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Tough Time Never Last But Tough People Do


心路独舞


这句话怎么翻译呢?艰难的时刻不会长久,但能忍耐的人会,这算是直译吧,但却完全丧失了原文的美感,我常不喜欢翻译英文的原因就是一些微妙的东西会丧失在翻译之下,还记得那个《Lost in Translation》的电影吧。


所以今天的题目就是英文的。


最近有些争议,一些人要复工,说得也挺有道理的。譬如脸书等社交网络上流行着一篇不知道是什么人写的文章,题目是《We Are Not in Same Boat》(我们并不在一条船上)。


I heard that we are all in the same boat, but it’s not like that. We are in the same storm, but not in the same boat. Your ship could be shipwrecked and mine might not be. Or vice versa.
For some, quarantine is optimal. A moment of reflection, of re-connection, easy in flip flops, with a cocktail or coffee. For others, this is a desperate financial & family crisis.
For some that live alone they’re facing endless loneliness. While for others it is peace, rest & time with their mother, father, sons & daughters.
With the $600 weekly increase in unemployment some are bringing in more money to their households than they were working. Others are working more hours for less money due to pay cuts or loss in sales.
Some families of 4 just received $3400 from the stimulus while other families of 4 saw $0.
Some were concerned about getting a certain candy for Easter while others were concerned if there would be enough bread, milk and eggs for the weekend.
Some want to go back to work because they don’t qualify for unemployment and are running out of money. Others want to kill those who break the quarantine.
Some are home spending 2-3 hours/day helping their child with online schooling while others are spending 2-3 hours/day to educate their children on top of a 10-12 hour workday.
Some have experienced the near death of the virus, some have already lost someone from it and some are not sure if their loved ones are going to make it. Others don’t believe this is a big deal.
Some have faith in God and expect miracles during this 2020. Others say the worst is yet to come.
So, friends, we are not in the same boat. We are going through a time when our perceptions and needs are completely different. Each of us will emerge, in our own way, from this storm. It is very important to see beyond what is seen at first glance. Not just looking, actually seeing. We are all on different ships during this storm experiencing a very different journey.


文章写得很好,开始就提出立意:「我听到有人说我们在同一条船上,其实不是的,我们经历着同一场风暴,但并不坐在同一条船上,你的船可能会翻掉,我的可能幸免,或者两者对调」。紧接着作者举例当前环境下每个人的经济、职业、收入、健康等等面临的不同境遇,譬如有的人宅家是一场反思、穿着拖鞋,喝着鸡尾酒或咖啡,而对另一批人是一场家庭或财务灾难……最后结尾说,「所以朋友们,我们并不在同一条船上,我们对这场灾难的理解和需要的东西完全不同,因此每个人最终走出风暴的结局各不相同,能看到超越表面之上的东西是很重要的,在这场风暴中我们都在不同的船上经历着不同的旅程」。读完之后,丫丫和我讲的确看到了生活当中另一种人群的生活,因此对他们急于复工感到能够理解了,就像德克萨斯州副州长帕特里克在福克斯新闻(Fox News)节目中表示得那样:生命都是宝贵的,但有些事对有些人比活着更重要。


但也有很多人坚决反对复工。就像上面文章中提到的那样,「有些人急于重返工作因为他们不够领取失业金的资格而积蓄眼看花光了,另一些人则想杀死那些打破隔离的人」。(Some want to go back to work because they don’t qualify for unemployment and are running out of money. Others want to kill those who break the quarantine)其中一个最有影响力的例子是一个多月(315日)怒斥关闭饭店社交场所等是一场闹剧、要求复工的俄亥俄州男子John McDaniel(见下脸书截屏、报纸截屏和照片),一个月以后(415日)突因新冠发作死亡。虽然我们不知道这位先生是怎样染上病毒的,但是正像有人说得那样,这种病毒似乎专治各种不服,因此居家隔离的政策是有其存在的道理的。




我想,对同一件事情,不同的人有不同的观点和看法是很正常的,能够有正常的渠道和平地表达出不同的观点和看法,对一个健康的社会来说是更重要的。不论是复工还是居家,是闷死病毒还是群体免疫,不同人因为所处的环境不同可能会有不同的选择倾向,只要在不违反法律的前提下,多倾听一下对方的观点,然后做出最适合自己的选择,毕竟是成年人,愿赌服输就好。


弗吉尼亚大学最近的一项研究显示,经常锻炼有助于抵抗新冠病毒导致成重症肺炎。这项研究显示,保持锻炼、尤其是耗氧运动有助于身体产生一种特定的抗氧化剂,帮助保护重要的器官譬如心脏和肺,尤其对抵抗新冠病毒导致的致死性急性呼吸窘迫综合症(Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome, 或缩写ARDS)。所以,大家赶紧穿上运动鞋,跑起来吧。


最后说两个暖心的吧。


一个是墨尔本这对遥望夜空灯火的企鹅。据志愿者们说,白色的那只是年老丧偶的母企鹅,另一只是年轻丧偶的公企鹅,他们经常在这里相聚,长时间地互相安慰着,一起伫立看周围城市的灯火,我看后突然有股想哭的冲动……




另外是发生在英国一家老人院(Thistleton Lodge)的故事。这里的工作人员注意到一个名叫肯(Ken)的老人每天都抱着他去世妻子的照片睡觉,于是决定送他一个特别的礼物:一只印有妻子照片的抱枕……



我看哭了。我相信这句话,如果你是弱者,照顾好你自己的家庭就好;如果你是强者,保护帮助弱者才是该发扬的人性。如果你想让社会往更文明、更美好的方向发展,做出你自己的贡献,而不是创造充满恶意对立的环境。如果一切向钱看,斤斤计较,自私短视,我想这样的社会是没有未来的。

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心路独舞

心路独舞

766篇文章 344天前更新

专栏作家,博士,任职于美国大学,《今日头条》千人万元项目签约作者,新浪2015年度教育影响力自媒体人。

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