太平洋战争打得正酣之时，麦克阿瑟将军常常从繁忙中抬起头，注视着挂在墙上的镜框，镜框里是篇文章，名为《青春》。这篇文章一直伴随着他，也跟着他到了日本。后来，日本人在东京的美军总部发现了它，《青春》便开始在日本流传。

一位资深的日本问题观察家说，在日本实业界，只要有成就者，没有哪一个不熟知不应用这篇美文的，就连松下电器的创始人松下幸之助几十年来也把《青春》当作他的座右铭。

还有这么一件趣事，足以证明《青春》在日本的魅力。一天，美国影片销售协会主席罗森菲尔德参加日本实业界的聚会，晚宴之前的谈话，他随意说了一句：“《青春》的作者，便是我的祖父。”在座的各位实业界领袖大为惊讶，其中有一位一边激动地说“我一直随身带着它呢”，一边从口袋里掏出了《青春》。

《青春》是怎样的一篇文章，它怎就这么神奇？

Comments by 鱼化石：强烈建议将该文背诵，无论英文和译文。后附的译文是我见过的
译文中最美的，可谓与原文互为辉映，令人赞叹不已。如此佳作，不敢私藏，献与诸位
共赏。可惜不知译作者为何人，引为撼事。我在网上还曾经看到过一些类似的译文，是
某些好事者在该译文的基础上根据自己对原文的理解自作聪明地进行了一些改动，却往
往词不达意，破坏了原译文的意境，犹如无瑕的白璧上非要镶一块金子，以显该人的富
足，不伦不类，令人啼笑皆非，后来者慎之。

YOUTH

Samuel Ullman

Youth is not a time of life; it is a state of mind; it is not a matter ofrosy cheeks, red lips and supple knees; it is a matter of the will, aquality of the imagination, a vigor of the emotions; it is the freshness of
the deep springs of life.

Youth means a tempera-mental predominance of courage over timidity, of theappetite for adventure over the love of ease. This often exists in a man of 60 more than a boy of 20.　Nobody grows old merely by a number of years.　We
grow old by deserting our ideals.

Years may wrinkle the skin, but to give up enthusiasm wrinkles the soul.Worry, fear, self-distrust bows the heart and turns the spring back to dust.

Whether 60 or 16, there is in every human being’s heart the lure of wonder,the unfailing childlike appetite of what’s next and the joy of the game of living.　In the center of your heart and my heart there is a wireless station: so long as it receives messages of beauty, hope, cheer, courage and power from men and from the Infinite, so long are you young.

When the aerials are down, and your spirit is covered with snows of cynicism and the ice of pessimism, then you are grown old, even at 20, but as long as your aerials are up, to catch waves of optimism, there is hope you may die
young at 80.

青春

塞缪尔·厄尔曼

青春不是年华，而是心境；青春不是桃面、丹唇、柔膝，而是深沉的意志，恢宏的想象，炙热的恋情；青春是生命的深泉在涌流。

青春气贯长虹，勇锐盖过怯弱，进取压倒苟安。如此锐气，二十后生而有之，六旬男子则更多见。年岁有加，并非垂老，理想丢弃，方堕暮年。

岁月悠悠，衰微只及肌肤；热忱抛却，颓废必致灵魂。忧烦，惶恐，丧失自信，定使心灵扭曲，意气如灰。

无论年届花甲，拟或二八芳龄，心中皆有生命之欢乐，奇迹之诱惑，孩童般天真久盛不衰。人人心中皆有一台天线，只要你从天上人间接受美好、希望、欢乐、勇气和力量的信号，你就青春永驻，风华常存。

一旦天线下降，锐气便被冰雪覆盖，玩世不恭、自暴自弃油然而生，即使年方二十，实已垂垂老矣；然则只要树起天线，捕捉乐观信号，你就有望在八十高龄告别尘寰时仍觉年轻。

A Grain of Sand

Here is a story. A participant in the long-distance race got his shoes filled with sand when he was crossing a beach. He had to stop to get the sand out hastily before he resumed running.1 Unfortunately a grain of sand remained rubbing the sole and became increasingly telling so that each step meant a twinge of pain.2 Reluctant to halt and get rid of the sand， he continued to run in spite of the pain until he could stand no more.3 He dropped out of the contest just a few yards from the finishing line. As he managed to get out of the shoe painfully， he was surprised to find the cause of his lasting torment was only a grain of sand.

