幸福是一種態(tài)度 08-Eyes of Kindness 善意的眼神
It was a bitter cold evening in northern Virginia many years ago. The old man's beard was glazed1 by winter's frost2 while he waited for a ride across the river. The wait seemed endless. His body became numb and stiff3 from the frigid4 north wind. He heard the faint, steady rhythm of approaching hooves5 racing along the frozen path.
Anxiously, he watched as several horsemen rounded the bend6. He let the first one pass by without an effort to get his attention. Then another passed by, and then another. Finally, the last rider neared the spot where the old man sat like a snow statue7. As this one drew near, the old man caught the rider's eye and said, “Sir, would you mind giving an old man a ride to the other side? There doesn't appear to be a passageway8 by foot.”
Reining9 his horse, the rider replied, “Sure thing. Hop10 aboard.” Seeing the old man was unable to lift his half-frozen body from the ground, the horseman dismounted11 and helped the old man onto the horse. The horseman took the old man not just across the river, but to his destination12, which was just a few miles away.
As they neared the tiny13 but cozy14 cottage, the horseman's curiosity caused him to inquire, “Sir, I notice that you let several other riders pass by without making an effort to secure15 a ride. Then I came up and you immediately asked me for a ride. I'm curious why, on such a bitter winter night, you would wait and ask the last rider. What if I had refused and left you there?”
The old man lowered himself slowly down from the horse, looked the rider straight in the eyes, and replied, “I've been around here for some time. I reckon16 I know people pretty good.” The old-timer17 continued, “I looked into the eyes of the other riders and immediately saw there was no concern for my situation. It would have been useless to have asked them for a ride. But when I looked into your eyes, kindness and compassion were evident. I knew, then and there18, that your gentle spirit would welcome the opportunity to give me assistance in my time of need.”
Those heartwarming comments touched the horseman who told the old man. “May I never get too busy in my own affairs that I fail to respond to the needs of others with kindness and compassion.”
With that, Thomas Jefferson, the President of the United States, turned his horse around and made his way back to the White House.
這是許多年前弗吉尼亞北部一個(gè)嚴(yán)寒的傍晚。一位老人胡子上結(jié)滿了冬天里的冰碴。此時(shí)此刻，他正等待著有人能用馬載他過(guò)河。等待顯得無(wú)休無(wú)止，在凜冽的北風(fēng)中，他全身凍得麻木僵硬。 這時(shí)，他隱約聽到馬蹄沿著冰凍的路面奔馳而來(lái)，節(jié)奏平穩(wěn)，聲音由遠(yuǎn)而近。
老人焦急地看到幾個(gè)騎手拐過(guò)那道彎走近了。第一個(gè)騎手過(guò)去了，老人沒做任何努力去引起他的注意。接著第二個(gè)、然后第三個(gè)騎手過(guò)去了。終于，最后一個(gè)騎手走近了，老人像座雪雕一樣一動(dòng)不動(dòng)坐在那里。騎手走近時(shí)，老人看了看騎手的眼睛說(shuō)：“先生，您介意用你的馬帶一個(gè)老人過(guò)河嗎?去對(duì)岸好像無(wú)路可走。”
騎手勒住韁繩回答說(shuō)：“當(dāng)然不介意，上馬來(lái)吧。”看到老人凍得半僵的身體直不起來(lái)，騎手跳下來(lái)幫助老人跨上馬。騎手不僅帶著老人過(guò)了河，還把他送到了相距幾英里遠(yuǎn)的目的地。
當(dāng)他們走近一間很小卻很舒適的木屋時(shí)，好奇心促使騎手問道：“先生，我注意到您讓別的騎手走過(guò)去了，但沒有作任何努力抓住機(jī)會(huì)請(qǐng)他們帶您一程。后來(lái)我走近時(shí)，您馬上請(qǐng)我?guī)兔ι幽氵^(guò)河，我覺得很奇怪。在這樣冷的冬夜里，您情愿一直等下去請(qǐng)最后一個(gè)騎手幫忙。要是我也拒絕了，撇下您不管怎么辦?”
老人慢慢地從馬上下來(lái)，盯著騎手的眼睛回答說(shuō)，“我在這里已經(jīng)有些日子了，我猜我看人是很準(zhǔn)的。”老人繼續(xù)說(shuō)，“我看了看其他騎手的眼睛，馬上就知道了他們并不關(guān)心我的處境，即使請(qǐng)他們幫忙也沒有用。但是從你的眼里，我一眼就看到了友善和同情。我馬上知道了你為人和藹，喜歡幫助那些需要幫助的人。”
一席暖人的話語(yǔ)感動(dòng)了騎手，他說(shuō)：“但愿我永遠(yuǎn)不要只顧埋頭自己的事情而忽視別人的需要，忽略用友善和同情去幫助別人。”
說(shuō)完，托馬斯·杰弗遜——當(dāng)年的美國(guó)總統(tǒng)，掉轉(zhuǎn)馬頭向白宮歸去。
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1. glaze [gleiz] v. 使表面光滑
2. frost n. 霜
3. stiff [stif] adj. 僵硬的
4. frigid adj. 寒冷的
5. hoof n. 蹄
6. bend [bend] n. 拐彎
7. statue n. 雕像
8. passageway n. 過(guò)道;小路
9. rein [rein] v. 勒住韁繩
10. hop v. 單腳跳
11. dismount v. (使)下馬
12. destination n. 目的地
13. tiny adj. 小的
14. cozy adj. 舒適的
15. secure v. 保護(hù)，獲得
16. reckon v. 猜想，估計(jì)
17. old-timer n. 老前輩;老人
18. then and there 當(dāng)時(shí);當(dāng)場(chǎng)
