讀雙語(yǔ)故事,看百味人生。閱讀是一生的功課,無(wú)論順境逆境,我們總能在文字里找到共鳴。以下是小編整理的最難做的事/THE HARDEST THING的內(nèi)容,讀一下吧,也許恰好是你喜歡的那一篇。
最難做的事
THE HARDEST THING
The day my fiancé fell to his death, it started to snow, just like any November day, just like the bottom hadn’t fallen out of my world when he fell off the roof. His body, when I found it, was lightly covered with snow. It snowed almost every day for the next four months, while I sat on the couch and watched it pile up.
One morning, I shuffled downstairs and was startled to see a snowplow clearing my driveway and the bent back of a woman shoveling my walk. I dropped to my knees, crawled through the living room, and back upstairs so those good Samaritans would not see me. I was mortified. My first thought was, how would I ever repay them? I didn’t have the strength to brush my hair, let alone shovel someone’s walk.
Before Jon’s death, I took pride in the fact that I rarely asked for help or favors. I defined myself by my competence and independence. So who was I if I was no longer capable and busy? How could I respect myself if all I did was sit on the couch every day and watch the snow fall?
Learning how to receive the love and support that came my way wasn’t easy. Friends cooked for me and I cried because I couldn’t even help them set the table. “I’m not usually this lazy,” I wailed. Finally, my friend Kathy sat down with me and said, “Mary, cooking for you is not a chore. I love you and I want to do it. It makes me feel good to be able to do something for you.”
Over and over, I heard similar sentiments from the people who supported me during those dark days. One very wise man told me, “You are not doing nothing. Being fully open to your grief may be the hardest work you will ever do.”
I am not the person I once was, but in many ways I have changed for the better. The fabric of my life is now woven with gratitude and humility. I have been surprised to learn that there is incredible freedom that comes from facing one’s worst fear and walking away whole. I believe there is strength in surrender.
【日積月累】
◇Samaritan n. 撒馬利亞人;心地善良樂(lè)于助人的人
◇mortify v. 使苦惱
◇sentiment n. 態(tài)度,情緒,意見(jiàn)(的表示)
◇gratitude n. 感謝的心情
◇incredible adj. 難以置信的
【參考譯文】
最難做的事
我未婚夫去世的那天,天開(kāi)始下著雪,就像11月的天氣一樣,就像我的世界并沒(méi)有因?yàn)樗麖姆宽斏纤は氯ザ伎逅.?dāng)我找到他的尸體時(shí),上面蓋著薄薄的一層雪。接下來(lái)的4個(gè)月幾乎每天都下雪,而我就坐在沙發(fā)上看著雪慢慢堆積起來(lái)。
一天早上,我拖著步子走下樓梯,驚訝地看到一臺(tái)掃雪機(jī)正在清掃我的車(chē)道,還有一個(gè)女人正彎腰鏟去走道上的雪。我難堪極了。我跪在地上,爬過(guò)起居室,回到樓上,好讓這些熱心人看不到我。我最先想到的是:我該怎樣才能回報(bào)他們?我連梳頭發(fā)的力氣的沒(méi)有,更不用說(shuō)幫別人鏟雪了。
在喬恩去世前,我以鮮向他人索要幫助為榮。我覺(jué)得自己能干而且獨(dú)立。如果我不再能干,不再忙碌,那我又是誰(shuí)?如果我成天就坐在沙發(fā)上看下雪,那我又哪來(lái)自尊?
學(xué)會(huì)接受別人給我的愛(ài)和支持并不容易。朋友們給我煮飯,我卻哭了,因?yàn)槲疫B擺桌子都不能做。“我平常沒(méi)這么懶,”我哭著說(shuō)。我的朋友凱瑟坐在我旁邊對(duì)我說(shuō):“瑪麗,煮飯給你吃不是苦差事。我愛(ài)你所以愿意這么做。能為你做點(diǎn)什么我很高興?!?/P>
一次又一次,我從那些幫助我度過(guò)那段黑暗日子的人們嘴里聽(tīng)到相似的安慰。有一個(gè)非常睿智的人告訴我:“你并不是無(wú)所事事。盡情釋放你的悲傷也許是你做過(guò)最艱難地事?!?/P>
我已經(jīng)不再是從前的我了,很多方面我變得更好了。我的生活是由感恩和謙卑交織而成的。我很驚奇地了解到,如果面對(duì)過(guò)自己最痛苦的最可怕的經(jīng)歷,并堅(jiān)強(qiáng)地挺過(guò)來(lái),你會(huì)感受到難以置信地自由。我相信在放棄中缊藏著力量。
【人生啟迪】
每個(gè)人都會(huì)遇到人生的低谷,但是那段時(shí)期里默默幫助我們的好心人就像是隧道盡頭的光芒,給我們力量讓我們堅(jiān)持到最后。舉手之勞也許就能改變別人的命運(yùn),相信如何權(quán)量難不倒你。