, better than last week," he'd say. Then I would follow into a medley of his favorites, "Red River Valley" and "Home on the Range," and he would drift off to sleep, the newspaper folded on his lap. I took it as a compliment that he could relax under the spell of my playing.

他會說，“不錯，比上星期好，”然後我會接着拉他喜歡的曲子“紅河谷”和“山上的家”。聽着聽着，他慢慢睡着了，報紙疊在腿上。我把這看作是一種讚揚：他能在我美妙的演奏中放鬆。

One July evening I was giving an almost flawless rendition of "Come Back to Sorrento," and my parents called me to an open window. An elderly neighbor, rarely seen outside her house, was leaning against our car humming dreamily to the tune. When I finished, she smiled broadly and called out, "I remember that song as a child in Italy. Beautiful, just beautiful."

七月的一個傍晚，我正在拉“重回索聯託”，拉得幾乎完美無缺。父母突然把我叫到窗前。一位極少出門、上了年紀的老鄰居，正靠在我們的車旁，跟着曲子沉醉地哼唱着。當我拉完時，她咧開嘴笑了，大聲說：“小時候在意大利我聽到過這首歌曲，我還記得。太棒了，真是棒極了。

”Throughout the summer, Mr. Zelli's lessons grew more difficult. It took me a week and a half to master them now. All the while I could hear my buddies outside playing heated games of stickball. I'd also hear an occasional taunt; "Hey, where's your monkey and cup?"

整個夏天，澤利先生的課越來越難。現在要一個半星期才能掌握。練琴時，我總是聽到夥伴們在外面玩棍球的嬉鬧聲。偶爾還聽到奚落：“嗨，你的猴子和獎盃哪裏去了？

”Such humiliation paled, though, beside the impending fall recital. I would have to play a solo on a local movie theater's stage. I wanted to skip the whole thing. Emotions boiled over in the car one Sunday afternoon. "I don't want to play a solo." I said. "You have to," replied my father.

不過，這種羞辱與即將來臨的秋季演奏會相比，算不得什麼。我得在當地一家影劇院舞臺上獨奏一曲。我想逃避這一切。一個星期天的下午，不滿的情緒終於在車上爆發了。“我不想獨奏，”我說。“你必須去，”父親說。

"Why?" I shouted. "Because you didn't get to play your violin when you were a kid? Why should I have to play this stupid instrument when you never had to play yours?"Dad pulled the car over and pointed at me. "Because you can bring people joy. You can touch their hearts. That's a gift I won't let you throw away." He added softly, "Someday you'll have the chance I never had: you'll play beautiful music for your family. And you'll understand why you've worked so hard."

“爲什麼？”我叫了起來。“就因爲你小時候沒能拉上小提琴？你從來不用拉琴，我爲什麼必須拉那笨重的玩意？”爸爸把車開到路邊，手指着我。“因爲你能給人們帶來快樂。你能撥動他們的心絃。我不會讓你放棄這份才能。”爸爸又心平氣和地說：“有一天你會有我從未有過的機會：你能爲你的全家彈奏美妙的音樂。那時你會明白，如此努力到底是爲什麼。”

I was speechless. I had rarely heard Dad speak with such feeling about anything, much less the accordion. From then on, I practiced without my parents’ making me.

我不吱聲了。我很少聽到爸爸如此語重心長地跟我談事情，更不用說是爲了拉手風琴的事。從那以後，我練琴再也不用父母盯着。

The evening of the concert Mom wore glittery earrings and more makeup than I could remember. Dad got out of work early, put on a suit and tie, and slicked down his hair with Vitalis. They were ready an hour early, so we sat in the living room chatting nervously. I got the unspoken message that playing this one song was a dream come true for them.

音樂會那天晚上，媽媽戴上了亮閃閃的耳環，精心打扮一番；爸爸也早早下班回家，穿上西裝，繫上領帶，頭上抹了瓦特里斯，油亮亮的。他們提前一個小時就準備好了，我們就坐在廳裏，緊張地談論着。我感覺到，上臺演奏這首曲子是他們要實現的一個夢想。

At the theater nervousness overtook me as I realized how much I wanted to make my parents proud. Finally, it was my turn. I walked to the lone chair on stage and performed "Are You Lonesome Tonight?" without a mistake. The applause spilled out, with a few hands still clapping after others had stopped. I was lightheaded, glad my ordeal was over.

