How I've Been Enriched by Beggars 乞丐的启示
How I've Been Enriched by Beggars 乞丐的启示
◎ Marjorie Hamlin
In every man there is a king. Speak to the king, and the king will come forth.
每个人心里都有一位国王。当你想和国王交谈时，他就会出现。
Outside our hotel in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, a seemingly ancient woman on crutches waited beside the door with her hand outstretched. Every day I put my hand in hers as our eyes met. She never failed to return my smile, my grasp, and my greeting.
在越南胡志明市我们住的一家旅馆外，有一个看上去很老的女人拄着拐杖等在门外，双手向外伸着。每天，当我们眼神交汇时，我都会把手放在她的手中。她每次都会以同样的微笑、握手、问候来回报我的微笑、握手及问候。
On the last day of our visit, I found myself alone on a busy corner across the street from our hotel. Bicycles and motorbikes careened in front of me. We had been advised to walk straight through the teeming traffic without looking right or left. Let them avoid us.
在我们参观的最后一天，我自己一个人，在旅馆对面那条街的一个角落里。自行车和摩托车从我面前飞驰而过。有人建议我们直接穿过拥挤的车辆，不要再左右张望，避免他们撞到我们。
But tonight I was by myself and felt inadequate to face the torrent of vehicles. As I hesitated on the curb, I felt a hand on my elbow and looked down to see the smile of my small beggar friend looking up at me. She nodded her head toward the street, indicating that she would take me across. Together, we moved slowly into the chaos as she gently prodded me forward.
但今晚只有我自己，我感觉自己无力应对这急流般的车流。当我正在马路边犹豫的时侯，我感到有人拍我的手肘。我向下一看，是我那小乞丐朋友，她正笑眯眯地看着我。她朝街对面点点头，示意她可以带我过去。她温和地推着我向前走,我们便一起慢慢地走进嘈杂的车流当中。
When we reached the center of the crossing, I looked down at her again, and couldn’t resist exclaiming, “You have the most beautiful smile.”
当我们到达十字路口的中央时，我又一次低头看了看她，情不自禁地喊道：“你的微笑最美丽。”
She obviously knew little English, but must have recognized the tone, for she threw both arms and crutches around me in a big hug, while the traffic streamed by us on both sides.
显然她几乎不懂英语，但一定是听出了我的语调，于是她张开双臂，扔掉拐杖，给了我一个大大的拥抱，这个时候车辆都被我们涌到两旁了。
Then we precarious moved on toward the sidewalk, where she pulled my face down to hers, kissed me on both cheeks, and then limped away, still smiling and waving back to me.
然后我俩蹒跚地向人行道走去，她把我的脸拉近她的脸，在我的两颊上亲了亲，然后一瘸一拐地走了，还不时地回头朝我微笑挥手。
I had not given her a single coin. We had shared something vastly more important—a warming of hearts in friendship.
我一分钱都没有给她。但我们分享了更有意义的东西——友情的温暖。
This experience reminded me of something Mother Teresa once said, “If you cannot do great things, you can do small things with great love.”
这次经历让我想起特蕾莎修女曾经说过的一句话：“如果你做不了伟大的事情，那就带着伟大的爱心去做一点小事。”
To look beggars in the eye and smile, thus acknowledging their existence, is a small thing. Putting your hand into another’s outstretched hand and grasping it firmly for a moment is also a small thing. Learning to use a greeting in the local language is not too difficult. But these are important.
用眼睛和笑容看待乞丐，认同他们的存在，这都是小事情。将你的手放进他人伸出的手中，然后紧紧地握一会儿，这也是一件小事。学会用方言讲一句问候语并不困难。但是，这些都很有意义。
For many reasons, giving money is not the best response to an outstretched hand. Many world travelers have discovered that the greatest gift they can give is their time and friendship. Everyone needs recognition, to be seen as worthy of attention, to feel appreciated and loved.
