讀點好英文:Three Days to See　假如給我三天光明

Three Days to See　假如給我三天光明

·Helen Keller·

All of us have read thrilling stories in which the hero had only a limited and specified time to live. Sometimes it was as long as a year, sometimes as short as twenty-four hours, but always we were interested in discovering just how the doomed man chose to spend his last years or his last hours.I speak, of course, of free men who have a choice, not condemned criminals whose sphere of activities is strictly limited.

Such stories set up thinking, wondering what we should do under similar circumstances. What associations should we crowd into those last hours as mortal beings?What happiness should we find in reviewing the past, what regrets?

Sometimes I have thought it would be an excellent rule to live each day as if we should die tomorrow. Such an attitude would emphasize sharply the values of life.We should live each day with a gentleness, a vigor, and a keenness of appreciation on which are often lost when times stretches before us in the constant panorama of more days and months and years to come.There are those, of course, who would adopt the epicurean motto of“eat, drink, and be merry，”most people would be chastened by the certainty of impending death.

Most of us take life for granted. We know that one day we must die, but usually we picture that day as far in the future, when we are in buoyant health, death is all but unimaginable.We seldom think of it.The days stretch out in an endless vista.So we go about our petty tasks, hardly aware of our listless attitude towards life.

The same lethargy, I am afraid, characterizes the use of our faculties and senses. Only the deaf appreciate hearing, only the blind realize the manifold blessings that lie in sight.Particularly does this observation apply to those who have lost sight and hearing in adult life.But those who have never suffered impairment of sight or hearing seldom make the fullest use of these blessed faculties.Their eyes and ears take in all sights and sound hazily, without concentration, and with little appreciation.It is the same old story of not being grateful for our health until we are ill……

Now and then I have tested my seeing friends to discover what they see. Recently I was visited by a very good friend who had just returned from a long walk in the woods, and I asked her what she had observed.“Nothing in particular，”She replied.I might have been increduIous had I not been accustomed to such responses, for long ago I became convinced that the seeing see little.

How was it possible, I asked myself, to walk for an hour through the woods and see nothing worthy of note?I who cannot see find hundreds of things to interest me through mere touch. I feel the delicate symmetry of a leaf.I pass my hands lovingly about the smooth skin of a silver birch, or the rough shaggy bark of a pine.In spring I touch the branches of trees hopefully in search of a bud, the first sign of awakening Nature after her winter's sleep.I feel the delightful, velvety texture of a flower, and discover its remarkable convolutions；and something of the miracle of Nature is revealed to me.Occasionally, if I am very fortunate, I place my hand gently in a small tree and feel the happy quiver of a bird in full song.I am delighted to have cool waters of a brook rush through my open fingers.To me a lush carpet of pine needles or spongy grass is more welcome than the most luxurious Persian rug.To me the pageant of seasons is a thrilling and unending drama, the action of which streams through my finger tips.At times my heart cries out with longing to see all these things.If I can get so much pleasure from mere touch, how much more beauty must be revealed by sight.Yet, those who have eyes apparentIy see little.The panorama of color and action filling the world is taken for granted.It is Human, perhaps, to appreciate little that which we have and to long for that which we have not, but it is a great pity that in the world of light the gift of sight is used only as mere convenience rather than as a means of adding fullness to life.

Oh, the things that I should see if I had the power of sight for three days！

海倫·凱勒

所有人都讀過動人的故事，故事中的英雄將不久于人世，長則一年，短則只有二十四小時。但我們經(jīng)常關(guān)注的是這個命中注定要死的人如何選擇度過生命中的最后幾天或是最后幾小時。當然，我在這里所說的是有權(quán)做出選擇的自由人，而并非那些活動范圍受到嚴格限制的死囚。

這類故事會激發(fā)我們的思考：倘若身處類似的環(huán)境下，我們自己該做些什么？在那臨終前的幾小時里我們會產(chǎn)生哪些聯(lián)想？會有多少欣慰和遺憾呢？