　　It seems that the greatest obstacle on one's way forward may not be a high mountain or a deep valley but a grain of sand that is hardly visible.4 To avoid blame on a minor fault one may tell a lie. That adds a burden to a heavy heart and weighs it down.5 In the days to come he will have to fabricate one falsehood after another to cover the lie he told and the fault he committed. Thus he will never be able to free himself from lingering anxiety, worry and regret, to the ignorance that all his sufferings originate in only a grain of sand--the first lie he told.6

　　有这么一个故事：有一个参加长跑比赛的选手在经过一片沙滩时，鞋子里灌满了沙子，他匆匆把鞋子脱下，胡乱地把沙子倒出，便又急忙地继续往前跑。可是有一粒沙子仍留在他的鞋里，在他以后的路程中，那粒沙子磨着他的脚，使他走一步，痛一步。但他并没有停下把鞋子脱掉，抖出那粒磨自己脚的沙子，而仍是匆匆前行，在离终点不远的地方，因脚痛难忍，他不得不止步，最后放弃了比赛。当他忍着揪心的痛把鞋脱掉时，他发现让自己痛苦并放弃比赛的竟仅仅是一粒沙子。

　　看来，有时阻挠我们前进的不是高山、深渊，而是极细小的一粒沙子。为了避免因一次轻微的过失遭指责，我们便编出谎言来掩盖。于是从编造第一个谎言开始，我们便背上了两个沉甸甸的包袱："过失"与"谎言"。以后的日子，便常常为掩饰"过失"与"谎言"而不得不再造出新的谎言，从此自己便不得不在紧张、担心、痛苦的岁月中熬过。那第一个谎言，就是一粒沙。

Notes 注释：

　　1.原句很长，只好分译成两句。原文"脱鞋"、"倒出"是两个短句，译时采用紧缩法改译成一个短语to get the sand out。

　　 2."磨着他的脚，使他走一步痛一步"这样的两句汉语要转化成英语应考虑有个过渡，即磨脚造成的影响愈来愈大，终于达到"走一步痛一步"的程度，故译文中出现became increasingly telling这一部分。

　　3."因脚痛难忍，他不得不止步"译时作了"分"的处理，即将"忍痛"(in spite of the pain)移前，接在"匆匆前行"(continued to run)上，"不得不止步"由原文主句改为状语分句(until he could stand no more)。

