“三只老貓”也成戲

by Lillian Bueno Mccue

What do I believe？ What laws do I live by？ There are so many answers—work， beauty， truth， love—and I hope I do live by them.

But in everyday things I live by the light of a supplementary[額外的] set of laws. Id better call them rules of thumb[經(jīng)驗法則]. Rules of thumb arent very grand， but they do make the wheels go round.

My father and mother sent me to good schools， but the finest thing they did for my education was to have seven children. I was the oldest， and my brothers and sisters were my best teachers.

I learned first to pull my own weight in the boat[盡力做好本職工作]. Kids making a bob-sled[雪橇] have no use for the loafer[流浪者] who wants a free ride. Neither has the world. I learned to make the bed I slept in， and wash the glass I used， and mend what I broke， and mop up[擦干] where I spilled[溢出]. And if I was too lazy or too dainty[挑剔的] or too busy， and left it for someone else， somebody else soon taught me different.

什么為我所信仰？什么是我生活的法則？答案有很多——工作、美麗、真理和愛——但愿我能以它們?yōu)闇蕜t生活。

但在日常生活中，我還遵循著一套附加法則，即經(jīng)驗法則。這一法則并不十分高深，但它們確實能使事情順利地進行。

我的父母把我送到很好的學校學習，但他們在教育方面做得最好的事情就是養(yǎng)育了七個孩子。作為家中長女，我的弟弟妹妹們就是我最好的老師。

我首先學會了履行長女的職責。對一個想搭順風車的流浪者來說，會做雪橇的孩子毫無用處。這樣的孩子對世界也沒什么用處。我學會了自己鋪床、洗自己用過的杯子、修補我弄壞的東西和擦干我弄濕的地方。如果我過于懶惰、挑剔或忙碌，而把這些事留給別人來做，那么很快就有人教我不能這樣。

Then， the same way， I learned that anger is a waste. It hurts nobody but me. A fit of the sullens[不高興] got short shrift[忽視] in our house. It wasnt pulling my weight in the boat. It was spoiling[掃興] sport. And among seven children it got me nowhere[一事無成]. It might reduce four ocat注1 to three ocat， but the game went on just the same， and where was I？ Out of it. Better go in and join the group around the piano and forget my grievance[委屈]. Better still， next time dont fling down[猛然扔下] my bat[球棒] in a tantrum[發(fā)脾氣]； keep my temper， and stay in the game. Heres a rule of thumb thats important， and the older I get， the more important I think it is. When I can do something， and somebody wants me to do it， I have to do it. The great tragedy[悲劇] of life is not to be needed. As long as you are able and willing to do things for people， you will be needed. Of course you are able； and if so， you cant say no. My mother is 77. In 77 years she has never said no. Today she is so much in demand by 13 grandchildren and countless neighbors that her presence[存在， 出席] is eagerly contended[爭奪] for. When I want to see her I have to pretend emergency[緊急情況].

Then theres the rule of curiosity. Your body would die if you stopped feeling hunger and thirst， and your mind will die if you lose your curiosity. This I learned from my father. My father was a naturalist[博物學家]. He could see the beetle[甲蟲] under the bark[樹皮]， and draw it forth unharmed[沒有受傷的] for us to squint[瞇著眼看] at through the magnifying glass[放大鏡]. He sampled[品嘗] the taste of 33 different caterpillars[毛毛蟲]. Fired[激發(fā)] by his example， once， my sister ate an ant. In case you are wondering， caterpillars taste like the green leaves they eat， and ants taste of lemon. I personally havent tasted any entomological specimens[昆蟲標本] lately， but I am still rejoicing[高興的] in the limitless curiosity， that draws me to books and people and places. I hope I never lose it. It would be like pulling down the blind.