在劇場裏，當我意識到我是多麼想讓父母感到驕傲時，我極爲緊張。最後，終於輪到我了。我走向舞臺中央的那張椅子，演奏了一曲“今晚你孤獨嗎？”，一個音符也沒拉錯。頓時，掌聲四起，難以停息。我 頭有點暈暈的，慶幸我的苦難終於結束。

After the concert Mom and Dad came backstage. The way they walked － heads high, faces flushed － I knew they were pleased. My mother gave me a big hug. Dad slipped an arm around me and held me close. "You were just great," he said. Then he shook my hand and was slow to let it go.

音樂會後，爸媽來到後臺。他們走路的樣子，昂着頭，精神煥發--我知道他們很開心。媽媽緊緊地抱住我。爸爸伸出一隻手臂，牢牢地摟住我：“你太棒了。”說完，他使勁地握着我的手，不願鬆開。

As the years went by, the accordion drifted to the background of my life. Dad asked me to play at family occasions, but the lessons stopped. When I went to college, the accordion stayed behind in the hall closet next to my father's violin.

隨着歲月的流逝，那架手風琴漸漸退至我生活的幕後。只有在家庭聚會上，爸爸還會讓我拉上一曲。但是風琴課不再上了。我上大學時，那架手風琴放進廳裏的壁櫥，在爸爸的小提琴旁邊。

A year after my graduation, my parents moved to a house in a nearby town. Dad, at 51, finally owned his own home. On moving day, I didn't have the heart to tell him that he could dispose of the accordion, so I brought it to my own home and put it in the attic.

大學畢業後一年，父母搬到附近城鎮的一棟房子。爸爸在他五十一歲那年終於擁有了自己的家。搬家那天，我不忍 心告訴他，說他可以處理那架手風琴，於是我把它帶回自己家，放在閣樓上。

There it remained, a dusty memory, until one afternoon several years later when my two children discovered it by accident. Scott thought it was a secret treasure; Holly thought a ghost lived inside. They were both right.

手風琴一直放在那裏，成了塵封的記憶。直到幾年後的一個下午，我的兩個孩子偶然發現了它。斯科特認爲這是一件祕密寶藏。霍莉則認爲裏面住着一個幽靈。他倆都對。

When I opened the case, they laughed and said, "Play it, play it." Reluctantly, I strapped on the accordion and played some simple songs. I was surprised my skills hadn't rusted away. Soon the kids were dancing in circles and giggling. Even my wife, Terri, was laughing and clapping to the beat. I was amazed at their unbridled glee.

我打開盒子時，他們笑了，叫道“拉一曲，拉一曲。”我不情願地背上琴帶，拉了幾隻簡單的曲子。真沒想到，我拉起來還是那麼嫺熟。很快，孩子們圍成圈跳起來，咯咯地笑個不停。甚至連我妻子特麗也笑了，打着拍子。看着他們縱情歡笑，我感到驚異。

My father's words came back to me: "Someday you'll have the chance I never had, Then you'll understand." I finally knew what it meant to work hard and sacrifice for others. Dad had been right all along: the most precious gift is to touch the hearts of those you love. Later I phoned Dad to let him know that, at long last, I understood. Fumbling for the right words, I thanked him for the legacy it took almost 30 years to discover. "You're welcome," he said, his voice choked with emotion.

我的耳邊迴響起父親說過的話：“有一天你會有我從未有過的機會，那時你會明白的。”我終於明白，去努力，去爲別人作出犧牲意味着什麼。爸爸始終是對的：最珍貴的禮物莫過於打動你所愛的人的心。後來，我給爸爸去電話，告訴他我終於懂了。我笨嘴拙舌地找尋合適的詞語，爲他給我的寶貴財富表示感謝，這財富我花了差不多三十年才發現。“不用謝，”他激動得說不出話來。

Dad never learned to coax sweet sounds from his violin. Yet he was wrong to think he would never play for his family. On that wonderful evening, as my wife and children laughed and danced, they heard my accordion. But it was my father's music.

爸爸從未學過從他的小提琴上拉出美妙的聲音。但是他以爲自己永遠不會爲家人彈奏音樂，這種想法是錯的。那個美妙的夜晚，我的妻子、孩子歡歌笑舞，他們聽到的是我的手風琴，但，那卻是我父親的音樂。

A Faraway Friend is someone you grew up with or went to school with or lived in the same town as until one of you moved away. Without a Faraway Friend, you would never get any mail addressed in handwriting. A Faraway Friend calls late at night, invites you to her wedding, always says she is coming to visit but rarely shows up. An actual visit from a Faraway Friend is a cause for celebration and binges of all kinds.

