雙語閲讀:讓過去過去讓未來到來

Regret can be a terrible addiction. Those who suffer from it so often become bitter and full of self-pity.

後悔是一件很可怕的東西, 它會讓人上癮. 那些經常感到後悔的人會變得更加悲天憫人, 自顧自憐.

It is an emotion that serious entrepreneurs cannot afford: they must keep pressing onwards and should not look back with remorse, dwelling on errors of long ago.

而對於企業家來説, 他們絕對不可以對 “後悔” 這種情緒上癮. 他們必須時刻堅持前進, 不能總是回望很久以前犯下的錯誤而懊悔自責.

As Alexander Graham Bell, inventor of the telephone, said: “When one door closes, another opens; but we often look so long and so regretfully upon the closed door that we do not see the one which has opened for us.” Entrepreneurs must learn to manage the conflict between constant experimentation – which means lots of painful mistakes – and a fear of failure, which can lead to paralysis.

正如電話機的發明者亞歷山大格拉漢姆貝爾所言, “當人生的一扇門關閉了, 總會有另一扇門為你打開; 然而, 我們卻經常久久地回顧那扇關閉了的門, 懊悔不已, 卻沒有看到那扇為我們打開的門.” 企業家必須學會如何平衡各種不斷的嘗試和害怕失敗的心理之間的矛盾. 這些嘗試可能意味着許多痛苦的失誤, 而害怕失敗的心理則可能導致你停滯不前.

Likewise, past glory can be a killer. For example, Greg Dyke, who is a clever fellow, still harks back too much to his resignation as director-general of the BBC. He should move on and stop moaning about the injustice of it all.

同樣的, 過去的榮耀也可能是毀滅你的殺手. 比如説, 格里格戴克, 一個頭腦聰明的人, 至今仍然對他當初辭去BBC總裁一職耿耿於懷. 他應該立即停止抱怨所有的不公, 繼續前進.

And Tim Waterstone should give up trying to buy back his bookshop chain, which he finally left more than 10 years ago (after selling it once and then getting involved again). He has tried to repurchase it at least five times, if rumour is to be believed. Possibly the root of the problem is that he exaggerates the chain’s importance, once saying: “Waterstone’s does more for the day-to-day cultural life of the nation than perhaps anything or anyone else.”

而蒂姆沃特斯通, 既然十年前已經決定離開他的連鎖書店了, 現在就應該放棄試圖回購連鎖書店的計劃(他曾經將書店出售, 後來又買回來). 如果傳言屬實的話, 他曾經至少五次試圖將它買回來. 問題的根源可能是, 他過於高估書店的價值. 他曾説, “Waterstone’s 在本國日常文化生活層面上所做的貢獻是任何東西和任何人都不能比擬的.”

散文英譯漢佳作賞析：我父親的音樂

My Father's Music

我父親的音樂

by Wayne Kalyn

韋恩凱林

I remember the day Dad first lugged the heavy accordion up our front stoop, taxing his small frame. He gathered my mother and me in the living room and opened the case as if it were a treasure chest. "Here it is," he said. "Once you learn to play, it'll stay with you for life."

記得有一天，身材瘦小的父親揹着一架沉重的手風琴，費力地走到前門廊。他把媽媽和我叫進廳裏，打開了那隻盒子，好象那是一個百寶箱似的。“就這個，”他説，“你一旦學會，它將伴隨你一生。”

If my thin smile didn't match his full-fledged grin, it was because I had prayed for a guitar or a piano. For the next two weeks, the accordion was stored in the hall closet. Then one evening Dad announced that I would start lessons the following week. In disbelief I shot my eyes toward Mom for support. The firm set of her jaw told me I was out of luck.

如果説我勉強的微笑與他發自內心的笑容不和諧的話，那是因為我一直想要一把吉他或一架鋼琴。隨後的兩個星期，那架手風琴一直放在大廳的櫥子裏。一天晚上，爸爸宣佈下週我開始上琴課。疑惑中，我把視線急忙投向媽媽求助。她緊繃的下巴告訴我：我倒運了。

Spending $300 for an accordion and $5 per lesson was out of character for my father. He was practical always － something he learned growing up on a Pennsylvania farm. Clothes, heat and sometimes even food were scarce.

