-
A
LEFT
FULL
OF
RICHES
1.
It
was early December 2003, my first season as a
Salvation Army bell ringer, when I was
confronted with the question. I was
standing just outside the doorway of a Wal-Mart,
offering a
dressed woman and
her young son walked up to the kettle stand. While
she searched her
purse for some cash,
the boy looked up at me. I can still see the
confusion and curiosity in his
eyes as
he asked,
2.
others.
His
question, however, did not leave me.
3.
I've never thought of myself as
my 1040 form, I fall into one of the
lowest income brackets. In the past 35 years, I've
taken just
one vacation trip. My TV is
a black-and-white set that someone gave me eight
years ago.
4.
Yet I feel nothing more
than a passing whim to attain the material things
so many other
people have. My 1999 car
shows the wear and tear of 105,000 miles. But it
is still dependable.
My apartment is
modest, but quiet and relaxing. My clothes are
well suited to my work, which
is
primarily outdoors. My minimal computer needs can
be met at the library.
5.
In spite of
what I don't have, I don't feel poor. Why? I've
enjoyed exceptionally good
health for
53 years. It's not just that I've been illness-
free, it's that I feel vigorous and spirited.
Exercising is actually fun for me. I
look forward to long, energizing walks. And I love
the
do
6.
I also cherish
the gift of creativity. When I write a beautiful
line of poetry, or fabricate a
joke
that tickles someone, I feel rich inside. I'm
continually surprised at the insights that come
through my writing process. And talking
with so many interesting writer friends is one of
my
main sources of enjoyment.
7.
But there is one vital area of my life
where I am not so well off. In a society that
spends
so much emotional energy on the
pursuit of possessions, I feel out of place.
8.
When I was younger, there was an
exceptionally interesting person I dated. What was
most important to her, she told me, was
special to share my life with. Then I
took her to see my apartment. At the time, I lived
in a
basement efficiency with a few
pieces of dated furniture. The only new,
comfortable chair was
the one at my
desk. Shortly after her visit, our relationship
went straight south.
9.
The seemingly
abrupt change in her priorities was jolting. It
remains a most memorable
turning point
in my personal journey.
10.
In contrast to
relationships, stuff just doesn't mean that much
to me. I think most
people feel the
same way
—
except when there
are social consequences to not having
particular items. There is a commercial
on the radio that begins,
TV
…
-end TV.
After all, nobody
wants to be a nobody.
11.
But I'm happy
to live without one. In fact, not being focused on
material goods feels
quite natural to
me. There are many people throughout the world who
would consider my
lifestyle to be
affluent.
12.
Near the end of the year,
when I put on the Salvation Army's red apron,
something
changes inside me. Instead of
feeling out of place economically, I begin to feel
a genuine
sense of belonging. As I ring
my bell, people stop to share their personal
stories of how much it
meant to be
helped when they were going through a rough time.
People helping people is
something I
feel deeply connected to. While I'm ringing the
bell, complete strangers have
brought
me hot chocolate, leaving me with a lingering
smile. Countless individuals have
helped to keep me warm with the
sentiments of the season:
cold
day.
time of year I feel wealthiest.
13.
Over the past four years, I've grown to
understand more about myself because of a
single question from a curious child.
As I've examined what it means to be poor, it has
become
clear to me what I am most
thankful for: both my tangible and my intangible
good fortune.
富足的一生
卡尔
?
格林
1.
首
次面对这个问题，是在
2003
年
12
月初，我第一次为救世军摇铃募捐的时候。当
时我就站在沃尔玛
商场入口处门外，
对每一位向我的红壶里投入捐款的人都报以一声
“
谢谢
”
和一
个微笑。
一位穿着整洁的妇人牵着她的幼子向放壶的台子走过来。
她在钱包里摸着找钱时，
孩子
抬头看了我一眼，
问我：
“
你穷吗？
”
当时他眼里充满疑惑和好奇，时至今日仍历历在目。
2.
“
嗯，
”
我结结巴巴，边想边回答，
“
我比有
些人拥有的多，但比其他人拥有的少。
”
母亲
< br>因为孩子问了一个在社交上不该问的问题，
训斥了他一顿，
他俩便匆匆的赶去购物。
但是孩子的
问题却一直留在我的心头
挥之不去。
3.
我从不认为自己
“
穷
”
，但有些事实我不可否认。每当我填
1040
税务申报表时，我都属
于收入最低的档次
之一。在过去的三十五年中，我只出去度过一次假。
我的电视机是黑白的，
还
是八年前别人送给我的。
4.