遠方的朋友是這樣的一個人：和你從小一同長大的，或者是同學，或者和你原本住在同一個鎮上，後來你們中的一人搬到了別處。沒有一位遠方的朋友，你連一封手寫的信都收不到。遠方的朋友會半夜打來電話，邀請你去參加她的婚禮，她總是說要來看你，卻很少露面。要是真的來訪，那才叫“不亦樂乎”，各種名目的狂歡可就有了理由。

Faraway friends go through phases of intense communication, then maybe out of touch for many months. Either way, the connection is always there. A conversation with your Faraway Friend always helps to put your life in perspective: When you feel you’ve hit a dead end, come to a confusing fork in the road, or gotten lost in some cracker-box subdivision of your life, the advice of the Faraway Friend — who has the big picture, who is so well acquainted with the route that brought you to this place — is indispensable.

兩個遠方的朋友會經歷密切交流的階段，接下來或許幾個月都不聯繫。但無論聯繫與否，友誼永遠不會改變。與遠方的朋友一席長談，總是有助於你更好地認識生活；當你覺得自己走入了死衚衕時，當你面對岔路而不知所措時，來自遠方朋友的忠告就越發不可或缺，她看得清大局，完全瞭解你是怎麼走到這一步的。

Another useful function of the Faraway Friend is to help you remember things from a long time ago, like the name of your seventh-grade history teacher, what was in that really good stir-fry, or exactly what happened that night on the boat with the guys from Florida.

遠方的朋友還有一個益處，就是能讓你記起很久以前的事情，比如七年級歷史老師的名字，那盤炒菜裏究竟什麼東西那麼好吃，或者那天晚上在船裏和佛羅里達來的男孩子們都幹了些什麼。

Ah, the former friend. A sad thing. At best a wistful memory, at worst a dangerous enemy who is in possession of many of your deepest secrets. But what was it that drove you apart? A misunderstanding, a betrayed confidence, an underpaid loan, an ill-conceived flirtation. A poor choice of spouse can do in a friendship just like that. Going into business together can be a serious mistake. Time, money, distance, cult religions: all noted friendship killers. You quit doing drugs, you’re not such good friends with your dealer anymore.

啊，從前的朋友。讓人憂傷的事情。好了的話是一段傷感的記憶，不好的話你有一個危險的敵人，而且對你許多最隱祕的事情都瞭如指掌。可究竟是什麼把你們分開的呢？一個誤解，一個被泄露的祕密，一筆沒有償還的借款，一次有欠考慮的輕俏之舉。擇偶不慎也會使友誼分崩離析；一起做生意會成爲一個嚴重的錯誤；時間、金錢、距離、宗教狂熱，這都是耳熟能詳的友誼殺手。如同一旦你戒了毒，你就不再是你供貨商的好朋友了。

And lest we forget, there are the Friends You Love to Hate. They call at inopportune times. They say stupid things. They butt in, they boss you around, they embarrass you in public. They invite themselves over. They take advantage. You’ve done the best you can, but they need professional help. On top of all this, they love you to death and are convinced they’re your best friends on the planet.

而且我們別忘了：還有些朋友，你喜歡恨他們。他們在不適當的時候打電話，他們蠢話連篇，他們胡亂插手你的事情，他們把你指使得團團亂轉，他們總是佔盡了你的便宜。你已經盡了最大的努力，可他們需要的其實是專業人員的幫助。這一切之外，他們還愛你愛得要死要活，深信他們是你在這個世界上最好的朋友。

So why do you continue to be involved with these people? Why do you tolerate them? On the contrary, the real question is what would you do without them. Without Friends You Love to Hate, there would be nothing to talk about with your other friends. Their problems and their irritating stunts provide a reliable source of conversation for everyone they know.

那麼你又爲什麼繼續和他們打交道呢？爲什麼要容忍他們呢？反過來說，真正的問題是：沒有他們你行嗎？沒有這些你寧可去憎恨的朋友，你和你別的朋友也就無話可說了。他們的缺陷和他們惱人的噱頭，爲他們認識的每一個人都提供了源源不斷的談資。

What’s more, Friends You Love to Hate make you feel good about yourself, since you are obviously in so much better shape than they are. No matter what these people do, you will never get rid of them. As much as they need you, you need them, too.

此外，他們還能使你對自己感覺良好，因爲你的狀況顯然比他們好得太多。不管他們做出什麼事情來，你絕對不願擺脫他們。你對他們的`需要，和他們對你的需要可謂不相上下呢。

At the other end of the spectrum are Hero Friends. These people are better than the rest of us, that’s all there is to it. Their career is something you wanted to be when you grew up — painter, forest ranger, tireless doer of good.