花300元買一架手風琴，每次上課再花3美元，這可不像父親的作風。他一直是很實際的——這是他在賓夕法尼亞農場成長過程中學來的。那時候，衣服、暖氣，有時甚至連食物都短缺。

Dad was a supervisor in a company that serviced jet engines. Weekends, he tinkered in the cellar, turning scraps of plywood into a utility cabinet or fixing a broken toy with spare parts. Quiet and shy, he was never more comfortable than when at his workbench.

爸爸是一家為噴氣式飛機引擎提供服務的公司的主管。週末，他在地下室裏修修補補，把膠合板的邊角料做成一個實用的小櫃子，或者用一些零件把壞了的玩具修好。他不喜張揚，不愛説話。最讓他感到舒服的，莫過於在工作台旁邊。

Only music carried Dad away from his world of tools and projects. On a Sunday drive, he turned the radio on immediately. At red lights, I'd notice his foot tapping in time. He seemed to hang on every note.

只有音樂會讓爸爸遠離他的工具和計劃的世界。一個星期天駕車外出，一上車他就打開了收音機。遇到紅燈時，我注意到他的腳在打着拍子，似乎能跟得上每一個節拍。

Still, I wasn't prepared when, rummaging in a closet, I found a case that looked to me like a tiny guitar's. Opening it, I saw the polished glow of a beautiful violin. "It's your father's," Mom said. "His parents bought it for him. I guess he got too busy on the farm to ever learn to play it." I tried to imagine Dad's rough hands on this delicate instrument － and couldn't.

然而，我還是沒有思想準備，那是我在櫥子裏翻找東西時，發現一隻像是裝小吉它的盒子。打開一看，是一把鋥亮的、漂亮的小提琴。“那是你爸爸的，”媽媽説。“他父母給他買的。我想他在農場裏太忙了，沒有時間學。”我試圖想象爸爸粗糙的雙手放在這精緻的樂器上的情景——無法想象。

Shortly after, my lessons began with Mr. Zelli. On my first day, with straps straining my shoulders, I felt clumsy in every way. "How did he do?" my father asked when it was over. "Fine for the first lesson," said Mr. Zelli. Dad glowed with hope.

不久，澤利先生開始教我拉手風琴。第一天，手風琴揹帶壓着我的肩膀，我感到渾身不自在。“他學得怎麼樣？”結束時，父親問。“第一堂課，這已經很不錯。”澤利先生説。爸爸眼中閃着希望的光芒。

I was ordered to practice half an hour every day, and every day I tried to get out of it. My future seemed to be outside playing ball, not in the house mastering songs I would soon forget. But my parents hounded me to practice.

爸爸命令我每天練半個小時，可每天我都想賴掉。我的將來似乎應在户外打球，而不是在屋內練那些很快就會忘掉的曲子。然而父母不斷地督促我練習。

Gradually, to my surprise, I was able to string notes together and coordinate my hands to play simple songs. Often, after supper, my father would request a tune or two. As he sat in his easy chair, I would fumble through "Lady of Spain" and "Beer Barrel Polka."

漸漸地，讓我吃驚的是，我竟然能把幾個音符連起來了。手指的協調性也好點了，還能拉出幾首簡單的曲子。晚飯後，父親常常會要我拉上一、兩首曲子。他躺在安樂椅裏，我則笨拙地拉完“西班牙女郎”和“啤酒桶波爾卡”。

"Very nice, better than last week," he'd say. Then I would follow into a medley of his favorites, "Red River Valley" and "Home on the Range," and he would drift off to sleep, the newspaper folded on his lap. I took it as a compliment that he could relax under the spell of my playing.

他會説，“不錯，比上星期好，”然後我會接着拉他喜歡的曲子“紅河谷”和“山上的家”。聽着聽着，他慢慢睡着了，報紙疊在腿上。我把這看作是一種讚揚：他能在我美妙的演奏中放鬆。

One July evening I was giving an almost flawless rendition of "Come Back to Sorrento," and my parents called me to an open window. An elderly neighbor, rarely seen outside her house, was leaning against our car humming dreamily to the tune. When I finished, she smiled broadly and called out, "I remember that song as a child in Italy. Beautiful, just beautiful."

