英语散文：彼岸无尽头，知足才常乐

 　　"There" is no better than "Here"

　　Many people believe that they will be happy once they arrive at some specific goal they set for themselves. However, more often than not, once you arrive " there" you will still feel dissatisfied, and move your " there" vision to yet another point in the future. By always chasing after another "there," you are never really appreciating what you already have right "here." It is important for human beings to keep soberminded about the age-old drive to look beyond the place where you now stand. On one hand, your life is enhanced by your dreams and aspirations¹. On the other hand, these drives can pull you farther and farther from your enjoyment² of your life right now. By learning the lessons of gratitude³ and abundance, you can bring yourself closer to fulfilling the challenge of living in the present.

　　Gratitude To be grateful means you are thankful for and appreciative⁵ of what you have and where you are on your path right now. Gratitude fills your heart with the joyful⁶ feeling and allows you to fully⁷ appreciate everything that arises on your path. As you strive to keep your focus on the present moment, you can experience the full wonder of "here."

　　There are many ways to cultivate gratitude. Here are just a few suggestions you may wish to try:

　　1. Imagine what your life would be like if you lost all that you had. This will most surely remind you of how much you do appreciate it.

　　2. Make a list each day of all that you are grateful for, so that you can stay conscious daily of your blessings⁸. Do this especially when you are feeling as though you have nothing to feel grateful for. Or spend a few minutes before you go to sleep giving thanks for all that you have.

　　3. Spend time offering assistance to those who are less fortunate than you, so that you may gain perspective.

　　However you choose to learn gratitude is irrelevant⁹. What really matters is that you create a space in your consciousness for appreciation¹⁰ for all that you have right now, so that you may live more joyously¹¹ in your present moment.

　　Abundance One of the most common human fears is scarcity¹². Many people are afraid of not having enough of what they need or want, and so they are always striving to get to a point when they would finally have enough.

　　Alan and Linda always dreamed of living "the good life." Both from poor working-class families, they married young and set out to fulfill⁴ their mutual¹³ goal of becoming wealthy. They both worked very hard for years, amassing¹⁴ a small fortune, so they could move from their two-bedroom home to a palatial¹⁵ seven-bedroom home in the most upscale neighborhood. They focused their energies on accumulating all the things they believed signified abundance: membership in the local exclusive country club, luxury cars, designer clothing, and high-class society friends. No matter how much they accumulated, however, it never seemed to be enough. They were unable to erase¹⁶ the deep fear of scarcity both had acquired in childhood. They needed to learn the lesson of abundance. Then the stock market crashed in 1987, and Alan and Linda lost a considerable amount of money. A bizarre but costly¹⁷ lawsuit¹⁸ depleted¹⁹ another huge portion of their savings²⁰. One thing led to another, and they found themselves in a financial disaster. Assets needed to be sold, and eventually they lost the country club membership, the cars, and the house. It took several years and much hard work for Alan and Linda to land on their feet, and though they now live a life far from extravagant²¹, they have taken stock of their lives and feel quite blessed. Only now, as they assess what they have left -- a solid, loving marriage, their health, a dependable income, and good friends -- do they realize that true abundance comes not from amassing, but rather from appreciating.

　　Scarcity consciousness arises as a result of the "hole-in-the-soul syndrome²²." This is when we attempt to fill the gaps in our inner lives with things from the outside world. But like puzzle pieces, you can't fit something in where it does not naturally belong. No amount of external objects, affection, love, or attention can ever fill an inner void. We already have enough, so we should revel²³ in our own interior abundance.

　　彼岸无尽头，知足才常乐

　　许多人都相信，一旦他们达到了自己所设定的某个特定目标，他们就会开心、快乐。然而事实往往是，当你到达彼岸时，你还是不知足、不满意，而且又有了新的彼岸--新的幻想和憧憬。由于你总是疲于追逐一个又一个的彼岸，你从未真正欣赏、珍惜你已经拥有的一切。不安于现状的欲望人皆有之，由来已久，但重要的是要对它保持清醒的头脑。一方面，你的生活因为梦想和渴望而更加精彩。另一方面，这些欲望又使你越来越不懂得珍惜和享受现在拥有的生活。假如你能懂得感恩，学会知足，你就接近实现生活在现实中提出的要求。

　　感恩之心感恩是指你感激、珍惜自己当前所拥有的一切以及所处的人生境遇。心存感恩，你的心灵就充满愉悦，你就能真正领会人生路上的种种体验。如果你努力把眼光锁定在此时此刻，你就能感受它的美妙之处。