有時我想，把每天都當作生命的最后一天來度過也不失為一種好的生命法則。這種態(tài)度重視的是人生的價值。每一天我們都應該以和善的態(tài)度、充沛的精力和熱情的欣賞來度過，但當時間展現(xiàn)在我們面前、來日方長的時侯，我們會忽視這些東西。當然，有些人奉行享樂主義的座右銘——吃、喝、玩、樂，但大多數(shù)人卻依然畏懼死亡的到來。

我們大多數(shù)人都認為生命是理所當然的，明白自己終有一天會死去，但卻常常把這一天看得非常遙遠。當我們身體強健的時候，死亡變成了難以想象的事情。我們很少考慮死亡，日子也一天天過去，好像永無盡頭，所以我們?yōu)楝嵤卤疾ǎ]有意識到我們對待生活的態(tài)度是冷漠的。

我想我們在運用五官時恐怕也同樣是冷漠的。只有聾子才珍惜聽力，只有盲人才能認識到能見光明的幸運。對于那些成年失明或失聰?shù)娜擞绕淙绱?。但那些聽力或視力未見損失的人卻很少充分利用這些幸運的能力，他們對所見所聞不關(guān)注，不欣賞。這與常說的不失去不知珍惜，不生病不知健康可貴的道理是一樣的。

我時?？紗栁矣幸暳Φ呐笥?，以了解他們看到了什么。最近有一個很好的朋友在長時間林中漫步之后來看我，我問她觀察到了些什么?！皼]什么特別的?！彼卮鸬馈Ｒ皇俏乙蚜晳T于類似的反應，我也許會感到難以置信。我之所以不覺得奇怪是因為我早就確信：有視力者所見甚少。

我想，這怎么可能！在林中走了一小時，卻什么值得注意的東西都沒有看到嗎？而我一個盲人僅僅通過觸覺便發(fā)現(xiàn)了數(shù)以百計的有趣的東西。我感到樹葉的對稱美，用手撫摸著白樺樹光滑的樹皮或是松樹那厚厚的粗糙的外衣。春天里我滿懷希望地觸摸著樹枝尋找新芽，那是大自然在冬眠后醒來的第一個征象。我感到了花朵的可愛以及它那天鵝絨般柔軟的質(zhì)地，發(fā)現(xiàn)它層層疊疊地綻放著。大自然的神奇就在我的面前。我把手輕輕地放在一棵小樹上，如果幸運的話，偶爾會感到歌唱著的小鳥正歡快地顫動。我會讓清涼的溪水從手指間流過。對我來說，滿地厚厚的松針和松軟的草坪比奢華的波斯地毯更惹人喜愛。四季變幻的景色也仿佛是一場動人心魄，永不會完結(jié)的戲劇，劇中人物的動作從我的指尖流過。我的心在不時地吶喊，帶著對光明的渴望。如果僅是通過觸摸就可以使我獲得如此多的喜悅，那么光明定會向我展示更多美好的事物??！可惜那些眼未失明的人卻看到得很少，整個世界繽紛的色彩和萬物的活動都被認為是理所當然的。也許不珍惜已經(jīng)擁有的，想得到還沒有得到的是人類的本性，但是在光明的世界里，視覺只是作為一種方便的工具，而不是豐富生活的工具存在，這是多么令人遺憾的事情?。?/p>

哦，假如我擁有三天的光明，我將會看到多少美好的事物啊！

核心單詞

chasten['t?eisn]v.磨煉；抑制，節(jié)制

impairment[im'pε?m?nt]n.損傷

observe[?b'z?：v]v.看到，注意到

increduIous[in'kredjul?s]adj.不輕信的；懷疑的

symmetry['simitri]n.對稱（性）；勻稱；整齊

apparentIy[?'p?r?ntli]adv.顯然地；表面上，似乎

實用句型

The same Iethargy, I am afraid, characterizes the use of our facuIties and senses.

我想我們在運用五官時恐怕也同樣是冷漠的。

①I am afraid在這里是插入語。

②I am afraid恐怕，類似的插入語還有you see, that is to say等。

翻譯練習

1.別把遲到視為理所當然。（take for granted）

2.朋友們偶爾聚會，暢談學生時代的美好時光。（now and then）

3.我一直在尋找一個能理解我的人。（in search of）