七月的一個傍晚，我正在拉“重回索聯託”，拉得幾乎完美無缺。父母突然把我叫到窗前。一位極少出門、上了年紀的老鄰居，正靠在我們的車旁，跟着曲子沉醉地哼唱着。當我拉完時，她咧開嘴笑了，大聲説：“小時候在意大利我聽到過這首歌曲，我還記得。太棒了，真是棒極了。

”Throughout the summer, Mr. Zelli's lessons grew more difficult. It took me a week and a half to master them now. All the while I could hear my buddies outside playing heated games of stickball. I'd also hear an occasional taunt; "Hey, where's your monkey and cup?"

整個夏天，澤利先生的課越來越難。現在要一個半星期才能掌握。練琴時，我總是聽到夥伴們在外面玩棍球的嬉鬧聲。偶爾還聽到奚落：“嗨，你的猴子和獎盃哪裏去了？

”Such humiliation paled, though, beside the impending fall recital. I would have to play a solo on a local movie theater's stage. I wanted to skip the whole thing. Emotions boiled over in the car one Sunday afternoon. "I don't want to play a solo." I said. "You have to," replied my father.

不過，這種羞辱與即將來臨的秋季演奏會相比，算不得什麼。我得在當地一家影劇院舞台上獨奏一曲。我想逃避這一切。一個星期天的下午，不滿的情緒終於在車上爆發了。“我不想獨奏，”我説。“你必須去，”父親説。

"Why?" I shouted. "Because you didn't get to play your violin when you were a kid? Why should I have to play this stupid instrument when you never had to play yours?"Dad pulled the car over and pointed at me. "Because you can bring people joy. You can touch their hearts. That's a gift I won't let you throw away." He added softly, "Someday you'll have the chance I never had: you'll play beautiful music for your family. And you'll understand why you've worked so hard."

“為什麼？”我叫了起來。“就因為你小時候沒能拉上小提琴？你從來不用拉琴，我為什麼必須拉那笨重的玩意？”爸爸把車開到路邊，手指着我。“因為你能給人們帶來快樂。你能撥動他們的心絃。我不會讓你放棄這份才能。”爸爸又心平氣和地説：“有一天你會有我從未有過的機會：你能為你的全家彈奏美妙的音樂。那時你會明白，如此努力到底是為什麼。”

I was speechless. I had rarely heard Dad speak with such feeling about anything, much less the accordion. From then on, I practiced without my parents’ making me.

我不吱聲了。我很少聽到爸爸如此語重心長地跟我談事情，更不用説是為了拉手風琴的事。從那以後，我練琴再也不用父母盯着。

The evening of the concert Mom wore glittery earrings and more makeup than I could remember. Dad got out of work early, put on a suit and tie, and slicked down his hair with Vitalis. They were ready an hour early, so we sat in the living room chatting nervously. I got the unspoken message that playing this one song was a dream come true for them.

音樂會那天晚上，媽媽戴上了亮閃閃的耳環，精心打扮一番；爸爸也早早下班回家，穿上西裝，繫上領帶，頭上抹了瓦特里斯，油亮亮的。他們提前一個小時就準備好了，我們就坐在廳裏，緊張地談論着。我感覺到，上台演奏這首曲子是他們要實現的一個夢想。

At the theater nervousness overtook me as I realized how much I wanted to make my parents proud. Finally, it was my turn. I walked to the lone chair on stage and performed "Are You Lonesome Tonight?" without a mistake. The applause spilled out, with a few hands still clapping after others had stopped. I was lightheaded, glad my ordeal was over.

在劇場裏，當我意識到我是多麼想讓父母感到驕傲時，我極為緊張。最後，終於輪到我了。我走向舞台中央的那張椅子，演奏了一曲“今晚你孤獨嗎？”，一個音符也沒拉錯。頓時，掌聲四起，難以停息。我 頭有點暈暈的，慶幸我的'苦難終於結束。

After the concert Mom and Dad came backstage. The way they walked － heads high, faces flushed － I knew they were pleased. My mother gave me a big hug. Dad slipped an arm around me and held me close. "You were just great," he said. Then he shook my hand and was slow to let it go.