與此相反的另一個極端則是那些令人豔羨的朋友。他們比我們這些人都更出色，有這一點就夠了。他們的事業就是你長大後的追求——畫家、護林人，不知疲倦的行善者。

They have beautiful homes filled with special handmade things presented to them by villagers in the remote areas they have visited in their extensive travels. Yet they are modest. They never gossip. They are always helping others, especially those who have suffered a death in the family or an illness. You would think people like this would just make you sick, but somehow they don’t.

他們擁有漂亮的房子，裏面滿是手工做的奇特玩意兒，都是他們周遊世界時到過的邊遠地區的村民總送給他們的。可他們依舊待人謙和。他們從不饒舌。他們總是去幫助別人，特別是那些遭受喪失親人之痛或疾病折磨的人。你會認爲這種人只能讓你厭倦，可他們偏偏不是那樣。

A new friend is a tonic unlike any other. Say you meet her at a party. In your bowling league. At a Japanese conversation class, perhaps. Wherever, whenever, there’s that spark of recognition. The first time you talk, you can’t believe how much you have in common. Suddenly, your life story is interesting again, your insights fresh, your opinion valued. Your various shortcomings are as yet completely invisible.

新的朋友是一劑無可比擬的良藥。也許你是在一次聚會上結識她的，也許是在保齡球俱樂部裏，也許是日語會話課上。無論何處，無論何時，只因爲擦出了那鍾惺惺相惜的火花。你簡直無法相信你們有這麼多共同點，而且只是第一次交談。突然間，你的經歷又變得有趣了，你的見識不同凡響，你的意見也倍受重視。你各式各樣的缺點一時間也完全消失不見了。

Of Regiment of Health

論養生

There is a wisdom in this, beyond the rules of physic: a man's own observation, what he finds good of, and what he finds hurt of, is the best physic to preserve health.

養生有道，非醫學底規律所能盡。一個人自己的觀察，他對於何者有益何者有害於自己的知識，乃是最好的保健藥品。

But it is a safer conclusion to say; this agreeth not well with me, therefore I will not continue it; than this; I fmd no offence of this, therefore I may use it. For strength of nature in youth passeth over many excesses, which are owing a man till his age. Discern of the coming on of years, and think not, to do the same things still; for age will not be defied.

但是在下斷語的時候，如果說：“這個與我底身體不合，因此我要戒它”，比說：“這個好象於我沒有什麼害處，因此我要用它”較爲安全得多。因爲少壯時代底天賦的強力可以忍受許多縱慾的行爲，而這些行爲是等於記在賬上，到了老年的時候，是要還的。留心你底年歲底增加，不要永遠想做同一的事情，因爲年歲是不受蔑視的。

Beware of sudden change in any great point of diet, and if necessity enforce it, fit the rest to it. For it is a secret, both in nature, and state; that it is safer to change many things, than one. Examine thy customs, of diet, sleep, exercise, apparel, and the like; and try in anything thou shall judge hurtful, to discontinue it by little and little; but so, as if thou doest fmd any inconvenience by the change, thou come back to it again: for it is hard to distinguish, that which is generally held good, and wholesome, from that, which is good particularly, and fit for thine own body.

在飲食底重要部分上不可驟然變更，如果不得已而變更的話，則別的部分也須要變更，以便配合得宜。因爲在自然的事體和國家的事務上都有一種祕訣，就是變一事不如變多事的安全。把你平日飲食、睡眠、運動、衣服、等等的習慣自省一下，並且把其中你認爲有害的習慣試行逐漸戒絕，但是其辦法應當這樣，如果你由這種變更而感覺不適的時候，就應當回到原來的習慣去；因爲把一般認爲有益衛生的習慣和於個人有益，於你自己底身體適合的習慣分別起來是不容易的。

To be free minded, and cheerfully disposed, at hours of meat, and of sleep, and of exercise, is one of the best precepts of long lasting. As for the passions and studies of the mind; avoid envy; anxious fears; anger fretting inwards; subtle and knotty inquisitions; joys, and exhilarations in excess; sadness not communicated.

在吃飯、睡覺、運動的時候，心中坦然，精神愉快，乃是長壽底最好祕訣之一。至於心中的情感及思想，則應避嫉妒，焦慮，壓在心裏的怒氣，奧祕難解的研究，過度的歡樂，暗藏的悲哀。

Entertain hopes; mirth rather than joy; variety of delights, rather than surfeit of them; wonder, and admiration, and therefore novelties; studies that fill the mind with splendid and illustrious objects, as histories, fables, and contemplations of nature. If you fly physic in health altogether, it will be too strange for your body, when you shall need it If you make it too familiar, it will work no extraordinary effect, when sickness cometh. I commend rather some diet, for certain seasons, than frequent use of physic, except it be grown into a custom.