出于多种原因，向乞丐们伸出的手中放钱并不是最好的回应。许多环游世界的旅行者发现，他们能给予的最好的礼物是时间和友谊。每个人都需要被认可，需要被关注，被感激以及被爱。
Traveling in poorer nations, I have witnessed a variety of ways to deal with beggars. The most common response of tourists faced with the poverty-stricken is to ignore them and focus their eyes elsewhere. I have seen people push away an outstretched hand in angry annoyance. A few may hastily drop a few coins into a beseeching palm, and then execute a quick getaway in hopes that another 20 ragged pursuers won’t immediately appear on the scene.
在一些穷困的国家旅游时，我目睹了很多种与乞丐打交道的方式。游客们对贫穷最常见的回应就是忽视他们，把视线转移到其他地方。我曾见到有人恼怒地推开乞丐伸过来的手。还有一些人或许会匆匆地把一些硬币丢进哀求的手掌里，然后赶紧逃开，生怕会有其他20个乞丐突然出现在自己眼前。
But I feel it’s worthwhile to try to live by the words of English author John Cowper Powys, “No one can consider himself wholly civilized who does not look upon every individual, without a single exception, as of deep and startling interest.”
但是，我觉得按照英国作家约翰·库伯·博伊斯所说的那样去生活是值得一试的，他说：“如果一个人不能毫无偏见地带着深厚、极大的兴趣看待每一个个体，那他就不能自认为是十足的文明人。”
I once spotted a legless man sitting by a road at the Pushkar Camel Fair in India. I was returning to my tent after recording the exotic music of the dancing men of Pushkar and was replaying the music on my tape recorder. When the man’s smile lured me to join him, we began to communicate in the kind of sign language and laughter one learns while vagabonding around the world.
我曾经在印度普虚卡骆驼节上看见一个没有腿的人坐在路边。当时我刚刚录完普虚卡舞者表演的异域音乐，正要返回帐篷，路上正用录音机重放着那些音乐。这个人的笑容深深吸引了我坐过去，我们开始用手语和笑声交谈起来。当你周游世界时，这些都是要学会的。
After mimicking the whirling skirts and sticks, I showed him how my tape recorder worked. He motioned for me to give it to him. I hesitated, but only for a moment. After examining it carefully, he began to sing a hauntingly beautiful song, indicating that he wanted me to record it and take it home as a memory of our time together.
模仿过旋转的裙子和棒槌之后，我给他演示了一下我的录音机是如何工作的。他示意我把录音机给他看看。我犹豫了一下，但只是一下而已。仔细看过录音机之后，他开始唱歌，那首歌很动听，令人难以忘怀，他示意我把歌录下来，作为我们在一起的时光的记忆。
Moments before, we had been total strangers; suddenly, we were cemented in a momentary friendship born of our common existence in this world. His eyes shone as we exchanged names. My experience with Vidur confirmed the truth of the Scandinavian proverb, “In every man there is a king. Speak to the king, and the king will come forth.”
不久之前，我们是完全的陌生人。突然间，这个世界里共存的关系，让我们紧紧相连在一种瞬间的友谊当中。我们互相交换名字时，他的眼睛在发光。我和韦德在一起的经历验证了斯堪的纳维亚的一句格言：“每个人心里都有一位国王。当你想和国王交谈时，他就会出现。”
I’ve learned that those considered the world’s most hopeless are so often rich in humanity, with hearts yearning to be affirmed—and ready to respond.
我明白了，那些被认为是世界上最无助的人却是如此的充满仁慈，他们怀着渴望被认同的心灵——并随时准备回应他人。
My life continues to be enriched by connecting with everyday humanity. Each time I do this, I rediscover that what I have been given is far beyond monetary value. And I reaffirm that everyone is worthy—and worth knowing.
与平凡的人接触，我的生活一直被他们充实着。每次我这么做时，我都会发现我所收获的远远超过金钱的价值。我再一次坚信，每个人都是有价值的——并且值得你去了解。