音樂會後，爸媽來到後台。他們走路的樣子，昂着頭，精神煥發--我知道他們很開心。媽媽緊緊地抱住我。爸爸伸出一隻手臂，牢牢地摟住我：“你太棒了。”説完，他使勁地握着我的手，不願鬆開。

As the years went by, the accordion drifted to the background of my life. Dad asked me to play at family occasions, but the lessons stopped. When I went to college, the accordion stayed behind in the hall closet next to my father's violin.

隨着歲月的流逝，那架手風琴漸漸退至我生活的幕後。只有在家庭聚會上，爸爸還會讓我拉上一曲。但是風琴課不再上了。我上大學時，那架手風琴放進廳裏的壁櫥，在爸爸的小提琴旁邊。

A year after my graduation, my parents moved to a house in a nearby town. Dad, at 51, finally owned his own home. On moving day, I didn't have the heart to tell him that he could dispose of the accordion, so I brought it to my own home and put it in the attic.

大學畢業後一年，父母搬到附近城鎮的一棟房子。爸爸在他五十一歲那年終於擁有了自己的家。搬家那天，我不忍 心告訴他，説他可以處理那架手風琴，於是我把它帶回自己家，放在閣樓上。

There it remained, a dusty memory, until one afternoon several years later when my two children discovered it by accident. Scott thought it was a secret treasure; Holly thought a ghost lived inside. They were both right.

手風琴一直放在那裏，成了塵封的記憶。直到幾年後的一個下午，我的兩個孩子偶然發現了它。斯科特認為這是一件祕密寶藏。霍莉則認為裏面住着一個幽靈。他倆都對。

When I opened the case, they laughed and said, "Play it, play it." Reluctantly, I strapped on the accordion and played some simple songs. I was surprised my skills hadn't rusted away. Soon the kids were dancing in circles and giggling. Even my wife, Terri, was laughing and clapping to the beat. I was amazed at their unbridled glee.

我打開盒子時，他們笑了，叫道“拉一曲，拉一曲。”我不情願地背上琴帶，拉了幾隻簡單的曲子。真沒想到，我拉起來還是那麼嫻熟。很快，孩子們圍成圈跳起來，咯咯地笑個不停。甚至連我妻子特麗也笑了，打着拍子。看着他們縱情歡笑，我感到驚異。

My father's words came back to me: "Someday you'll have the chance I never had, Then you'll understand." I finally knew what it meant to work hard and sacrifice for others. Dad had been right all along: the most precious gift is to touch the hearts of those you love. Later I phoned Dad to let him know that, at long last, I understood. Fumbling for the right words, I thanked him for the legacy it took almost 30 years to discover. "You're welcome," he said, his voice choked with emotion.

我的耳邊迴響起父親説過的話：“有一天你會有我從未有過的機會，那時你會明白的。”我終於明白，去努力，去為別人作出犧牲意味着什麼。爸爸始終是對的：最珍貴的禮物莫過於打動你所愛的人的心。後來，我給爸爸去電話，告訴他我終於懂了。我笨嘴拙舌地找尋合適的詞語，為他給我的寶貴財富表示感謝，這財富我花了差不多三十年才發現。“不用謝，”他激動得説不出話來。

Dad never learned to coax sweet sounds from his violin. Yet he was wrong to think he would never play for his family. On that wonderful evening, as my wife and children laughed and danced, they heard my accordion. But it was my father's music.

爸爸從未學過從他的小提琴上拉出美妙的聲音。但是他以為自己永遠不會為家人彈奏音樂，這種想法是錯的。那個美妙的夜晚，我的妻子、孩子歡歌笑舞，他們聽到的是我的手風琴，但，那卻是我父親的音樂。

英譯漢散文佳作賞析：什麼叫朋友

A Faraway Friend is someone you grew up with or went to school with or lived in the same town as until one of you moved away. Without a Faraway Friend, you would never get any mail addressed in handwriting. A Faraway Friend calls late at night, invites you to her wedding, always says she is coming to visit but rarely shows up. An actual visit from a Faraway Friend is a cause for celebration and binges of all kinds.

