人生的支點

The view of the high 1)sierra lake， nestled in the snow and rock slightly below the 2)timberland， was beautiful from my 3)vantage point， some 500 feet above its 4)shimmering surface. I was anxious to rejoin my companions and try the fishing before the afternoon shadows， edging out from the surrounding 5)array of peaks， entirely covered the lake. Just a short distance beyond the 6)intervening 7)shale， the 8)trail 9)zigzagged down to the valley. I disliked the thought of returning by the long， 10)tedious trail I had 11)ascended and decided to chance the shale， even though part of it lay above a sheer drop off of several hundred feet.

I started working my way over the loose rock with considerable caution and had covered about half the distance when I became aware of a slight， but persistent， 12)yielding of the shale under my feet. Desperately， I

那個高山湖靜靜地躺臥在林地下面的積雪與巖石的懷抱之中。從500英尺（約152米）高的觀景點看下去，波光粼粼的湖面真是美不勝收。我急著與同伴們重新會合，準備在午后周圍群峰的陰影籠罩整個湖面之前釣一會兒魚。離交錯的頁巖不遠處，一條小路蜿蜒通往山谷。我不想回頭再走上來時那條漫長的煩人小道，決定挑戰(zhàn)頁巖，盡管有一段路位于幾百英尺的峭壁之上。

我非常小心地走在松動不穩(wěn)的石頭上。將近走到一半時，我注意到腳下的頁巖一點點地不斷下滑。我絕望地到處尋找可以抓穩(wěn)的東西，向前

looked for something that would offer support and 13)lurched forward to grasp a slight 14)outcropping of solid rock just as the surface shale underfoot， loosened from its foundation by the warm noonday sun， 15)cascaded downward and disappeared over the cliff. Several seconds passed before I heard it 16)rattle into the lake. Finally， after due consideration of the 17)folly of shortcuts， I managed to move from handhold to handhold and at last pulled myself to the trail by the aid of a dwarf 18)juniper root.

I have forgotten how many 19)trout I caught that afternoon， but I have not forgotten the value of a handhold. Handholds are needed， also， during the course of everyday life. They provide security when the things we depend on seem to be slipping out from under us. What are the spiritual handholds I have found to be of most value? First， the teachings of the humble carpenter of Nazareth注， for their insistence on the supreme worth of the individual; for their stressing of the significance of 20)sympathetic understanding; and for their 21)unsurpassed evidence of 22)dauntless faith.

Second， the conviction that while every person should delight in making a courageous and self-reliant effort to live up to his capabilities， there are wellsprings of power outside himself that can be tapped if he will but 23)avail himself of them. Third， that the nature of this world and of the people in it is determined more by our individual vision， understanding， and 24)conduct， than by any material， environmental factors， and that， in other words， nothing will produce the good world but the good man.

These are the principal spiritual handholds I have found to possess enduring value. They offer both an exciting challenge and a calm 25)assurance.

一撲，一把抓住一塊露出來的堅硬巖石。就在這時，我腳下那塊被午后陽光照得發(fā)熱的頁巖剝離開來，“嗖”地掉了下去，消失在懸崖下面。過了好幾秒鐘，我才聽見它咕嚕咕嚕地滾進湖中。后來我好好反省了一下走捷徑是多么愚蠢，然后從一個支點挪到另一個支點，用一棵矮杜松的根部作為借力，終于將自己拉回到小路上。

我不記得那天下午釣了多少尾鱒魚，但我不會忘記支點的重要性。日常生活同樣需要支點。當一直依賴的東西似乎從我們腳下逐漸溜走時，支點會給我們帶來安全感。我覺得最有價值的精神支點是什么呢？首先，拿撒勒城那位謙遜的木匠教導我們，要堅持個體的無上價值，要強調(diào)感同身受的重要性，這正是勇敢信念的絕佳憑證。

其次，盡管每個人都應該樂于勇敢獨立地盡量發(fā)揮自己的能力，但也要相信，只要他愿意并接受幫助，他也能從自身以外的地方獲得力量之源。再次，相較于具體的環(huán)境因素，這個世界和人類的本質(zhì)更取決于個人的遠見、理解和品行——也就是說，唯有出色的人才能創(chuàng)造出美好的世界。

這便是我的三大精神支點，它們具有永恒的價值，是刺激的挑戰(zhàn)，也是讓人安心的依托。