　　感恩之心需要经常加强。许多方法可以培育感恩之心，你不妨试试以下几种：

　　1．设想如果你失去了你现在所拥有的一切，你的生活将会怎么样。它肯定会使你回想起原来你是多么喜欢和珍视这一切。

　　2．每天都列出那些值得你感激的事物，那样你就能时时刻刻意识到自己的幸运。每天都要这么做，尤其是当你觉得好像没有什么可感激的时候。另外你也可以每天临睡前花几分钟感恩自己所拥有的一切。

　　3．花时间帮助那些没有你那么幸运的人，这样你也许会对生活有正确的认识。

　　其实，你选择何种方法去学会感恩，这无关紧要，真正重要的是你应该有意识地努力去欣赏和珍视你现在所拥有的一切，这样你就可以更快乐地享受你目前的生活。

　　知足常乐贫穷是人类最普遍的恐惧之一。许多人担心自己的所需所求不够，所以他们总是孜孜以求有朝一日能心满意足，别无他求。

　　艾伦和琳达都来自贫苦的工人家庭，都一直梦想着过上"好日子"。他们早早地成了家，然后就开始为他们共同的致富目标奋斗。他们拼命工作了好几年，终于积攒了一笔钱，从两居室搬到了一套坐落在最高档街区的富丽堂皇的七居室大房子。此后，他们费尽心思去积聚那些他们认为是代表富足的东西：当地惟一的一家乡村俱乐部的会员资格、豪华汽车、名牌服装，以及上流社会的朋友。但是，不论他们积聚了多少，似乎永远难以满足。他们俩谁都无法消除小时侯对贫穷的刻骨铭心的恐惧。其实，他们就需要学会知足常乐这一课。1987年，股市遭受重创，艾伦和琳达损失惨重。祸不单行，一场莫名其妙的昂贵的官司又耗尽了他们的一大笔积蓄，这一切使他们陷入了经济困境。他们不得不变卖家产，最后他们丢掉了乡村俱乐部的会员资格，失去了汽车和房子。艾伦和琳达努力奋斗了好几年才从困境中走出来。现在他们的生活毫不奢华，但是他们是自己生活的主宰，幸福而又知足。只有在这时，他们才掂量着那些尚未失去的东西，如稳固相爱的婚姻、健康的身体、可靠的收入、真正的朋友等等，他们终于认识到，真正的富足不是来自财富的积聚，而是来自对所拥有的一切的珍视。

　　贫穷感可以归因于"精神空虚综合症"，即我们试图用身外之物来填补内心的空缺。但是，就像拼图游戏一样，你不能把本来不属于那个地方的东西硬塞进去。任何身外之物、情感、关爱和关注都无法填补内心的空虚。我们拥有的已经足够，因此我们应该满足于内心世界的丰富与充实。

1 aspirations   

强烈的愿望( aspiration的名词复数 )； 志向； 发送气音； 发 h 音

参考例句：

• I didn't realize you had political aspirations. 我没有意识到你有政治上的抱负。
• The new treaty embodies the aspirations of most nonaligned countries. 新条约体现了大多数不结盟国家的愿望。

2 enjoyment   

n.乐趣；享有；享用

参考例句：

• Your company adds to the enjoyment of our visit. 有您的陪同，我们这次访问更加愉快了。
• After each joke the old man cackled his enjoyment.每逢讲完一个笑话，这老人就呵呵笑着表示他的高兴。

3 gratitude   

adj.感激，感谢

参考例句：

• I have expressed the depth of my gratitude to him.我向他表示了深切的谢意。
• She could not help her tears of gratitude rolling down her face.她感激的泪珠禁不住沿着面颊流了下来。

4 fulfill   

vt.履行，实现，完成；满足，使满意

参考例句：

• If you make a promise you should fulfill it.如果你许诺了，你就要履行你的诺言。
• This company should be able to fulfill our requirements.这家公司应该能够满足我们的要求。

5 appreciative   

adj.有鉴赏力的，有眼力的；感激的

参考例句：

• She was deeply appreciative of your help.她对你的帮助深表感激。
• We are very appreciative of their support in this respect.我们十分感谢他们在这方面的支持。

6 joyful   

adj.欢乐的，令人欢欣的

参考例句：

• She was joyful of her good result of the scientific experiments.她为自己的科学实验取得好成果而高兴。
• They were singing and dancing to celebrate this joyful occasion.他们唱着、跳着庆祝这令人欢乐的时刻。

