Observe a child; any one Will do. You Will see that not a day passes in which he does not find something or other to make him happy, though he may be in tears the next moment.
仔細觀察一個小孩-任何一個都行,你會發現,每天都會找到一兩件令人快樂的事情,儘管過一會兒他可能會哭哭啼啼.
Then look at a man; any one of us Will do. You Will notice that weeks and months can pass in which day is greeted with nothing more than resignation, and endure with every polite indifference.
然後看看大人-我們中的任何一個人都可以,你會發現,週而復始,月復一月,無非是以順從的心情迎接新一天的到來,禮貌般地漠然忍受著每一天的消逝.
Indeed, most men are as miserable as sinners, though they are too bored to sin - perhaps their sin is their indifference. But it is true that they so seldom smile that when they do we do not recognize their face, so distorted is it from the fixed mask we take for granted.
儘管他們太百無聊賴以至於不屑犯罪,但確實大多數人都跟罪人一樣可憐,也許漠然就是他們的罪孽.但事實上,他們極少露出笑容,以至於他們偶爾笑了我們也認不出了,那只是我們理所當然認為的面具扭曲而已.
And even then a man can not smile like a child, for a child smiles with his eyes, whereas a man smiles with his lips alone. It is not a smlle; but a grin; something to do with humor, but little to do with happiness. And then, as anyone can see, there is a point when a man becomes an old man, and then he Will smile again.
縱然在笑的時候,大人也不會像小孩兒那樣,小孩兒用眼睛笑,大人則只用嘴唇.這不是笑,只是咧嘴,表示一種幽默,但無關快樂.然而,人人都能發現,人活到老的時候,他又會笑了.
It would seem that happiness is something to do with simplicity, and that it is the ability to extract pleasure form the simplest things - such as a peach stone, for instance. It is obvious that it is nothing to do with success. For Sir Henry Stewart was certainly successful.
看起來,幸福同純真、簡單有關.幸福感來自最簡單的事物,比如核桃這種東西.幸福顯然同成功毫不相干,比如亨利•斯圖亞特爵士.當然,他是個十分成功的人.
It is twenty years ago since he came down to our village from London, and bought a couple of old cottages, which he had knocked into one. He used his house as weekend refuge. He was a barrister. And the village followed his brilliant career with something almost amounting to paternal pride.
20年前,他從倫敦來到我們的村子,買了好幾座舊房屋,推倒後建了一所大房子,把它當做週末避難所.他是位律師,村裡人帶著一種幾近父輩的自豪心情追隨他的輝煌業績.
I remember some ten years ago when he was made a King's Counsel. Amos and I, seeing him get off the London train, went to congratulate him. We grinned with pleasure; he merely looked as miserable as though he'd received a penal sentence.
我記得大概10年前他被任命為王室法律顧問,當他走下從倫敦來的火車,阿莫斯和我上前表示祝賀.我們咧嘴笑著；而他的表情卻跟接到判刑通知書一樣痛苦.
It was the same when he was knighted; he never smiled a bit, he didn't even bother to celebrate with a round of drinks at the "Blue Fox" .He took his success as a child does his medicine. And not one of his achievements brought even a ghost of a smile to his tired eyes.
他受封當爵士時也是如此,沒有一絲笑容,他甚至不願意在藍狐狸酒館請我們大家喝杯酒.他對待成功就像小孩吃藥一樣,任何一項成就都未能讓他疲憊的眼睛裡露出一絲笑意.
I asked him one day, soon after he'd retired to potter about his garden, what was like to achieve all one's ambitions. He looked down at his roses and went on watering them. Then he said "The only value in achieving one's ambition is that you then realize that they are not worth achieving."
他退休後不久,一天他在花園裡閒逛,幹些輕鬆的閒活.我便問他,一個人實現了自己所有的雄心之後是什麼感覺?他低頭看這玫瑰花,繼續澆水.過了一會兒,他說："實現雄心壯志的唯一價值是你發現他們根本不值得你去追求."
Quickly he moved the conversation on to a more practical level, and within a moment we were back to a safe discussion on the weather. That was two years ago.
隨後,他立刻改變話題討論更有實際意義的事情,不一會兒,我們返回到安全話題-天氣.這是兩年前的事了.
And Sir Henry ran off, calling for his wife to come and see his achievement - his achievement of simplicity.
之後亨利爵士跑開了,叫他的妻子來看他的傑作-那個純樸簡單的成果.
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