遠方的朋友是這樣的一個人：和你從小一同長大的，或者是同學，或者和你原本住在同一個鎮上，後來你們中的一人搬到了別處。沒有一位遠方的朋友，你連一封手寫的信都收不到。遠方的朋友會半夜打來電話，邀請你去參加她的婚禮，她總是説要來看你，卻很少露面。要是真的來訪，那才叫“不亦樂乎”，各種名目的狂歡可就有了理由。

Faraway friends go through phases of intense communication, then maybe out of touch for many months. Either way, the connection is always there. A conversation with your Faraway Friend always helps to put your life in perspective: When you feel you’ve hit a dead end, come to a confusing fork in the road, or gotten lost in some cracker-box subdivision of your life, the advice of the Faraway Friend — who has the big picture, who is so well acquainted with the route that brought you to this place — is indispensable.

兩個遠方的朋友會經歷密切交流的階段，接下來或許幾個月都不聯繫。但無論聯繫與否，友誼永遠不會改變。與遠方的朋友一席長談，總是有助於你更好地認識生活；當你覺得自己走入了死衚衕時，當你面對岔路而不知所措時，來自遠方朋友的忠告就越發不可或缺，她看得清大局，完全瞭解你是怎麼走到這一步的。

Another useful function of the Faraway Friend is to help you remember things from a long time ago, like the name of your seventh-grade history teacher, what was in that really good stir-fry, or exactly what happened that night on the boat with the guys from Florida.

遠方的朋友還有一個益處，就是能讓你記起很久以前的事情，比如七年級歷史老師的名字，那盤炒菜裏究竟什麼東西那麼好吃，或者那天晚上在船裏和佛羅里達來的男孩子們都幹了些什麼。

Ah, the former friend. A sad thing. At best a wistful memory, at worst a dangerous enemy who is in possession of many of your deepest secrets. But what was it that drove you apart? A misunderstanding, a betrayed confidence, an underpaid loan, an ill-conceived flirtation. A poor choice of spouse can do in a friendship just like that. Going into business together can be a serious mistake. Time, money, distance, cult religions: all noted friendship killers. You quit doing drugs, you’re not such good friends with your dealer anymore.

啊，從前的朋友。讓人憂傷的事情。好了的話是一段傷感的記憶，不好的話你有一個危險的敵人，而且對你許多最隱祕的事情都瞭如指掌。可究竟是什麼把你們分開的呢？一個誤解，一個被泄露的祕密，一筆沒有償還的借款，一次有欠考慮的輕俏之舉。擇偶不慎也會使友誼分崩離析；一起做生意會成為一個嚴重的錯誤；時間、金錢、距離、宗教狂熱，這都是耳熟能詳的友誼殺手。如同一旦你戒了毒，你就不再是你供貨商的好朋友了。

And lest we forget, there are the Friends You Love to Hate. They call at inopportune times. They say stupid things. They butt in, they boss you around, they embarrass you in public. They invite themselves over. They take advantage. You’ve done the best you can, but they need professional help. On top of all this, they love you to death and are convinced they’re your best friends on the planet.

而且我們別忘了：還有些朋友，你喜歡恨他們。他們在不適當的時候打電話，他們蠢話連篇，他們胡亂插手你的事情，他們把你指使得團團亂轉，他們總是佔盡了你的便宜。你已經盡了最大的努力，可他們需要的其實是專業人員的幫助。這一切之外，他們還愛你愛得要死要活，深信他們是你在這個世界上最好的朋友。

So why do you continue to be involved with these people? Why do you tolerate them? On the contrary, the real question is what would you do without them. Without Friends You Love to Hate, there would be nothing to talk about with your other friends. Their problems and their irritating stunts provide a reliable source of conversation for everyone they know.

那麼你又為什麼繼續和他們打交道呢？為什麼要容忍他們呢？反過來説，真正的問題是：沒有他們你行嗎？沒有這些你寧可去憎恨的朋友，你和你別的朋友也就無話可説了。他們的缺陷和他們惱人的噱頭，為他們認識的每一個人都提供了源源不斷的談資。

What’s more, Friends You Love to Hate make you feel good about yourself, since you are obviously in so much better shape than they are. No matter what these people do, you will never get rid of them. As much as they need you, you need them, too.