其次，同樣地，我懂得了生氣于事無補。除了我自己，憤怒傷害不了任何人。在我們家，悶悶不樂是不會有人搭理你的。盡管這并不是我的責任，卻會令人覺得掃興。何況在七個孩子中間生悶氣對我毫無用處。沒有我，“四只老貓”的游戲變成“三只老貓”，照樣可以玩得很好。而我呢？只能被排除在外。最好的辦法是，忘掉自己的委屈，加入他們，和大家一起圍著鋼琴玩。最好下次不要發(fā)脾氣把球棒扔掉；控制住情緒，繼續(xù)玩游戲。

此外，還有一條重要的經(jīng)驗法則，隨著年齡的增長，我越來越意識到它的重要性。當我有能力做一件事，同時有人需要我去做時，我就應該去做。人生最大的悲劇莫過于不為人所需。只要你有能力并且樂意為他人做事，你就會為人所需。你肯定有能力；如果能做到的事，就不要推辭。我母親已經(jīng)77歲了。在這77年里，她從未拒絕過別人的請求。今天，十三個孫子孫女們和數(shù)不清的鄰居仍然很需要她，搶著要見她。當我想見她時，我不得不假裝有急事相求呢。

除此之外，還有好奇心法則。當你感覺不到饑餓和干渴，身體就會停止工作；當你失去了好奇心，大腦就會停止運轉。這是我從父親身上學到的。我的父親是一個博物學家。他能看到樹皮下的甲蟲，并毫發(fā)無傷地捉下來給我們用放大鏡研究。他嘗過三十三種不同種類的毛毛蟲。在父親的示范下，有一次，妹妹吃了一只螞蟻。如果你感到好奇，我來告訴你，毛毛蟲的味道就像它們所吃的綠葉，螞蟻的味道則像檸檬。我本人最近并未品嘗任何昆蟲標本，但我仍欣喜自己有著無限的好奇心。它促使我博覽群書，培養(yǎng)了我樂于與人交往和四處旅行的習慣。我希望自己永遠都保持這種好奇心。沒有它，就仿佛放下了窗簾，無法看見窗外的風景。

Finally， there is the rule of happiness. Happiness is a habit. I was taught to cultivate[培養(yǎng)] it. A big stomach-ache， or a big heart-ache， can interrupt[打擾] happiness， but neither can destroy it unless I permit. My mother simply wouldnt have unhappy faces moping[悶悶不樂的]about the place. If it was a stomachache， she dosed[給藥] it. If it was heart-ache， she[ad]ministered注2 love and understanding and lots of interesting things to do， and soon the sun came out again. Even the heartbreaks that cant really be mended， even those seem to yield to[屈服，讓步] the habit of finding happiness in doing things， in love and in the memory of love. I hope I never lose that habit either. It would be like putting out the light.

So I learned to live， by the great laws， and these little rules of thumb. I wouldnt take a million dollars for any one of them， or a million times that for the years at home that taught them to me.

最后，還有幸福法則。幸福是一種習慣，而我已學會如何養(yǎng)成這種習慣。劇烈的胃痛或心痛都會阻礙幸福，但沒有我的允許，它們絕對不能破壞幸福。我的母親只是不想看到悶悶不樂的面孔而已。如果有人胃痛，她就給他吃藥；如果有人傷心，她就給予愛和理解，并做許多有趣的事讓他忘記痛苦，一切很快又會好起來。即使是無法真正修補的心碎，即使有些人似乎任憑習慣使然，從工作中、從愛和對愛的回憶中尋求幸福，我也希望自己永遠不會將這一習慣丟棄，因為那就像熄滅生命之燈。

因此我學會了遵循著偉大的準則和這些瑣碎的經(jīng)驗法則來生活。即使給我一百萬美元，也換不去它們中的任何一個；或者給我無盡的歲月，也交換不了教會我這些法則的家中歲月。

Know More

Rule of Thumb指“經(jīng)驗法則”或者“拇指規(guī)則”，通常是指單憑經(jīng)驗來做的方法，較為通用的原則，但并非放之四海而皆準。關于這個短語的起源有三種說法：其一是舊時人們習慣用大拇指的最后一個關節(jié)到指甲之間的這一段長度作為天然的測量工具，因為成年男子這一段的平均長度是一英寸（2.54厘米），這個工具方便又實用；其二是以前有經(jīng)驗的釀酒師習慣于用大拇指伸進釀酒池中測量發(fā)酵過程的溫度，來了解釀造的進展情況；還有一種說法是農(nóng)業(yè)播種時，為了達到合適的種子深度，人們經(jīng)常用拇指快速地測量掩埋的深淺。

引申開來，rule of thumb可以理解成“憑經(jīng)驗的”，或者做事的“法則”，如：He is a rule-of-thumb photographer.（他是一個靠經(jīng)驗攝影的攝影家。）His most basic rule of thumb is： be patient.（他最根本的法則就是有耐心。）