心靈美文_最好的獎勵 Better than Money or Fame

看盡繁華,才懂淡然;經(jīng)歷磨礪,才得從容;讀懂人心,才知隨緣。夜深人靜的時候，聆聽來自心靈的呼喚。走進(jìn)心靈，體會初衷。以下是聽力課堂小編整理的心靈美文_最好的獎勵 Better than Money or Fame的資料，希望你會喜歡!

　　What in the world was I doing in 1)Miami, Florida, poor and alone in a rich and sophisticated place?
　　
　　It was thirty years ago, and I was a finalist in the 2)Pillsbury Bake-Off. I had entered three recipes, and remarkably, I was chosen as a finalist out of thousands of 3)entries. I remember clearly the voice of the woman on the other end of the phone.
　　
　　“Congratulations! You are a finalist in the Pillsbury Bake-Off.”
　　
　　“No. Who is this, really?” I asked, totally 4)dumbfounded. She laughed as I insisted on calling back and verifying. Wow! It was true! I really was a finalist. I was 5)ecstatic. How could this be happening?
　　
　　Pillsbury flew everyone to Miami. Then they 6)whisked us away to the famous 7)Fontainebleau Hilton in Miami Beach. I was stunned just to be there in the fabulous surroundings. The food was incredible, and the settings were like nothing I had ever seen. Nothing could 8)top this, I thought, but I was about to learn one of the greatest lessons of my life.
　　
　　The waiters and waitresses were all Cuban, and they spoke not a word of English. I couldn’t help but notice anger in their expressions. It was not long before I understood why. They were ignored as though they didn’t exist. No one even gave them a smile. I quickly lost my appetite and barely touched my food. I tried, with difficulty, to keep up with the questions of a very nice Vice President of a Pillsbury 9)subsidiary. I was unsuccessful, but it didn’t matter, because I was now a witness to the painful struggle of refugees from another land.
　　
　　Were the refugees as overwhelmed as I? Did they feel as out of place, surrounded by wealthy people, who had no idea of what it was like to have nothing? Our situations were different, yet I felt that we were very much alike. I didn’t know what to say to the people around me, and neither did they. I didn’t understand the chatter, almost as much as they.

　　繁華復(fù)雜的佛羅里達(dá)州邁阿密市,窮困孤單的我,來這里到底干嘛?
　　
　　那已經(jīng)是三十年前的事了,我是皮爾斯博瑞烘焙大賽的一名決賽選手。當(dāng)時我上報了三款自創(chuàng)烘焙食譜,后來,我相當(dāng)厲害地從成千上萬的報名選手中脫穎而出,進(jìn)入了決賽。我清楚地記得當(dāng)時電話另一端那位女士的聲音。
　　
　　“祝賀你!你入選皮爾斯博瑞烘焙大賽決賽了?！?
　　
　　“不是吧。請問你是哪位,說真的?”我問道,完全傻了。當(dāng)我堅持說要打回去核實一下時,她大笑起來。哇!這是真的!我真的入圍了決賽。我欣喜若狂。這怎么可能呢?
　　
　　皮爾斯博瑞大賽組委會出資讓決賽選手們飛往邁阿密,然后他們迅速地將我們帶往位于邁阿密海灘的楓丹白露希爾頓酒店。單單是身處這等美妙的環(huán)境中,就已經(jīng)讓我目瞪口呆了。食物無比美味,周圍環(huán)境布置是我從來沒見識過的。沒有哪里能與之相媲美,我想著,然而,我將學(xué)到人生中的一大寶貴經(jīng)驗。
　　
　　酒店里的男女侍者都是古巴人,他們一句英文都不會說。我不由自主地注意到他們的表情里蘊含著憤怒。不久,我就明白了其中的原因。人們對其視而不見,仿佛他們根本就不存在似的,甚至沒有人向其報以微笑。我很快就失去了胃口,幾乎動都沒動我的食物。我硬著頭皮努力想跟上皮爾斯博瑞某間子公司一位相當(dāng)和藹的副總裁的思路,回答他的問題。可是我沒有成功,但這無關(guān)緊要,因為此時我關(guān)注到的是來自另一片土地的“難民們”的痛苦掙扎。
　　
　　這些“難民們”是否和我一樣不知所措?被這些富有、從不知道什么叫“一無所有”的人包圍著,他們是否感到自己格格不入?我們的情況不一樣,但我卻覺得我們極其相似。我不知道要對身邊的這些人說些什么,他們亦然。我不明白這喋喋不休的扯談,他們也差不多如此。
　　
　　All of a sudden, I decided to do something about their situation. I wanted desperately to make them feel visible, important, and welcome in their new country. From somewhere deep inside of me, I began pulling out rusty expressions from my four years of high school Spanish. I could only remember a few phrases in their language, yet with that first phrase, “10)Gracias,” I 11)beheld a remarkable transformation. Warm, brown faces took on a shocked and delighted glow. “12)De nada!” my delighted waiter replied. “It was nothing,” he said, in 13)halting English. So it began, my bad Spanish communicating with another’s bad English. I was enchanted by the happiness I saw in their faces. Did they feel more welcome in their new home? I hoped so.
　　
　　After breakfast we were led into a converted ballroom. A hundred stoves and refrigerators were packed inside. We had just a few hours to complete our recipes twice: one entry for pictures and one for the judges, who were kept in 14)seclusion. I was one of the first contestants finished. Exhausted, I went up to my room to rest, greeting many smiling Cubans along the way.
　　That evening we were treated to a huge award ceremony dinner. No one ate much, and as they began to name the winners, there was 15)sporadic applause from their family and friends. If I were a winner, I thought sadly, there would be no one to applaud for me.
　　
　　I was amazed when I heard my name called out. As I stood, the room erupted in thunderous applause. What in the world?! I turned to look, and I saw dozens of smiling Cubans, waving and cheering for me. Stunned, and blind with tears, I reached out for my prize.
　　
　　16)Bob Barker handed me my 17)check and said, “You must have a lot of friends.” “I do now,” I smiled, 18)choking back tears. In that brief moment, I understood that my “prize” was neither money nor my fifteen minutes of fame. My true reward, I told my children later, was in learning that one small kindness can bring unexpected return.