應當長存着的是希望，愉快，而非狂歡；變換不同的樂事，而非過饜的樂事；好奇與仰慕，以保有新鮮的情趣；以光輝燦爛的事物充滿人心的學問，如歷史、寓言、自然研究皆是也。如果你在健康的時候完全摒棄醫藥，則到了你需要它的時候將感覺醫藥對於你底身體過於生疏不慣。如果你平日過於慣用醫藥，則疾病來時，醫藥將不生奇效。竊以爲與其常服藥餌，不如按季節變更食物，除非服藥已經成了一種習慣。

For those diets alter the body more, and trouble it less. Despise no new accident in your body, but ask opinion of it In sickness, respect health principally; and in health, action.

因爲那些不同的食物是可以變更體氣而不擾亂它的。對於身體上任何新的症候都不可小視，須要向人求教。

For those that put their bodies to endure in health, may in most sickness, which are not very sharp, be cured only with diet, and tendering.

在病中，主要的是注意健康；在健康的時候，主要的是注意活動。因爲那平日使自己底身體習於勞動的人在大多數不很厲害的疾病中只要節飲食，多調養，就可以好了。

Celsus could never have spoken it as a physician, had he not been a wise man withal, when he giveth it, for one of the great precepts of health and lasting, that a man do vary, and interchange contraries; but with an inclination to the more benign extreme: use fasting, and full eating, but rather full eating; watching and sleep, but rather sleep;sitting, and exercise, but rather exercise; and the like.

塞爾撒斯教人養生長壽之道，最要的一端就是一個人應當把各種相反的習慣都變換着練習練習，但是在輕重之間卻應當稍重那有益於人的一端；禁食與飽食都應當練習，但是寧可稍重飽食；警醒與睡眠都應當練習，但是寧可偏尚睡眼；安坐與運動都應當練習，但是寧可着重運動；諸如此類。

So shall nature be cherished, and yet taught masteries. Physicians are some of them so pleasing, and conformable to the humour of the patient, as they press not the true cure of the disease; and some other are so regular, in proceeding according to art, for the disease, as they respect not sufficiently the condition of the patient Take one of a middle temper, or if it may not be found in one man, combine two of either sort: and forget not to call, as well the best acquainted with your body, as the best reputed of for his faculty.

塞爾撒斯要不是一位醫生而兼哲人的話，專以醫生底身分他是永不會說出這種話來的。如他所說的辦法，將使天生的體質既可以得滋養又可以增力量也。醫生之中有些是對於病人底脾氣很縱容遷就的，以致不能迅收治療之效；又有些人則是照治病底學理行事，十分謹嚴，以致對於病者底實情不充分注重。選擇醫生的時候頂好請一位性情適中的；或者，如果一個人沒有這樣的性情的時候，則在兩種人裏各取其一而調和之。又在請醫生的時候，固然要請那出名的好醫生，也不可忘了請那個最熟悉你底體格的醫生也。

西式幽默

Western Humour

馮驥才

Feng Jicai

學院請來一位洋教師，長得挺怪，紅臉，金髮，連鬢大鬍鬚，有幾根鬍子一直逾過面頰，挨近鼻子，他個子足有二米，每迸屋門必須低頭，才能躲過門框子的攔擊，叫人誤以爲他進門先鞠躬，這不太講究禮貌了嗎？

Our institute employed an English teacher. He looked very strange red-faced, golden-haired, with a thick growth of whiskers that reached all the way to the nose. He was really tall-- no less than six foot five. When he came in through the door, he had to lower his head to avoid banging against the door frame. It looked as though he always bowed to you at the door and that was much too polite.

頂怪的是，他每每與中國學生聊天，聊到可笑之處時，他不笑，臉上也沒表情，好象他不喜歡玩笑；可是有時毫不可笑的事，他會冷不防放聲大笑，笑得翻江倒海，仰面朝天，幾平連人帶椅子要翻過去，喉結在脖子上亂跳，滿臉鬍子直抖。常使中國學生面面相覷，不知這位洋教師的神經是不是有點問題？

What was more, he never laughed, when he chatted with his Chinese students on amusing stories, nor did his face show any expression as if he knew no sense of humour. However, when it came to topics of the most dull nature, he would burst into uncontrollable laughter, roaring while rocking in his chair, almost falling flat on his back, his Adam's apple dancing up and down in his throat and his whiskers fluttering all over his face. The students would then look at each other, wondering if he was in his right mind.

