It was 1st January, the first day of the year and a holiday for me. What luck! I started by thinking of getting the bank work out of the way. The bank person, an elderly gentleman with a white beard, was, as usual, curt to my polite "Happy New Year." He nodded and I sat in front of him.

那天是1月1日，新年的第一天，也是我的假日。真幸运！我开始盘算到银行去把工作办妥。给我办理业务的银行职员是一位老先生，留着一捋白胡子。他像平常一样简洁地回应我那句礼貌的“新年快乐”。他对我点点头，我便坐到他面前。

Minutes passed and nothing happened.

几分钟过去了，什么事情也没发生。

Then very hesitantly I put my form and booklet in front of him. He was busy filling up entries in his register. After a few minutes he took my form and from his cabinet he took out a very thick file from which he started filling in my details. I sat there wondering why we had computerized banking if we were still filling in forms and registers.

然后，我万分犹豫地把自己的表格和小册子放到他面前。他正忙着往登记簿里录入条目。过了几分钟，他拿起我的表格，从文件柜里抽出一本厚厚的档案文件，开始登记我的信息。我坐在那里，不禁疑惑既然我们要人工填写表格和登记簿，那还要电脑化的银行业务来干嘛呢。

After waiting for a few more minutes, in which I showed all signs of being impatient, I asked him if my work was done. The moment I uttered the words, I felt as if a bombshell had fallen on him. He shouted, "Nothing is done, it will take time!"

在继续等待的几分钟里，我表现出各种不耐烦的小动作。我问他我的业务是否办理好了。就在我说话的那一刻，我觉得那像一颗炸弹落在他的身上。他大声吼道：“全都没办好，这需要时间！”

Just then I saw his morning cup of tea which had been lying there for the last ten minutes, untouched. The tea had turned almost cold while he was doing his work. Suddenly I felt what this man, who had been working at this counter for the last God-knows-how-many years, must be feeling when customers like me come who are always in a hurry to get their work done. We do not even feel the need to thank them for being there. He must be feeling so agitated that "here comes another person who will push me for doing his work first."

就在那个时候，我发现在刚刚过去的十分钟里，他那杯早晨热茶一直放着，一口都没喝。这杯茶在他工作时几乎凉掉了。突然之间，我明白了，当遇到像我这样总是急着想把业务办完的顾客时，这位在银行的这个窗口里干了不知道多少年的人会有怎样的感受。我们从未想过要感谢他们一直坚守岗位。他一定会很激动地想：“这次又是一个催着我快点帮他办事的家伙。”

On an instinct I told him, "Sir, you please have your tea, I am not in a hurry." This man, who I had been seeing for the last few years, suddenly looked up at me and for the first time we had eye contact—he had never made eye contact earlier. I saw a different person there, another human being who was as hard-pressed for time as I always am.

我本能地对他说：“先生，请您先喝一口茶吧，我不赶时间。”这位过去几年来我已经见过无数次的先生突然抬头看着我，这是我们第一次目光接触——之前他从未正眼看过我。我看到了一个截然不同的人，另一个和我一样为时间饱受压力的人。

I saw both of us sailing in the same boat. I felt that he was also missing the small things in life like a hot cup of tea or lying in a warm bed for a few more minutes like me. He gave me a rare smile and said, "It is an everyday affair with me; you are not in a hurry but somebody else will come who will be in a hurry."

我看出我们同是天涯沦落人。我感觉到他和我一样错过了许多生活中的小事，比如一杯热茶，或是在温暖的床上多躺几分钟。他少有地对我笑了笑，说：“这是我每天的工作；虽然你不赶时间，但总有其他匆匆忙忙的后来人。”

He really touched my heart with his wise words. I felt that we had all put shields on our hearts like we put gloves on our hands; we are scared to show our heart and reveal too much of ourselves. I felt that all this time I thought of him as a robot, someone who was there for my convenience, but today I suddenly felt a strange communion with him. I vowed to be more empathetic and friendly with people who help me with my work and be thankful that they are there for me.

他那睿智的话语触动了我的心。我觉得我们总是给内心罩上防护盾，就像给双手戴上手套那样；我们害怕显露自己的内心或曝露太多自我。这些年来我总把他看作一个机器人，一个为我提供便利的存在，但今天我突然感到与他产生了一种奇妙的情感交融。我发誓日后定当更加替他人着想，对协助我的工作的人更加友好，并为他们出现在我的身边而心怀感激。