7 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

8 blessings   

n.（上帝的）祝福( blessing的名词复数 )；好事；福分；因祸得福

参考例句：

• Afflictions are sometimes blessings in disguise. 塞翁失马，焉知非福。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• We don't rely on blessings from Heaven. 我们不靠老天保佑。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

9 irrelevant   

adj.不恰当的，无关系的，不相干的

参考例句：

• That is completely irrelevant to the subject under discussion.这跟讨论的主题完全不相关。
• A question about arithmetic is irrelevant in a music lesson.在音乐课上，一个数学的问题是风马牛不相及的。

10 appreciation   

n.评价；欣赏；感谢；领会，理解；价格上涨

参考例句：

• I would like to express my appreciation and thanks to you all.我想对你们所有人表达我的感激和谢意。
• I'll be sending them a donation in appreciation of their help.我将送给他们一笔捐款以感谢他们的帮助。

11 joyously   

ad.快乐地, 高兴地

参考例句：

• She opened the door for me and threw herself in my arms, screaming joyously and demanding that we decorate the tree immediately. 她打开门，直扑我的怀抱，欣喜地喊叫着要马上装饰圣诞树。
• They came running, crying out joyously in trilling girlish voices. 她们边跑边喊，那少女的颤音好不欢快。 来自名作英译部分

12 scarcity   

n.缺乏，不足，萧条

参考例句：

• The scarcity of skilled workers is worrying the government.熟练工人的缺乏困扰着政府。
• The scarcity of fruit was caused by the drought.水果供不应求是由于干旱造成的。

13 mutual   

adj.相互的，彼此的；共同的，共有的

参考例句：

• We must pull together for mutual interest.我们必须为相互的利益而通力合作。
• Mutual interests tied us together.相互的利害关系把我们联系在一起。

14 amassing   

v.积累，积聚( amass的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The study of taxonomy must necessarily involve the amassing of an encyclopaedic knowledge of plants. 分类学研究一定要积累广博的植物知识。 来自辞典例句
• Build your trophy room while amassing awards and accolades. 建立您的奖杯积累奖项和荣誉。 来自互联网

15 palatial   

adj.宫殿般的，宏伟的

参考例句：

• Palatial office buildings are being constructed in the city.那个城市正在兴建一些宫殿式办公大楼。
• He bought a palatial house.他买了套富丽堂皇的大房子。

16 erase   

v.擦掉；消除某事物的痕迹

参考例句：

• He tried to erase the idea from his mind.他试图从头脑中抹掉这个想法。
• Please erase my name from the list.请把我的名字从名单上擦去。

17 costly   

adj.昂贵的，价值高的，豪华的

参考例句：

• It must be very costly to keep up a house like this.维修这么一幢房子一定很昂贵。
• This dictionary is very useful,only it is a bit costly.这本词典很有用，左不过贵了些。

18 lawsuit   

n.诉讼，控诉

参考例句：

• They threatened him with a lawsuit.他们以诉讼威逼他。
• He was perpetually involving himself in this long lawsuit.他使自己无休止地卷入这场长时间的诉讼。

19 depleted   

adj. 枯竭的, 废弃的 动词deplete的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• Food supplies were severely depleted. 食物供应已严重不足。
• Both teams were severely depleted by injuries. 两个队都因队员受伤而实力大减。

20 savings   

n.存款，储蓄

参考例句：

• I can't afford the vacation,for it would eat up my savings.我度不起假，那样会把我的积蓄用光的。
• By this time he had used up all his savings.到这时，他的存款已全部用完。

21 extravagant   

adj.奢侈的；过分的；(言行等)放肆的

参考例句：

• They tried to please him with fulsome compliments and extravagant gifts.他们想用溢美之词和奢华的礼品来取悦他。
• He is extravagant in behaviour.他行为放肆。

22 syndrome   

n.综合病症；并存特性

参考例句：

• The Institute says that an unidentified virus is to blame for the syndrome. 该研究所表示,引起这种综合症的是一种尚未确认的病毒。
• Results indicated that 11 fetuses had Down syndrome. 结果表明有11个胎儿患有唐氏综合征。

23 revel   

vi.狂欢作乐，陶醉；n.作乐，狂欢

参考例句：

• She seems to revel in annoying her parents.她似乎以惹父母生气为乐。
• The children revel in country life.孩子们特别喜欢乡村生活。