书城外语当英语成为时尚:生活全由你创造
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第74章 Life is about choices生活需要我们选择

Anonymous

心灵寄语

人生在世,充满了选择,有些是小的决定,但有些是大的抉择。你的每一个决定都影响着未来的生活。你是快乐地过一生,还是哀怨地过一生,全在于自己的选择。

Michael is always in a good mood and always has something positive to say. When someone asked him how he was doing, he would reply,“If I were any better, I"d bet wins!”He was a natural motivator.

If an employee was having a bad day, Michael would tell him how to look on the positive side of the situation. The style really made me curious, so one day I went up to Michael and asked him,“I don"t get it. You can"t be positive all the time. How do you do it?”

Michael replied,“Each morning I wake up and say to myself,"Mike, you have two choices today. You can choose to be in a good mood or bad mood. " I choose to be in a good mood. Each time something bad happens, I can choose to be a victim or learn from it. I choose to learn from it. Every time someone comes to me complaining, I can choose to accept their complaining or point out the positive side of life. I choose the positive side of life.”

“Yeah, right. But it isn"t that easy.”I protested.

“Yes, it is,”Michael said.“Life is all about choices. When you cut away all the junk1,every situation is a choice. You choose how you react to situations. You choose how people will affect your mood. You choose to be in a good mood or bad mood. The bottom line is:It"s your choice how you live life.”I reflected on what Michael said.

Soon thereafter, I left the big enterprise that I had worked in for years to start my own business. We lost touch, but I often thought about him when I made a choice about life. Several years later, I heard Michael was involved in a serious accident, falling off 60 feet from a communications tower.

After l8 hours of surgery and weeks of intensive care, Michael was released from the hospital with rods2 placed in his back. I saw Michael about six months after the accident. When I asked him how he was, he replied,“If I were any better, I"d bet wins. Do you want to see my scars?”I declined to see his wounds, but did ask him what had gone through his mind as the accident took place.

“The first thing that went through my mind was the well being of my soon-to-born daughter,”Michael replied.“Then, laying on the ground, I remembered I had two choices:I could choose to live or to die. I chose to live.”

After a while, Michael continued,“The paramedics 3 were great. They kept telling me I was going to be fine. But when they wheeled me into the operation room, I saw the expressions on the faces of the doctors and nurses, I got really scared. In their eyes, l read"He"s dead". I knew I needed to take action. There was a big burly4 nurse shouting questions at me. She asked me if I was allergic5 to anything."Yes," I said. The doctors and nurses stopped working as they waited for my reply. I took a deep breath and yelled,"Gravity."Over their laughter, I told them,"I"m choosing to live. Operate on me as if I am alive, not dead".”

Michael lived, thanks to the skill of his doctors, but also his amazing attitude. I learned from him that every day we have a choice to live fully. Attitude is everything.

佚名

迈克尔总是心境欢畅、积极向上。如果有人问他最近怎么样,他会说:“再好不过了!”他是个天生的自我激励者。

如果有哪位同事有一天过得很糟糕,迈克尔会告诉他如何看待事情积极的一面。他的方式让我很好奇,于是,有一天,我找到迈克尔,向他询问:“我不明白,一个人不可能总是保持积极乐观。你是怎么做到的?”

迈克尔回答说:“每天早晨,我醒来就告诉自己,‘迈克,你今天有两个选择。你可以选择心情愉快,也可以选择心情糟糕。’于是我选择保持心情愉快。每当有不好的事情发生时,我可以选择仅仅成为一个失败者或是从失败中汲取教训,我选择后者。每当有人向我抱怨时,我可以选择接受他们的抱怨或者为他们指出生活积极的一面,我同样选择后者。

“是的,你说的没错。但没有那么容易啊。”我提出异议。

“不,它很容易。”迈克尔说,“生活是由选择构成的。当你排除了一切细枝末节后,生活的每时每刻都是选择。你选择如何应对生活中的各种情况。你选择他人会怎样影响你的心情。你选择心情愉快还是心情糟糕。归根结底,你的生活全在于自己的选择。”我仔细推敲着迈克尔的这番话。

此后不久,我离开了这个我工作好多年的大企业,开创了自己的事业。我和迈克尔失去了联系,但每当我在生活中做出一个选择时,常常会想起迈克尔。许多年后,我听说迈克尔遭遇一场重大事故,他从一座通讯大楼的60英尺掉落在地上。

在整整十八个小时的紧张手术和几周的重症监护后,迈克尔出院了,他的背部被装了一些金属杆用以支撑。我在迈克尔出事的六个月后见到了他。当我问他最近怎么样时。他还是回答,“再好不过了。你想看一下我的伤疤吗?”我没有看他的伤疤,而是问他出事时脑子里想的什么。

迈克尔答道,“我脑海里首先闪现的念头是我那即将出世的女儿的幸福,接着,我就躺在了地上。我记起我有两种选择:我可以选择活着,也可以选择死。我选择了活。”

一会儿后,迈克尔接着说:“那些医护人员太棒了。他们不停地告诉我我会好起来的。但是,当那些医护人员把我推向手术室的时候,我看到他们的表情真是吓坏了。从他们的眼里,我看到的是“他一定会死的。”我知道我应该采取行动。一位高大结实的护士大声向我问问题,她问我是否对什么过敏。‘是的。’我说。医生和护士都停下手中的活儿等我回答。我深吸一口气,大声说:‘地球引力。’在他们的笑声中,我告诉他们:‘我选择活下去。把我当做活人做手术,不要把我当做死人。’”

于是,迈克尔活了下来,多亏那些医术高明的医生,但同时也要归功于他自己惊人的态度。我从他那里明白一个道理,那就是每天我们都能选择充实地生活。态度决定一切。

词汇空间 ocabulary

1.junk n. 垃圾,废物

2.rod n. 杆,棒

3.paramedics n. 医护人员,护理人员

4.burly adj. 魁梧的,高大结实的

5.allergic adj. 过敏的

文化链接 Culture Background

重症监护(intensive care)

重症监护是指对收治的各类危重病患者,运用各种先进的医疗技术,现代化的监护和抢救设备,对其实施集中的加强治疗和护理。以最大限度的确保病人的生存及随后的生命质量。综合性的重症监护病房一般设在医院内较中心的位置,并与麻醉科及各手术科室相近,各专科重症监护病房则设在各专科病区内。一般趋向于大病房,室内常用大平板透明玻璃分隔为半封闭单元。病房宽畅,内分有清洁区和非清洁区,放有各种药物,医疗仪器及其他医疗用品。还有一个中心监护台,能观察到所有被监护患者。

妙语拾珠

1.Each time something bad happens, I can choose to be a victim or learn from it. I choose to learn from it.

每当有不好的事情发生时,我可以选择仅仅成为一个失败者或是从失败中汲取教训,我选择后者。

2.When you cut away all the junk, every situation is a choice. You choose how you react to situations. You choose how people will affect your mood. You choose to be in a good mood or bad mood. The bottom line is:It"s your choice how you live life.

生活是由选择构成的。当你排除了一切细枝末节后,生活的每时每刻都是选择。你选择如何应对生活中的各种情况。你选择他人会怎样影响你的心情。你选择心情愉快还是心情糟糕。归根结底,你的生活全在于自己的选择。