走自己的路，让别人说去吧！ Let Yourself Go

佚名/Anonymous

Several years ago, I received a post card from a friend in Jackson Hole, Wyo, who wrote, "I am skiing with abandon!" I wondered what he meant, for when I ski it is always with trepidation. I believe he meant he was skiing skillfully, joyfully, peacefully and confidently. Although I have no hopes of ever skiing that way, I do dream of living with abandon. I believe that men and women through the ages who have led successful lives have captured these five secrets of living life to the fullest.

1. Have a self-respect. This means having a deep sense of responsibility for your thoughts and actions. It means keeping your word, and being faithful to self, family and work. It means believing in what you do and working hard. It means setting your own internal standards, and not comparing yourself to others. It's not a question of being better than someone else; respect and integrity demand that you be better than you thought you could be.

Winston Churchill exemplified integrity and respect in the face of opposition. During his last year in office, he attended an official ceremony. Several rows behind his two gentlemen began whispering. "That's Winston Churchill." "They say he is getting senile." "They say he should step aside and leave the running of the nation to more dynamic and capable men." When the ceremony was over, Churchill turned to the men and said, "Gentlemen, they also say he is deaf!"

Churchill knew that one secret to a self you can respect is to choose a course of action based on what is right, not expedient, and not waver from it when criticized.

2. Commit yourself to others. Believe in others, and take time to nurture their dreams. A wise man said, "If you want one year's prosperity, grow grain. But if you want ten years' prosperity, grow men and women."

You can build into the lives of your family, friends and colleagues by providing nutrients of gratitude and encouragement, and by investing your time and energy in their aspirations. If a tree is given minimal nourishment, it will live, but it will not grow. But if nourishment is given over and beyond what is needed for life, the tree will live and grow upward, producing fruit.

3. Turn disappointments into strengths. Individuals who live with abandon have discovered that personal trials make them more sensitive and loving, while building endurance and character. They have learned that achievements worth remembering are stained with the blood of diligence and etched with the scars of disappointment.

The pages of history are filled with the heroic stories of undaunted men and women who triumphed over disabilities and adversities to demonstrate victorious spirits. Raise him in abject poverty, and you have an Abraham Lincoln. Make her blind and deaf, and you have a Helen Keller.

4. Enjoy life's process, not just life's rewards. We live in a goal-oriented society that wants problems resolved now. We want three-minute oatmeal, one-hour dry cleaning, and instant success... But to live with abandon, we must live one day at a time, savoring the little victories, realizing that life is an endless journey in self-discovery and personal fulfillment. It means taking time to hug your kids, kiss your spouse and let the other fellow ahead of you on the freeway.

"I was one of those people who never go anywhere without a thermometer, hot water bottle, raincoat and parachute," wrote author Don Herold. "If I had my life to live over, I would go barefoot earlier in spring. I would ride more merry-go-rounds. I would take more chances, and I would eat more ice cream."

5. Become involved in something bigger than yourself. I do not believe you will live happily if you set out to live life for yourself alone. Choose a cause bigger than you are and work at it in a spirit of excellence. It will become a part of you as you see your goals through to the end. Measure success not by what you've done, but what you could do.

几年前，我收到一张明信片，是一位住在怀俄明州的朋友杰克逊·霍尔寄来的。他写道：“我正在尽情地滑雪。”我感到很奇怪，因为我滑雪时总是惊恐不安的。我相信，他是说自己正熟练、欢快、平稳而又自信地滑雪。虽然，我是毫无希望那样滑雪的，但我梦想尽情地生活。我相信，那些经时间证明生活幸福的人，都掌握了尽情生活的以下五个秘诀。

1.自尊。这意味着要对自己的言行高度负责；要遵守诺言、对自己、家庭和事业忠诚；信仰自己的事业并为之努力奋斗；要树立自身的内在准则，不与他人攀比。这不是说一定要比别人更好，自尊和正直要求自己比自我感觉的更好。