此外，他們還能使你對自己感覺良好，因為你的狀況顯然比他們好得太多。不管他們做出什麼事情來，你絕對不願擺脱他們。你對他們的需要，和他們對你的需要可謂不相上下呢。

At the other end of the spectrum are Hero Friends. These people are better than the rest of us, that’s all there is to it. Their career is something you wanted to be when you grew up — painter, forest ranger, tireless doer of good.

與此相反的另一個極端則是那些令人豔羨的朋友。他們比我們這些人都更出色，有這一點就夠了。他們的事業就是你長大後的追求——畫家、護林人，不知疲倦的行善者。

They have beautiful homes filled with special handmade things presented to them by villagers in the remote areas they have visited in their extensive travels. Yet they are modest. They never gossip. They are always helping others, especially those who have suffered a death in the family or an illness. You would think people like this would just make you sick, but somehow they don’t.

他們擁有漂亮的房子，裏面滿是手工做的奇特玩意兒，都是他們周遊世界時到過的邊遠地區的村民總送給他們的。可他們依舊待人謙和。他們從不饒舌。他們總是去幫助別人，特別是那些遭受喪失親人之痛或疾病折磨的人。你會認為這種人只能讓你厭倦，可他們偏偏不是那樣。

A new friend is a tonic unlike any other. Say you meet her at a party. In your bowling league. At a Japanese conversation class, perhaps. Wherever, whenever, there’s that spark of recognition. The first time you talk, you can’t believe how much you have in common. Suddenly, your life story is interesting again, your insights fresh, your opinion valued. Your various shortcomings are as yet completely invisible.

新的朋友是一劑無可比擬的良藥。也許你是在一次聚會上結識她的，也許是在保齡球俱樂部裏，也許是日語會話課上。無論何處，無論何時，只因為擦出了那鍾惺惺相惜的火花。你簡直無法相信你們有這麼多共同點，而且只是第一次交談。突然間，你的經歷又變得有趣了，你的見識不同凡響，你的意見也倍受重視。你各式各樣的缺點一時間也完全消失不見了。

散文英譯漢佳作賞析：培根《論養生》

Of Regiment of Health

論養生

There is a wisdom in this, beyond the rules of physic: a man's own observation, what he finds good of, and what he finds hurt of, is the best physic to preserve health.

養生有道，非醫學底規律所能盡。一個人自己的觀察，他對於何者有益何者有害於自己的知識，乃是最好的保健藥品。

But it is a safer conclusion to say; this agreeth not well with me, therefore I will not continue it; than this; I fmd no offence of this, therefore I may use it. For strength of nature in youth passeth over many excesses, which are owing a man till his age. Discern of the coming on of years, and think not, to do the same things still; for age will not be defied.

但是在下斷語的時候，如果説：“這個與我底身體不合，因此我要戒它”，比説：“這個好象於我沒有什麼害處，因此我要用它”較為安全得多。因為少壯時代底天賦的強力可以忍受許多縱慾的行為，而這些行為是等於記在賬上，到了老年的時候，是要還的。留心你底年歲底增加，不要永遠想做同一的事情，因為年歲是不受蔑視的。

Beware of sudden change in any great point of diet, and if necessity enforce it, fit the rest to it. For it is a secret, both in nature, and state; that it is safer to change many things, than one. Examine thy customs, of diet, sleep, exercise, apparel, and the like; and try in anything thou shall judge hurtful, to discontinue it by little and little; but so, as if thou doest fmd any inconvenience by the change, thou come back to it again: for it is hard to distinguish, that which is generally held good, and wholesome, from that, which is good particularly, and fit for thine own body.