　　突然之間,我決定為那處境中的他們做些什么。我很想讓他們感覺到自己在這個新的國度里是受關(guān)注的、重要的,并且受歡迎的。在腦海深處,我開始回憶高中四年所學(xué)的西班牙語,努力從中搜尋出一些早已“生銹”的措辭。我只記得一些西班牙語詞句,但伴隨著那第一個詞語,“Gracias(謝謝)”,我看到了一點顯著的變化。他們那溫暖的褐色臉龐上泛起了一種又驚又喜的光彩?！癉e nada(不客氣)!”我的侍者欣喜地回答道,“這沒什么,”他結(jié)結(jié)巴巴地用英語回答道。于是就這么開始了,我用蹩腳的西班牙語,另一個人用蹩腳的英語,兩人交流起來。我沉浸在他們臉上展現(xiàn)的快樂中。他們在這個“新家”里是否感受到了更多的歡迎呢?我希望如此。
　　
　　早餐過后,我們被帶進(jìn)了一間經(jīng)過改裝的宴會舞廳里。里面擺放了一百只爐子和冰箱。我們只有幾個小時的時間來完成我們的美食創(chuàng)作,一款做兩份。一份用來拍照,而另一份則交給評委,評委們都被隔離開來了。我是最早完成任務(wù)的選手之一。我筋疲力盡地回到我的房間休息,一路上向許多笑容滿面的古巴人打招呼。
　　
　　那天傍晚,我們獲邀參加大型的頒獎典禮晚宴。每個人都吃得不多,而當(dāng)他們開始宣布獲勝者名單時,獲獎?wù)叩募胰撕团笥涯抢镯懫鹆肆阈堑恼坡?。我難過地想著,要是我獲獎了,應(yīng)該沒有人會為我鼓掌。
　　
　　當(dāng)我聽到自己的名字被叫到時,我很是吃驚。當(dāng)我站起來時,房間里爆發(fā)出了雷鳴般的掌聲。到底是怎么回事?!我向四周張望,看見數(shù)十個古巴人在向我揮手歡呼。我驚愕不已,拿到我的獎杯時,眼淚模糊了我的雙眼。
　　
　　鮑勃·貝克爾一邊為我頒獎一邊對我說:“你一定擁有很多朋友?！薄拔椰F(xiàn)在的確如此,”我忍住淚水微笑道。在那短短的一瞬間,我明白了,我的“獎勵”既不是金錢,也不是我這15分鐘的名聲。我得到的真正的“獎勵”,之后我告訴我的孩子們,就是學(xué)到了:一點小小的善行能夠帶來意想不到的回報。