一天，洋教師出題，考察學生們用洋文作文的水準，題目極簡單，隨便議論議論校園內的一事一物，褒貶皆可。中國學生很靈，一揮而就，洋教師閱後。評出了最佳作文一篇，學生們聽後大爲不解，這種通篇說謊的文章怎麼能被評爲“最佳”？

One day he set the students an essay to see how well they could write in English, the topic being A Comment on Life on the Campus-it her complimentary or critical. That was simple. And his students, quick at writing, finished it at one go and turned it in no time. He went through the papers and picked one that he thought the best. When he read it out to the students, they were greatly perplexed. Of all the comments, why did he like this one best, Not a single word of it was true.

原來這篇作文是寫學校食堂。寫作文的學生來自郊區農村，人很老實，膽子又小, 生伯得罪校方，妨礙將來畢業時的分數、評語、分配工作等等，便不顧真假，胡編亂造，竭力美化，唱讚歌。使得一些學生看後慣慣然。可是……洋教師明知學校食堂糟糕透頂的狀況，爲什麼偏要選這篇作文？有人直問洋教師。

It was about the campus cafeteria and the author was a peaceable and timid guy from a village near the town. In order not to offend the school authorities -- a decisive factor: concerning his final grading, evaluation and, above; all, where he was to go after graduation -- he had made up a high-sounding story in praise of the cafeteria regardless of reality, thus making his ClaSS- mates very angry. The teacher was as well aware of the cafeteria's terrible conditions, but why should this piece in particular have appealed to him so much, Someone asked.

洋教師說：“這文章寫得當然好，而且絕妙無比。你們聽一一”他拿起作文念起來，“我們學校最美的地方，不是教室，不是操場，也不是校門口那個帶噴水的小花壇，而是食堂。瞧，玻璃乾淨得幾乎叫你看不到它的存在——。”洋教師唸到這兒，眼睛調皮地一亮，眉毛一挑，“聽聽，多麼幽默！”

"This is undoubtedly a good one,'' the teacher insisted. "Unprecedentedly good! Just listen --" He began to read. "'The most beautiful spot on campus is not the Classrooms, nor the sports ground, nor the small lawn with a fountain at the school gate; it is our cafeteria. Look! The windows are so clean , that you scarcely notice any glass on them' --" "He paused, his eyes flashing with a glint of humour and his brows shooting upward. "Listen! Isn't it humorous?"

幽默？怎麼會是幽默大家還沒弄明白。

Humorous? But what was humorous about it? The students were hard put to it.

洋教師接着念道：“如果你不小心在學校食堂跌了一跤，你會驚奇地發現你並沒跌跤，因爲你身上半點塵上也沒留下；如果你長期在學校食堂裏工作，恐怕你會把蒼蠅是什麼樣子都忘了……”洋教師又停住，舌頭“得”地彈一聲，做一個怪臉說，“聽呀，還要多幽默，我簡直笑得念不下去了。”

"If you were not careful enough,'" the teacher read on, '"and had a fall on the floor, you would be amazed to find that you had not fallen at all because you did not get a single particle of dust on your clothes. If you had worked in the cafeteria long enough, you would have forgotten what a fly looks like ... " He paused again, his tongue clicking admiration. Working up a very funny expression on his face, he went on, "Listen, please! Could anyone else have made it more humorous?" He laughed so hard that he could scarcely continue.

學生們忽然明白了什麼。

By now the students seemed to be cottoning on.

洋教師一邊笑，一邊繼續往下念：“食堂天天的飯菜有多麼精美、多麼豐富、多麼解饞！只有在學校食堂裏，你纔會感到吃飯是一種地道的享受……”

The teacher went on his reading punctuated by fits of laughter ."How wonderfully is the food cooked here! What a great variety of dishes you have here and how well your appetite is satisfied! In fact it is only at the cafeteria of the institute that you eating enjoyable...."

小麻雀

A Little Sparrow

老舍

Lao She

雨後，院裏來了個麻雀，剛長全了羽毛。它在院裏跳，有時飛一下，不過是由地上飛到花盆沿上，或由花盆上飛下來。看它這麼飛了兩三次，我看出來：它並不會飛得再高一些。，它的左翅的幾根長翎擰在一處，有一根特別的長，似乎要脫落下來。

As soon as the rain stopped, a little sparrow, almost full-fledged, flew into the courtyard. It hopped, fluttered, darting up to the edge of flower pots and back to the ground again. Watching it move up and down a couple of times, I realized drat it could not fly any higher as the plumes on its left wing had got twisted with one sticking out as if about to come off.