　　4."高山、深渊"一般可译成复数，但此处与"一粒沙"并列就不宜作复数，故译为单数。"极细小"改译that is hardly visible更形象化。

　　5."背上两个沉甸甸的包袱"是实词虚指，很难按字面译。所谓包袱，实指沉重的心情，如此译成一句，既可体现原意，又起承前启后的作用。

　　6.这是把原文正说(肯定句)改为反说(否定句)，译句最后部分加强了原句的意思，使全文的主旨更为鲜明。

THE POWER OF LOVE

A guard came to the prison shoe shop where Jimmy Valentine was working and took him to the prison office. There the warden handed Jimmy his pardon, which had been signed that morning by the governor. He took it quietly; he was too tired to show excitement. He had been in prison nearly ten months and he had been sentenced to four years. True, he had expected to stay only about three months, at the longest. He had a lot of friends and he had been sure they would help him.
看守来到基米·范林丁正在干活的监狱制鞋间，将他带到监狱办公室。到了那里，监狱长将一张赦免书递给基米，这是今天早上州长签署的。基米默默地接过去，对此他没有流露出任何的激动。他早已腻烦，他在狱中呆了将近10个月，而判他的是4年徒刑。说真的，他本来打算最多呆3个月的。他有好多朋友，他相信他们一定会为他想办法的。
“Now, Valentine,” said the warden, “You’ll go out in the morning. Make a man of yourself. You’re not a bad fellow really. Stop breaking open safes and be honest.”
“范林丁，”监狱长说，“明天早上你就可以出狱了，要活出个人样来。其实你这人并不坏。再不要撬保险柜了。做一个诚实的人。”
“Me?” said Jimmy, in surprise. “Why, I’ve never broken open a safe in my life.”
“我？”基米吃惊地说，“你说什么？我可从来没有撬过保险柜呀。”
“Oh, no,” laughed the warden. “Of course not. And what about that Springfield job? Do you mean to say you didn’t take part in it?”
“啊，没有，”监狱长笑道，“当然没有。可是，春田事件该怎么说呢？你是说你没有参与那件事吗？”
“Me?” said Jimmy still more surprised. “Why, warden, I’ve never been to Springfield in my life!”
“我？”基米更吃惊了。“怎么，监狱长，我可从来没有去过春田呀！”
“Take him back,” the warden said to the guard smiling, “and give him some clothes. Unlock him at seven in the morning and let him come to me. Better think over my advice, Valentine.”
“把他带回去，”监狱长对看守笑道，“给他一些衣服，明天早上7点给他开锁后让他到我这里来。最好还是把我的劝告想一下，范林丁。”
At a quarter past seven the next morning Jimmy stood in the warden’s office. He wore a badly-fitting ready-made suit and the cheap shoes that the state gives to prisoners, when they are set free. The clerk handed him a railroad ticket and the five-dollar bill with which he was supposed to start a new, honest life. The warden gave him a cigar, and they shook hands. Valentine, 9762, was registered on the books “Pardoned by Governor,” and Mr. James Valentine walked out into the sunshine.
第二天早上7点15分，基米站在了监狱长的办公室。他穿着一套很不合身的现成衣服和一双廉价的鞋子。这些是在释放犯人时发给他们的。一名职员递给他一张火车票和5美元。拿着这些钱，从此就可以开始诚实的新的人生了。监狱长递给他一支雪茄。他们握了握手。范林丁，9762号，已经登记在“州长赦免册”中。于是，詹姆斯·范林了便走到了阳光下。

Another Love

Inside the Russian Embassy in London a KGB colonel puffed a cigarette as he read the handwritten note for the third time. There was no need for the writer to express regret, he though. Correcting this problem would be easy. He would do that in a moment. The thought of it caused a grim smile to appear and joy to his heart. But he pushed away those thoughts and turned his attention to a framed photograph on his desk. His wife was beautiful, he told himself as he remembered the day they were married. That was forty-three years ago, and it had been the proudest and happiest day of his life.
在伦敦的俄国使馆，一位克格勃上校一边吞云吐雾，一边读着一张手写的字条，这已是他第三次在读这张字条了。便条的作者不必表示遗憾了，上校这样想着。纠正这个错误其实很容易。他只要一会儿工夫便会做到。想到这里，他的脸上不禁浮现出一种可怕的笑容，他内心深处既伤感而又快活。上校从沉思中游离出来，将注意力集中到桌子上的一个像框上，他的妻子是位美丽的女人，当想起他们成婚的那一天时他不禁自语道。那已是43年前的事情了，可却是他一生中最自豪最幸福的日子。
What had happened to all that time? Why had it passed so quickly, and why hadn’t he spent more of it with her? Why hadn’t he held her close and told her more often that he loved her? He cursed himself as a tear came from the corner of his eye, ran down his cheek, then dropped onto the note. He stiffened and wiped his face with the back of his hand. There was no need for remorse or regret, he told himself. In a few moments he would join her and at that time would express his undying love and devotion.
那些时候都发生了什么？为什么时光流逝得如此之快？为什么他没能将更多的时光用来陪伴她？为什么他没能将她搂紧，更多次地告诉她他爱她？他于是开始诅咒起自己，泪水也忍不住夺眶而出，流过面颊，最后滴落在字条上。这时，他板起了面孔，用手背揩去了眼泪。已经没有必要来自责与悔恨了，他对自己说道。很快他不就会与她团聚了吗？到那时，他将再向她表达他永恒的爱与忠心。
After setting the note ablaze he dropped it into an ashtray and watched it burn. For a time the names cast moving shadows on the walls of the darkened room, then they nickered and died out. The colonel dropped the cigarette to the floor and ground it out with his heel, then clutched the photograph to his breast, removed a pistol from his pocket, placed the barrel in his mouth and pulled the trigger. In the ashtray a small portion of the note remained. Where it had been wetted by his tear it had failed to bum, and on that scrap of paper were the words "died yesterday."
他点燃了字条，将它扔进了烟灰缸中，看着它慢慢地燃烧起来。在火苗的映衬下，这间漆黑的屋子里的四壁一时变得影影绰绰。不一会儿，火苗成了星星点点，渐渐地熄灭了。上校把香烟扔在了地板上，用后脚跟碾灭，随后抓起照片放在自己的胸前。他从衣兜中掏出了一把手枪，将枪筒放进自己的嘴中，接着扣动扳机。在烟灰缸中还残留着一小片字条，由于被上校的泪水浸湿而未能燃尽。在这块残片上有这样几个字“昨天去世”。