面对敌对者，温斯顿·丘吉尔树立了自尊和正直的典范。他最后一年任职时，参加了一次公务典礼。他后面几排的两位绅士窃窃私语：“那就是温斯顿·丘吉尔。”“他们说他越来越老了。”“他们说，他应该退位，由精力充沛、能力更强的人来替代他来管理国家。”典礼结束后，邱吉尔转身向那两个人说道：“先生们，他们说丘吉尔还是个聋子！”

邱吉尔懂得：要在正确的基础上选择自己的行动，虽然这并非权宜之计，但我们也不要因受到责难而动摇。这是保持自尊的一个秘诀。

2.为他人付出。要相信他人，慢慢培养他们的梦想。一位智者说过：“种植庄稼可以使你获得一年的兴旺，而育人可以得到十年的繁荣昌盛。”

对于家人、朋友和同事，只要你愿意给予感激和鼓励，愿意花时间和精力去满足他们的愿望，你们就能够生活得和睦融洽。如果一棵树只获得微量的营养时，它会存活，但不会成长；但如果它的给养充足，超过了生存的需要，它就可以生存下来，并长成参天大树，开花结果。

3.化失望为动力。人们尽情地生活时便会发现，磨砺在培养毅力和个性的同时，也让他们更机敏，更富于爱心。他们深知，成就凝结着辛勤的血汗，铭刻着失望的疤痕，所以值得回忆和纪念。

刚毅无畏的人们战胜残疾和不幸，显示出伟大的胜利精神，他们的英雄事迹写满了历史的每一个篇章。如在贫困中成长的亚伯拉罕·林肯，失明又失聪的海伦·凯勒。

4.享受生活过程，而不仅仅是酬劳。我们生活在一个以目标为导向的社会，所有的问题需要马上解决：3分钟内我们就想喝上燕麦粥；1小时内洗好衣服；立即成功……但是，要尽情地生活，我们必须一天天地生活，品味细小的胜利的喜悦，意识到生活是永无止境的自我发现和自我充实的过程。它意味着要留些时间，去拥抱你的孩子，亲吻你的爱人，在高速公路上让别人先行。

作家唐·赫罗尔德写道：“无论走到哪里，我都会带着温度计、热水瓶、雨衣和伞。如果给我重新生活的机会，我会赤脚在早春漫步；我会骑更多的旋转木马；我会抓住更多的机会；我会品尝更多的冰淇淋。”

5.投身于比自身价值更高的事业。我绝不相信你只会为你一个人生活而快乐，所以选择一项高于你自身价值的事业，并以卓越的精神为之努力拼搏。当你的目标实现时，它将成为你生命的一部分。成功与否，不在于你做了什么，而在于你能够做什么。

A man can fail many times, but he isn't a failure until he begins to blame somebody else.

—Burroughs

一个人可以失败许多次，但是只要他没有开始责怪别人，他还不是一个失败者。

——巴勒斯

trepidation[trepiˈdeiʃən]n.恐惧；惊惶；忧虑

The threat of an epidemic caused great alarm and trepidation.

流行病猖獗，因而人心惶惶。

senile[ˈsi:nail]adj.高龄的；衰老的；高龄所致的

He may belong to senile residents who stray from home.

他可能是那种离家并迷失在外的昏聩老年人。

expedient[iksˈpi:diənt]adj.权宜的；方便的；有用的

I think Professor Jones might find it expedient to bring a volunteer like me on his trip.

我想琼斯教授可能会发现旅途中带着像我这样的自愿者对他更有利。

sensitive[ˈsensitiv]adj.敏感的；仪器灵敏的；易受伤害的；感光的

The cellist's bowing was very sensitive.

那位大提琴手的弓法十分细腻。

要在正确的基础上选择自己的行动，虽然这并非权宜之计，但我们也不要因受到责难而动摇。

__________________________________________

人们尽情地生活时便会发现，磨砺在培养毅力和个性的同时，也让他们更机敏，更富于爱心。

__________________________________________

要尽情地生活，我们必须一天天地生活，品味细小的胜利的喜悦，意识到生活是永无止境的自我发现和自我充实的过程。

__________________________________________

I am skiing with abandon!

with abandon：放任地；放纵地；纵情地

__________________________________________

Become involved in something bigger than yourself.

become involved in：卷入；陷入

__________________________________________