我試着往前湊，它跳一跳，可是又停住，看着我，小黑豆眼帶出點要親近我又不完全信任的神氣。我想到了：這是個熟鳥，也許是自幼便養在籠中的。所以它不十分怕人。可是它的左翅也許是被養着它的或別個孩子給扯壞，所以它愛人，又不完全信任。

When I made an attempt to move closer, it jumped off a hit and stopped again, staring back at me with its small, black and bean-like eyes that had a mixed look of wanting to be friends with me and not being certain that I was trustworthy. It occurred to me that this must be a tame bird, having been caged since it was hatched perhaps. No wonder it was not much scared of my presence. Its left wing might have been impaired by some kid and that was why there was distrust in its look though it showed some intimacy with man.

想到這個，我忽然的很難過。一個飛禽失去翅膀是多麼可憐。這個小鳥離了人恐怕不會活，可是人又那麼狠心，傷了它的翎羽。它被人毀壞了，而還想依靠人，多麼可憐!

Suddenly I was seized with sadness. How miserable it was for a bird to lose its wings! Without someone taking care of it this small thing could not survive. But man had injured its wing. How cruel he was! Injured as it was, it still wanted to rely on man. How pitiable!

它的眼帶出進退爲難的神情，雖然只是那麼個小而不美的小鳥，它的舉動與表情可露出極大的委屈與爲難。它是要保全它那點生命，而不曉得如何是好。對它自己與人都沒有信心，而又願找到些倚靠。它跳一跳，停一停，看着我，又不敢過來。

The look in its eyes showed that She little creature was of two minds. It was small and by no means pretty, yet its gestures and expressions revealed that it had been wronged and landed in a difficult situation. It was anxious to keep its delicate life out of danger, but it did not know what to do. It had little confidence in itself and less trust in man, but it needed someone to rely on. It hopped and stopped, looking at me but too shy to come over.

我想拿幾個飯粒誘它前來，又不敢離開，我怕小貓來撲它。可是小貓並沒在院裏，我很快地跑進廚房，抓來了幾個飯粒。及至我回來，小鳥已不見了。我向外院跑去，小貓在影壁前的花盆旁蹲着呢。我忙去驅逐它，它只一撲，把小鳥擒住!被人養慣的小麻雀，連掙扎都不會，尾與爪在貓嘴旁搭拉着，和死去差不多。

I thought of fetching some cooked rice to attract it, but I dared not leave it alone test it should be attacked by the kitten. As the kitten was not around at the moment, I hurried to the kitchen and cause back with a few grains only to find the bind missing. I ran to the outer yard and saw the kitten crouching by a flower pot in front of the screen wall. I hastened to drive her away but, with a quick jump, she caught hold of the bird. The tame sparrow, with its tail and claws dangling from the kitten’s mouth, did not even know how to struggle. It looked more dead than alive.

瞧着小鳥，貓一頭跑進廚房，又一頭跑到西屋。我不敢緊追，怕它更咬緊了可又不能不追。雖然看不見小鳥的頭部，我還沒忘了那個眼神。那個預知生命危險的眼神。

With my eyes fixed on the bird, I watched the kitten run first to the kitchen and then to the ram at the west end. I was afraid to press hard after her, but I had to follow her in case she should tighten her jaws. Though the bird's head was not visible to toe, the look of anticipated danger in its eyes was vivid in my wind.

那個眼神與我的好心中間隔着一隻小白貓。來回跑了幾次，我不追了。追上也沒用了，我想，小鳥至少已半死了。貓又進了廚房，我愣了一會兒，趕緊的又追了去；那兩個黑豆眼彷彿在我心內睜着呢。

Between its look and my sympathy stood that small white cat. Having run a few rounds after her I quit, thinking it was pointless to chase her like that because, by the time I caught her, the bird would have been half dead. When the cat slipped back to the kitchen again, I hesitated for a second and then hurried over there too. It seemed, in my mind's eye, the little bird were pleading for help with its two black bean-like eyes.

進了廚房，貓在一條鐵筒—冬天升火通煙用的，春天拆下來便放在廚房的牆角—旁蹲着呢。小鳥已不見了。鐵筒的下端未完全扣在地上，開着一個不小的縫兒，小貓用腳往裏探。我的希望回來了，小鳥沒死。

In the kitchen I noticed the cat was crouching by a tin pipe which was installed as smoke duct in winter and dismantled in spring, at the corner, but the bird was not with her. The pipe leaned against the corner and, between its lower end and the floor; there was an opening through which the cat was probing with her paws. My hope revived: the bird was not dead.