然而，想要得到其他那么多人都有的物质的东西，对我来说，
只不过是转瞬即逝的念
头而已。我的汽车是
1999
年的产品，到现在开了十万五千英里，已经很破很旧了，但是它依然
可靠。
我的住房不大，但是很安静，住着挺舒心。我的衣服很适合于我的工作，主要都在户外。
我对计算机的很少的需求，可以在图书馆得到解决。
5.
尽管有些东西我没有，我并不
感到贫穷。这是为什么？五十三年来我一直非常健康。
我不但不生病，
< br>而且精力充沛，
情绪饱满。
锻炼对我而言是确确实实的快
事，
我乐意长距离步行，
越走越有劲。我喜爱步行后随之产生的
一种
“
什么都干得了
”
的心态。
6.
我还十分珍惜我的创作才能。当我写出美丽的诗句或编造
出能把人逗乐的笑话时，我
内心感到很富有。通过写作而获得的洞察力，
不断地令我惊奇。
而与那么多写作朋友交谈，
是我
乐趣的主要源泉之一。
7.
但是在我生活中，有一个重要
方面我并不那么富有。在一个对物资财富的追求投入如
此之多心力的社会中，我觉得很不
自在。
8.
我年轻时曾与一位非常有趣的女士谈过朋友。她对我说，
对她而言，最重要的是
“
一个
人的内心
”
。我以为我找到了非同一般的生活伴侣。后来我就带她到我的
寓所。当时我住的是一
个地下室经济型小套间，
只有几件陈旧的
家具。
唯一新而舒适的椅子是书桌旁的那把。
她来访后
9.
她所看重的东西似乎突然有了变化，使我大为震动。在我的人生旅
途上，这仍然是一
个最难以忘怀的转折点。
10.
相对于人际关系而言，
物质财富对我并不那么重要。
我认为大多
数人与我同感
——
除非当某一物品的缺失会引发社会后果时，<
/p>
人们才会有不同的想法。
电台播放的一个商业广告开
头这样说：
“
每个人都想拥有一台高档电视
…”
，购买这种电视机的压力千真万确。也许每个人真
< br>的都想要一台高档电视机，毕竟没有人想做一个无名之辈
。
11.
但是没有这样的电视机我也照样活得快乐。事实上不专
注于物质财富，对我而言
相当自然。在这个世界上有很多人认为我活得很富足。
12.
临近岁末每当我系上救世军的红围裙时，我的内心会发
生变化。我非但不感到经
济上不自在，
还开始感到一种真正的归
属感。
我摇铃时，
人们会停下脚步，
给
我讲述他们的故事，
讲述他们遇到困难时受到帮助对他们多么重要。
我感到我与人助人这件事深深地联系在一起。
在
我摇铃的时
候，从未谋面的陌生人给我拿来热乎乎的巧克力饮料，留给我一个久不消逝的微笑。
无数
的路人向我表达圣诞节的祝愿，
使我感到温暖。
“
谢谢你在这样的冷天摇铃。
”“
要不要我给您
弄一杯咖啡
?”“
你做好事，上帝保佑你。<
/p>
”
十二月是一年中我感到最富足的时候。
13.
由于一个好奇的孩子提了一个简单问题，我在过去的四年中对自己的了解进了一
步。
当我审视贫穷究竟意味着什么时，
我清楚了
我最应感恩的是什么：
我的有形和无形的好运气。
A MAN CAN
Apr 4, 2004 8:00
PM EDT
1.
When I was a
kid, everything in my bedroom was pink. I have two
sisters and we had a
complete miniature
kitchen, a herd of My Little Ponies and several
Barbie and Ken dolls.
We didn't have
any toy trucks, G.I. Joes or basketballs. We did
have a Wiffle-ball set, but
you would
have been hard-pressed to find it in our playroom.
Tomboys we weren't.
2.
So some people
may find it ironic that I grew up to be a
mechanical engineer. In fact, I
am the
only female engineer at my company. In order to
get my college degree, I had to
take a
lot of math and science classes. I also had to
work with a team of students as part
of
a national competition to convert a gas-guzzling
SUV into a hybrid electric
vehicle--
that's where I learned how to fix cars. I'm proud
to say that I got A's in all my
classes, including multivariable
calculus and differential equations. I've always
been pretty
good at math and design,
but I didn't understand where that could take me.
I was expected
to go to college, but no
one ever told me I'd make a good engineer someday.
3.
When I was in high school, I didn't
know the first thing about engineering. I couldn't
have distinguished a transmission from
an alternator. The car I drove needed some work
but I was afraid to take it to the
mechanic. Because honestly, the mechanic could
have
shown me an electric can opener
and said,
me to fix
it,
不久，我们的关系就急转直下。