一小碗白米飯

向紅

This is the story of a miser1 who lived in a large mansion2. One day， something changed his life forever.

這是一個關(guān)于生活在一座豪宅里的守財奴的故事。有一天，發(fā)生了一件永遠(yuǎn)改變他生活的事。

The miser lived alone in an old house， except for a few servants and a dog without name. The old man slept， ate， and spent his days counting his gold. Gold was what he liked best in the world， and never shared or spent.

這個守財奴獨(dú)自生活在一座舊房子里，除了一些仆人就是一只沒有名字的狗。這位老人在豪宅中睡覺、吃飯，每天靠著數(shù)錢度日。金子是他在世界上最喜歡的東西，所以他從不和別人分享或花出去。

Everyone knew him as the most avaricious3 man who ever existed.

每個人都認(rèn)為他是世上最貪婪的人。

He never invited anyone home and never gave a gift to others. He rode a large carriage4 with the dog and a servant5 to collect the taxes of the poor who worked the land from him once a year.

他從來不邀請任何人回家做客，也不給任何人送禮物。他每年都在狗和一個仆人的陪同下出門一次，坐著一輛大馬車去收取佃戶的稅款。

One day while returning home in the evening with the bag full of taxes gold， the carriage was robbed. The miser screamed for help， but in vain6. The robbers took off his clothes， forced him， took him and the dog away from the village， and left them far away without food or drink.

有一天晚上，他在成功收到稅款并帶著滿滿一袋金子回家的途中，（乘坐的）馬車被人搶劫了。守財奴尖叫著尋求幫助，但徒勞無功。強(qiáng)盜脫掉他的衣服，挾持他和那只狗遠(yuǎn)離了這個村莊，然后把他們?nèi)釉谝粋€沒有食物和水的地方。

The man was very upset and began yelling at the dog， because it did not attack the robbers. The man was crying and thinking about the stolen gold.

這個男人非常沮喪，對著狗大吼大叫，怨它為什么沒有襲擊劫匪。他邊哭邊想著那些被偷走的金子。

The next day， the man awoke to cold， hunger and pain， and the dog was in search of a village. They walked and finally reached a road. There was not a person， and the miser was hungry and sad. Suddenly， the dog barked and started running. They came across a small house. When he saw white smoke coming out the chimney7， he was so excited. Suddenly， however， he hesitated8 because he thought no one will help a ragged. He was about to turn around when he heard a pleasant voice asking： “Who is it？”

第二天早上，男人在寒冷、饑餓和痛苦中醒來，而狗正在尋找村莊。他們一直走，終于走到一條路上。這里一個人也沒有，守財奴又餓又難過。突然，狗叫了起來，并向前方跑去。他們發(fā)現(xiàn)了一個小屋。當(dāng)看到煙囪里冒出白煙時，他興奮極了。但是突然，他有點(diǎn)猶豫，畢竟沒人愿意幫助一個衣衫襤褸的人。當(dāng)他正準(zhǔn)備轉(zhuǎn)身離開的時候，聽到一個動聽的聲音問道：“是誰呀？”

The miser replied， “Sorry to bother you， but Im lost and hungry. Could you give me some food for me and my dog？ And a warm place to sleep？”

守財奴答道：“抱歉打擾您了，我迷路了，現(xiàn)在很餓。您能給我和我的狗一點(diǎn)食物嗎？能給我們一個暖和的地方睡覺嗎？”

“Of course！” a friendly voice answered. “Come.”

“當(dāng)然可以！”一個友好的聲音回答?！皝戆?！”

Entered the house， there was only a few pieces of furniture and the windows had no curtains. The old lit a fire. Beside him， a brown dog wagged his tail and smiled. The old man stood up and laughed heartily， saying to the dog， “Archie， I brought you a new friend！”

進(jìn)入小屋后，他們發(fā)現(xiàn)屋里只有幾件家具，窗戶也沒有窗簾。老人生起了爐火，在他身邊一只棕色的狗搖著尾巴微笑著。老人站起來開懷大笑，他對那只狗說：“阿奇，我給你帶來了一個新朋友！”

Then， turning to the miser， smiled and said： “Come and sit down. Welcome to my dinner！” The old man found two small bowls on a shelf and said， “Well have to share this rice， because its all I have. And your dog will share food from Archie.”