小貓本來才四個來月大，還沒捉住過老鼠，或者還不會殺生.只是叼着小鳥玩一玩。正在這麼想，小鳥忽然出來了，貓倒像嚇了一跳，往後躲了躲。小鳥的樣子，我一眼便看清了，登時使我要閉上了眼。

As the kitten was less than four months old, it had not teamed how to catch mice, or how to kill for that matter. It was merely holding the bird in its mouth and having fun with it. While I was thinking along these lines the little bird suddenly emerged and the kitten, taken aback, bolted backward. Tile way the little bird looked was so registered to me at the first glance that I felt like shutting my eyes immediately.

小鳥幾乎是蹲着，胸離地很近，像人害肚痛蹲在地上那樣。它身上並沒血。身子可似乎是拳在一塊，非常的短。頭低着，小嘴指着地。那兩個黑眼珠!非常的黑，非常的大，不看什麼，就那麼頂黑頂大的愣着。

It was virtually crouching, with its chest close to the floor, like a man suffering from a stomachache. There was no stain of blood on its body, but it seemed to be shrinking up into itself. Its head dropped low, its small beak pointing to the floor. Its two black eyes, unseeing, were very black and large, looking last.

它只有那麼一點活氣，都在眼裏，像是等着貓再撲它，它沒力量反抗或逃避；又像是等餚貓赦免了它，或是來個救星。生與死都在這倆眼裏，而並不是清醒的。它是胡塗了，昏迷了：不然爲什麼由鐵筒中出來呢可是，雖然昏迷，到底有那麼一點說不清的，生命根源的，希望。

The little life left in it was all in the eyes. It seemed to be expecting the cat to charge again, with no strength to resist or run; or wishing that the cat would be kind enough to pardon it or that some savior would come along to its rescue. Life and death coexisted in its eyes. I thought the bin must be confused or stunned, or else why should it have come out from the pipe? Stunned as it was, it still cherished some hope which, though hard to define, was the source of life.

這個希望使它注視着地上，等着，等着生或死。它怕得非常的忠誠氣完全把自己交給了一線的希望，一點也不動。像把生命要從兩眼中流出，它不叫也不動。

With that hope it gazed at the floor, expecting either to survive or die. I was so really scared that it became completely motionless, leaving itself all to the precarious hope. It kept quiet and still as if waiting for its life to flow out of its eyes.

小貓沒再撲它，只試着用小腳碰它。它隨着擊碰傾側，頭不動，眼不動，還呆呆地注視着地上。但求它能活着，它就決不反抗。

The kitten made no more attempts to attack it. She only tried to touch it with her little paws. As the kitten touched it, it tilted from side to side, its head undisturbed and its eyes looking blank at the floor. It would not fight back so long as there was a chance of survival.

可是並非全無勇氣，它是在貓的面前不動！我輕輕地過去，把貓抓住。將貓放在門外，小鳥還沒動。我雙手把它捧起來。它確是沒受了多大的傷.雖然胸上落了點毛。它看了我一眼!

But the bird had not lost all of its courage; it acted this way only with the cat. I went aver light-footed, picked up the cat and put her outside the door, the sparrow remaining where it was. When I took it up in my hands and looked, it was riot seriously injured, though some fluff had come off its chest. It was looking at me.

我沒主意：把它放了吧，它準是死；養着它吧，家中沒有籠子。我捧着它，好像世上一切生命都在我的掌中似的，我不知怎樣好。小鳥不動，拳着身，兩眼還那麼黑，等着!愣了好久，我把它捧到臥室裏，放在桌子上，看着它，它又愣了半夭，忽然頭向左右歪了歪用它的黑眼睜了一下；又不動了，可是身子長出來一些，還低頭看着，似乎明白了點什麼。

I had no idea what to do. If I let it go, it was sure to die; if I kept it with me, I did rot have a cage for it. I held it in my hands as if holding all the lives in the world, not knowing what to do. 'Me sparrow huddled up, motionless, its eyes as black as ever, still expectant. It remained that way for a long while. I took it to my bedroom, put it on the desk and watched it for a few moments. Suddenly it tilted its head Wit and then right, winking its black eyes once or twice, and became still again. By now its body seemed to have stretched a hit, but it still kept its head low as if it had understand something.