Living a life free of regrets is everybody’s goal, isn’t it? Being a happy modern person means looking back at your life without a “If only I...” Right? Not so fast.
能過上一種沒有遺憾的生活大概是每個人的願望，對吧？做個快樂的現代人就意味著我們回望自己的生活時不會感嘆“要是我那會兒……就好了”是這樣吧？但也別急於下結論。
The idea of living a regret-free life is based on the solid life advice that you might hear from a parent, a life coach or your best friend when you’re thinking of making a change: “You’ll only regret the things you didn’t do.” That’s a great idea when you’re stuck in a rut and need motivation.
過沒有遺憾的生活這種想法大概是當你想有所改變時，來自父母、人生導師或好友的來自現實生活的建議，他們會說：“你鐵定會後悔你當時沒有勇氣做那些事兒。”
這種建議對陷於困頓需要動力的你來說是很好的。
But where did the idea come from? There are a few of sad hospice nurse stories, but they amount to the same idea—someone who works with the dying has put together a list of regrets they’ve heard from those who are preparing to die. Included are ideas like spending more time with friends and family and less at work, practicing forgiveness and being more kind. This is good general life advice, of course. But these articles usually include more ideas like following your dreams, being yourself and taking risks. In this way, you will find yourself regret free when you find yourself at death’s door.
那麼他們的想法從何而來呢？有一些來自臨終關懷醫院的傷感故事，但是它們幾乎是如出一轍：某個陪伴這些瀕死病人的人整理了一份這些即將離世的人的人生遺憾清單。這些人生遺憾包括，應該多花些時間跟家人和朋友在一起，減少一些工作時間，學會原諒以及對人更為友善些。這些當然也都是普通的生活建議。但是這些文章通常包含更多的一些想法，如追尋你的夢想，做你自己並勇於涉險。這樣的話，當你發現自己行將就木時，你就會發現自己並無遺憾了。
But what if regrets aren’t so bad? What if, rather than proof of a life that is wasted, they are sign of a life well-lived? If you are never puzzled, you would never learn. If you never made tough choices, you would never have been interested in more than one thing at a time. If you never had limitations…well, you’re not Superman, so just forget it. “You can regret your regrets all you want. But without them, you wouldn’t have lived much of a life.” In other words, regrets are part of the whole.
但是如果人生留下遺憾也並沒有這麼糟糕呢？如果，遺憾並不是一種生命的浪費，而是好好活過的證明呢？如果你從沒有迷惑過，你也將不會有所收穫。如果你從沒做過艱難的選擇，你也就沒有同一時間對多種事物感興趣過。如果你從沒有過侷限……好吧，你並不是超人，所以別想那麼多了。“所有你想而不得的你都可以遺憾。但是如果沒有這些遺憾，你也不會真正生活過。”換句話說，遺憾本身就是生命的一部分啊。
Notes
solid 可靠的
rut 刻板乏味的生活
motivation 動力
hospice 臨終安養院
proof 證明
▍聲明：以上英語文章來自《快捷英語 活頁英語時文18 高考》，雙語文章為原創，轉載需註明出處。