My Irreplaceable Treasure
人生珍品

[1]Recently I gave a dinner party for some close friends. To add a touch of elegance to the evening, I brought out the good stuff--my white Royal Crown Derby china with the fine blue-and-gold border. When we were seated, one of the guests noticed the beat-up gravy boat I'd placed among the newer, better dinnerware. "Is it an heirloom?" she asked tactfully.
[2] I admit the piece does look rather conspicuous. For one thing, it matches nothing else. It's also old and chipped. But that little gravy boat is much more than an heirloom to me. It is the one thing in this world I will never part with.
[3] The story begins more than 50 years ago, when I was seven years old and we lived in a big house along the Ohio River in New Richmond, Ohio. All that separated the house from the river was the street and our wide front lawn. In anticipation of high water, the ground floor had been built seven feet above grade.
[4] Late in December the heavy rains came, and the river climbed to the tops of its banks. When the water began to rise in a serious way, my parents made plans in case the river should invade our house. My mother decided she would pack our books and her fine china in a small den off the master bedroom.
[5] The china was not nearly as good as it was old. Each piece had a gold rim and a band of roses. But the service had been her mother's and was precious to her. As she packed the china with great care, she said to me, "You must treasure the things that people you love have cherished. It keeps you in touch with them."
[1]最近我举办了一次晚宴，招待几位亲密的朋友。为了给那个晚上增添一点优雅的情趣，我摆出了一件奇珍异宝----绘有精美蓝边和金边的白色王冠德比牌的瓷器。大伙儿就座后，其中一位客人注意到了这只残破的船形肉卤盘----我已把它放在了满桌新颖而别致的餐具当中。“这是一件传家宝么？”她机敏地问道。
[2]我承认这只盘子看起来确实惹人注目。首先，它跟其他任何东西都不相匹配；再者，它古老而且伤痕累累。但对我而言，这只小小的船形肉卤盘绝不只是一件传家之宝。它是这个世界上我一生都不会放弃的珍爱之物。
[3]故事发生在50多年前，当时我才七岁，我们家住在俄亥俄州新里士满俄亥俄河边的一幢大房子里。房子跟河水只隔着一条街道和房前宽阔的草坪。考虑到河水有上涨的可能，房子一楼的地板安装得比地面高出七英尺。
[4]12月下旬下起了大暴雨，河水涨到河沿上。河水刚开始猛涨时，我爸妈就作出了各种应急方案，以防河水淹进我们的房子。妈妈决定将我们所有的书籍以及她的精美瓷器搬出大卧室，放在楼上的小书斋里。
[5]这些瓷器丝毫也显不出年代久远的痕迹。每一件都绘有金边和玫瑰花束。这套餐具是我外婆遗留下来的，对我妈来说十分珍贵。她一边小心翼翼地把它们包好，一边对我说：“你必须珍惜这些你所爱的人曾经珍惜过的东西。这可以保持你同他们的联系。”

那么多字，看都看不过来！
还是顶一下