英语美文背诵 诚信无价(下)

The awards opened yesterday and he won a prize of $500,000. So he felt very happy after work and felt the music was so wonderful, that he took out 50 dollars and put in the hat. However the lottery¹ ticket was also thrown in. The violinist² was a student at an Arts College and had planned to attend advanced studies in Vienna. He had booked the ticket and would fly that morning. However when he was cleaning up he found the lottery ticket. Thinking that the owner would return to look for it, he cancelled the flight and came back to where he was given the lottery ticket.

昨天上午开奖，他中了50万美元的奖金。昨天下班，他心情很好，觉得音乐也特别美妙，于是就从钱包里掏出50美元，放在了礼帽里，可是不小心把奖票也扔了进去。小提琴手是一名艺术学院的学生，本来打算去维也纳进修，已经定好了机票，时间就在今天上午，可是他昨天整理东西时发现了这张奖票，想到失主会来找，于是今天就退掉了机票，又准时来到这里。

Later someone asked the violinist: "At that time you were in needed to pay the tuition³ fee⁴ and you had to play the violin in the subway station every day to make the money. Then why didn't you take the lottery ticket for yourself?"

后来，有人问小提琴手：“你当时那么需要一笔学费，为了赚够这笔学费，你不得不每天到地铁站拉提琴。那你为什么不把那50万元的奖票留下呢？”

The violinist said, "Although I don't have much money, I live happily; but if I lose honesty⁵ I won't be happy forever."

小提琴手说：“虽然我没钱，但我活得很快乐；假如我没了诚信，我一天也不会快乐。”

Through our lives, we can gain a lot and lose so much. but being honest should always be with us. If we bear ourselves in a deceptive⁶ and dishonest way, we may succeed temporarily. however, from the long-term⁷ view, we will be a loser. such kind of people are just like the water on the mountain. it stands high above the masses at the beginning, but gradually⁸ it comes down inch by inch and loses the chance of going up.

在人的一生中，我们会得到许多，也会失去许多，但守信用却应是始终陪伴我们的。如果以虚伪、不诚实的方式为人处世，也许能获得暂时的“成功”，但从长远看，他最终是个失败者。这种人就像山上的水，刚开始的时候，是高高在上，但渐渐地它就越来越下降，再没有一个上升的机会。

1 lottery   

n.抽彩；碰运气的事，难于算计的事

参考例句：

• He won no less than ￡5000 in the lottery.他居然中了5000英镑的奖券。
• They thought themselves lucky in the lottery of life.他们认为自己是变幻莫测的人生中的幸运者。

2 violinist   

n.小提琴演奏者，小提琴家

参考例句：

• Everyone cheered for the violinist at our school concert.在学校音乐会上，大家都为小提琴手喝彩叫好。
• She's a great violinist by any standard.不论以什么标准看，她都是伟大的小提琴家。

3 tuition   

n.（某一学科的）教学，讲授，指导，学费

参考例句：

• Students can apply for individual tuition.学生可以申请个别指导。
• Is this money enough for the tuition fee?这些钱交学费够吗？

4 fee   

n.费（会费、学费等）；酬金，小费；所有权；vt.付费给

参考例句：

• Is this money enough for the tuition fee?这些钱交学费够吗？
• The lawyer undertook the case without a fee.这律师免费承办那个案件。

5 honesty   

n.诚实，公正，正直

参考例句：

• I would never question his honesty.我绝不会怀疑他的诚实。
• All respect him for his honesty.他为人诚实，大家都尊敬他。

6 deceptive   

adj.骗人的，造成假象的，靠不住的

参考例句：

• His appearance was deceptive.他的外表带有欺骗性。
• The storyline is deceptively simple.故事情节看似简单，其实不然。

7 long-term   

adj.长远的，长期的

参考例句：

• It isn't a long-term policy.这不是长久之计。
• We must calculate on a long-term basis.我们要作长期打算。

8 gradually   

adv.逐渐地

参考例句：

• The roaring sea gradually calmed down.咆哮的大海逐渐平静下来。
• Gradually he became silent.渐渐地他变得沉默寡言了。