双语美文：80岁要后悔的那些事

 　　There are so many things I want to do in the short time I'm here. Some of these things scare me, some will challenge me and others are just plain fun。

　　在我短暂的一生里有许多想做的事。有些令我畏惧，有些却是挑战，还有些就只是为了玩乐罢。
　　Unfortunately, life is very short and the older I get the quicker time seems to pass. I'm quickly realizing that I probably won't fit everything in. So how do I choose? How do I pick which things to go for wholeheartedly and what things to leave to someone else? It comes down to a simple question: "When I'm 80, will I regret___?"
　　遗憾地是，生命实在太短暂，随着年龄的不断增长时间飞逝得越快。我很快意识到在这短暂的时光里不可能将所有想做的事做完。那我如何选择呢？我如何判断哪些事是我该专注去做的，哪些是该交给其他人完成的？这一切可以用一个问题来回答：“当我80岁时，我会因为___后悔吗？”
　　Next time you find yourself struggling over whether or not you're going to do something ask yourself that very question: "Will I regret this decision when I'm 80?" If the answer is no then go ahead with your decision. If it's yes think about how you can make it happen or stick it out until you're done. Live your life to your best capability 1. Here are a few areas that you could try to challenge yourself in。
　　下次你在为某件事纠结的时候，问问自己这个问题：“当我80岁时我会后悔这个决定吗？” 若回答是否定，那就按照你的决定继续下去。若回答是肯定的，请思考如何坚持自己的决定，让其最后实现。充分发挥自己的能力，过好每一天。看看下面这几件事，想一想到了80岁你会后悔吗？
　　1. Work
　　工作
　　Have you ever changed jobs? Have you thought about changing jobs? How about your career? The possibilities are endless when it comes to how you make a living. Maybe you've toyed with the idea of becoming an entrepreneur 2 and working for yourself. Will you regret not giving it a chance? Or will you regret going for it?
　　你换过工作吗？或者你有过换工作的想法吗？你的职业规划是怎样的？若提到如何赚钱谋生，可能性就太多了。或者你根本没认真思考过做个企业家为自己打工。你会不会后悔没有给自己一个创业的机会？或因为选择了创业而懊恼？
　　2. Food
　　饮食
　　Have you been eating the same food for the past 20 years? Have you always wanted to try something new but haven't got around to it yet? Are too afraid to try it because "Oh I don't like chickpeas". Go out on a limb 3 and give it a shot. Get a cookbook full of exotic 4 recipes and work your way through it. Make a point of going to different types of restaurants when you go out for dinner。
　　在最近20年你是否一直在吃相同的食物？你或许想要尝尝鲜却还是迟迟没有尝试？你会不会因为“我不喜欢鹰嘴豆”这种想法而放弃尝试呢？冒次险试试吧！找本外国食谱自己下厨做菜。记得到不同餐馆吃饭时，多留个心观察它们之间的风格差异。
　　3. Exploration
　　探索
　　Do you spend most of your time in the office only to leave your chair to travel back home again where you sit down, watch TV, and "relax"? Try getting out more. Turn off the TV and get outside. Go on a walk or a hike or a drive. Is there somewhere local that you've never been? Too often we see a lot more of foreign places than we do of our own back yard。
　　你是不是把大部分时间花在办公室，然后离开办公椅到家又坐下看看电视，进行所谓的“放松”？多去外面走走吧！关掉电视走出门去，散散步，徒步旅行或自驾旅行，当地是否有些地方你从未涉足过？走出后院，我们将会看到更多未曾见过的景色。
　　4. Risk
　　冒险
　　Like to play it safe? Worried about things going wrong? It's been my experience that everything always works 5 out. Try something risky 6 like changing careers or quitting your job and working for yourself. Pick up and move half way around the world and see what it's like in another culture, another country or another hemisphere 7。
　　更青睐安定的生活？害怕变化？其实据我经验证明，怎么选择生活都可以过得很好。试试冒次险吧：跳槽，辞职，或是自己创业。收拾好心情重新开始，去到世界另一端，拜访不同的国家甚至是另一个半球，体验那里不同的文化风韵。
　　5.Doing something crazy
　　做点疯狂的事
　　Walk home in the rain in your business suit. Join a polar bear club or sing along with a busker in the streets and see what happens. Be a back up dancer at a karaoke bar. There are a lot of crazy things you can do. Keep it clean, be respectful 8 and I'm sure you'll find you get a burst of energy and excitement from doing it。
　　比如穿着工作服冒着风雨散步回家，参加北极熊俱乐部或是和街头艺人一起唱歌，又会发生什么呢？你还可以做卡拉OK的后备舞者！有太多疯狂的事可做了，请单纯且尊敬地对待这些疯狂举动，我相信你将会从中激发丰富的热情和活力！
　　6.Being nice
　　善待他人
　　Do something nice for someone else out of the blue and just because. Don't expect anything in return. Volunteer at a soup kitchen, donate food and toys to an animal shelter. Plant an extra row of vegetables in your garden and donate the produce to a charity. We all think we're nice people but actions really do speak louder than words. Think about it。
　　为别人做点好事：帮助那些苦恼的人从困难中走出来，不要期待任何回报。去赈济所作志愿者，为动物收容所捐赠食物和玩具，在你花园里多种植一排蔬菜，将收获的作物送给慈善机构。我们都觉得自己很善良，但最好用实际行动证明吧！考虑下这个提议。
　　7. Quitting something
　　懂得取舍
　　We all know that when we say yes to one thing we are saying no to something else. If that committee you're on isn't providing you a sense of fulfillment or accomplishment 9 as it once did, quit. Quit the soccer team if it's no longer fun, quit grad school if it's no longer what you want to do. Quitting is usually seen as a negative thing and to be avoided. However, being deliberate 10 and thoughtful 11 in what you are resigning from will open a large chunk 12 of time that could be better spent。
　　我们都明白，接受一些东西就意味着拒绝其他很多。若你所做的承诺已经不再像以前般给你成就感，就果断舍弃它。离开不再有趣的足球队，舍弃不是你真正所需的研究生学习。人们一直不愿选择舍弃，感觉那是一种消极负面的举动。但如果一直为本应该舍弃的东西思前想后，就会白白浪费大把可以被更好利用的时间。
　　There are a lot of areas of our lives that unless we really take time to think about them we keep with the status quo. Living life on auto-pilot can be boring and may lead to a life with relatively 13 few rich experiences. I have made it my mission 14 to live deliberately 15 and with purpose so I can look back with, hopefully, no regrets. So far so good。
　　生活中有许多领域可以改变自我，除非我们真正花时间去思考，否则只能维持现状。被设置了“自动驾驶装置”的生活，将是多么枯燥乏味，它缺少经历去点缀和填充。我给自己的使命就是谨慎有目的地生活，当我回顾往昔时才不会后悔。到目前为止，一切都进展顺利。