作者:萨缪尔·厄尔曼 1840年生于德国,儿时随家人移居美利坚,参加过南北战争,之后定居伯明翰,经营五金杂货,年逾70 开始写作。
萨缪尔美文《青春》一文,仅400字,原文译文皆精彩!
行文如下:
Youth is not a time of life; it is a state of mind; it is not a matter of rosy cheeks, red lips and supple knees; it is a matter of the will, a quality of the imagination, a vigor of the emotions; it is the freshness of the deep springs of life.
青春气贯长虹,勇锐盖过怯弱,进取压倒苟安。如此锐气,二十后生有之,六旬男子则更多见。年岁有加,并非垂老;理想丢弃,方堕暮年。
Youth means a temperamental predominance of courage over timidity of the appetite, for adventure over the love of ease.
岁月悠悠,衰微只及肌肤;热忱抛却,颓唐必致灵魂。忧烦、惶恐、丧失自信,定使心灵扭曲,意气如灰。
无论年届花甲,抑或二八芳龄,心中皆有生命之欢乐,奇迹之诱惑,孩童般天真久盛不衰。
Whether sixty or sixteen, there is in every human being's heart the lure of wonder, the unfailing child-like appetite of what's next, and the joy of the game of living.