在飲食底重要部分上不可驟然變更，如果不得已而變更的話，則別的部分也須要變更，以便配合得宜。因為在自然的事體和國家的事務上都有一種祕訣，就是變一事不如變多事的安全。把你平日飲食、睡眠、運動、衣服、等等的習慣自省一下，並且把其中你認為有害的習慣試行逐漸戒絕，但是其辦法應當這樣，如果你由這種變更而感覺不適的時候，就應當回到原來的習慣去；因為把一般認為有益衞生的習慣和於個人有益，於你自己底身體適合的習慣分別起來是不容易的。

To be free minded, and cheerfully disposed, at hours of meat, and of sleep, and of exercise, is one of the best precepts of long lasting. As for the passions and studies of the mind; avoid envy; anxious fears; anger fretting inwards; subtle and knotty inquisitions; joys, and exhilarations in excess; sadness not communicated.

在吃飯、睡覺、運動的時候，心中坦然，精神愉快，乃是長壽底最好祕訣之一。至於心中的情感及思想，則應避嫉妒，焦慮，壓在心裏的怒氣，奧祕難解的研究，過度的歡樂，暗藏的悲哀。

Entertain hopes; mirth rather than joy; variety of delights, rather than surfeit of them; wonder, and admiration, and therefore novelties; studies that fill the mind with splendid and illustrious objects, as histories, fables, and contemplations of nature. If you fly physic in health altogether, it will be too strange for your body, when you shall need it If you make it too familiar, it will work no extraordinary effect, when sickness cometh. I commend rather some diet, for certain seasons, than frequent use of physic, except it be grown into a custom.

應當長存着的是希望，愉快，而非狂歡；變換不同的樂事，而非過饜的樂事；好奇與仰慕，以保有新鮮的情趣；以光輝燦爛的事物充滿人心的學問，如歷史、寓言、自然研究皆是也。如果你在健康的時候完全摒棄醫藥，則到了你需要它的時候將感覺醫藥對於你底身體過於生疏不慣。如果你平日過於慣用醫藥，則疾病來時，醫藥將不生奇效。竊以為與其常服藥餌，不如按季節變更食物，除非服藥已經成了一種習慣。

For those diets alter the body more, and trouble it less. Despise no new accident in your body, but ask opinion of it In sickness, respect health principally; and in health, action.

因為那些不同的食物是可以變更體氣而不擾亂它的。對於身體上任何新的症候都不可小視，須要向人求教。

For those that put their bodies to endure in health, may in most sickness, which are not very sharp, be cured only with diet, and tendering.

在病中，主要的是注意健康；在健康的時候，主要的是注意活動。因為那平日使自己底身體習於勞動的人在大多數不很厲害的疾病中只要節飲食，多調養，就可以好了。

Celsus could never have spoken it as a physician, had he not been a wise man withal, when he giveth it, for one of the great precepts of health and lasting, that a man do vary, and interchange contraries; but with an inclination to the more benign extreme: use fasting, and full eating, but rather full eating; watching and sleep, but rather sleep;sitting, and exercise, but rather exercise; and the like.

塞爾撒斯教人養生長壽之道，最要的一端就是一個人應當把各種相反的習慣都變換着練習練習，但是在輕重之間卻應當稍重那有益於人的一端；禁食與飽食都應當練習，但是寧可稍重飽食；警醒與睡眠都應當練習，但是寧可偏尚睡眼；安坐與運動都應當練習，但是寧可着重運動；諸如此類。

So shall nature be cherished, and yet taught masteries. Physicians are some of them so pleasing, and conformable to the humour of the patient, as they press not the true cure of the disease; and some other are so regular, in proceeding according to art, for the disease, as they respect not sufficiently the condition of the patient Take one of a middle temper, or if it may not be found in one man, combine two of either sort: and forget not to call, as well the best acquainted with your body, as the best reputed of for his faculty.

塞爾撒斯要不是一位醫生而兼哲人的話，專以醫生底身分他是永不會説出這種話來的。如他所説的辦法，將使天生的體質既可以得滋養又可以增力量也。醫生之中有些是對於病人底脾氣很縱容遷就的，以致不能迅收治療之效；又有些人則是照治病底學理行事，十分謹嚴，以致對於病者底實情不充分注重。選擇醫生的時候頂好請一位性情適中的；或者，如果一個人沒有這樣的性情的時候，則在兩種人裏各取其一而調和之。又在請醫生的時候，固然要請那出名的好醫生，也不可忘了請那個最熟悉你底體格的醫生也。