然后他對守財奴笑著說道：“過來坐吧！歡迎和我共進(jìn)晚餐！”他在架子上找到兩個小碗，說道：“我們只能一起分享這一碗米飯了，因?yàn)槲揖椭挥羞@個了，你的狗和阿奇分享食物?！?/p>

The old man threw some rice in a large bowl of Archie for both dogs and divided what remained between him and the miser. How could this man be so happy even being so poor？ Despite a lot of money， the miser had never felt so happy as this old man， but now felt guilt and shamed for what he had done all these years.

老人朝阿奇的大碗里扔了一些米飯給這兩只狗吃，并把剩下的食物分了一半給守財奴。為什么這個老人這么窮卻還這么開心呢？盡管擁有很多金錢，但守財奴卻從來沒有像這個老人一樣高興。但此時，他為自己這些年來的所作所為感到內(nèi)疚和羞愧。

Hunger brought him back to the present， and ate rice greedily， thinking that never tasted anything so delicious. The miser told the old man how he got robbed after dinner. The old man heard carefully and told him， “Your story saddens me. You have so much and yet， your life is so empty and lonely.” The old man offered the miser his place in front of the fireplace， gave him good night， and lay down to sleep.

饑餓把他帶回現(xiàn)實(shí)，他狼吞虎咽地吃著白米飯，覺得從來沒有吃過這么好吃的東西。飯后他向老人講述自己是如何被搶劫的。老人仔細(xì)聽著，然后告訴他：“你的故事讓我很傷心。盡管你擁有這么多，但你的生活是如此空虛和孤獨(dú)?！崩先税驯跔t前的位置讓給了守財奴，對他說了晚安，然后躺下入睡。

The miser was so moved by the generosity9 of the old man and he wondered what had happened and tears ran down his face. So he decided to repay the man.

守財奴被老人的慷慨所感動，回想著過去發(fā)生的事情，淚水順著他的臉流下來。于是，他決定報答這個老人。

The next morning， when he awoke， he invited the old man and the dog came to live with him in the mansion. The old man accepted it happily and then they left the small house together.

第二天早上，當(dāng)他醒來時，他就邀請這位老人和狗一起住到他的豪宅里去，老人高興地接受了這個邀請。然后，他們一起離開了小屋。

From that day， the miser has changed. He and the old man became friends and lived happily with Archie and Merry， the name he gave to his dog. He used taxes to improve the living conditions of the local people. Twice a year， he invited the neighbors and kids for parties.

從那天起，守財奴變了。他和老人成了朋友，兩人與阿奇和梅麗（他給自己的狗取的名字）幸福地生活在了一起。從此以后，守財奴用他收的稅款來改善當(dāng)?shù)鼐用竦纳顥l件，一年兩次邀請鄰居和孩子們參加聚會。

The selfishness10 damages everything and everybody. A smart person knows that the path to true happiness is the sharing of what has， however slightly.

自私自利會毀掉一切美好的人和事。聰明人應(yīng)該知道，真正的幸福就是學(xué)會分享所擁有的東西，無論多么微小。

Notes

1. miser? ?n. 守財奴;吝嗇鬼

2. mansion? ?n. 大廈;宅邸

3. avaricious adj. 貪婪的;貪得無厭的

4. carriage n. 運(yùn)輸;運(yùn)費(fèi);四輪馬車;舉止;客車廂

5. servant? n. 仆人，傭人;公務(wù)員;雇工

6. in vain adj. 徒勞的;自負(fù)的;無結(jié)果的;無用的

7. chimney? n. 煙囪

8. hesitate? vi. 躊躇，猶豫;不愿

9. generosity? ?n. 慷慨，大方;寬宏大量

10. selfishness? ?n. 自私自利;自我中心;任性