青春 / Youth

It was New Year’s night. An aged man was standing at a window. He raised his mournful eyes towards the deep blue sky, where the stars were floating like white lilies on the surface of a clear calm lake. Then he cast them on the earth, where few more hopeless people than himself now moved towards their certain goal—the tomb. He had already passed sixty of the stages leading to it, and he had brought from his journey nothing but errors and remorse. Now his health was poor, his mind vacant, his heart sorrowful, and his old age short of comforts.

The days of his youth appeared like dreams before him, and he recalled the serious moment when his father placed him at the entrance of the two roads—one leading to a peaceful, sunny place, covered with flowers, fruits and resounding with soft, sweet songs; the other leading to a deep, dark cave, which was endless, where poison flowed instead of water and where devils and poisonous snakes hissed and crawled.

He looked towards the sky and cried painfully, “O youth, return! O my father, place me once more at the entrance to life, and I’ll choose the better way!” But both his father and the days of his youth had passed away.

He saw the lights flowing away in the darkness, and these were the days of his wasted life. He saw a star fall from the sky and disappeared, and this was the symbol of himself. His remorse, which was like a sharp arrow, struck deeply into his heart. Then he remembered his friends in his childhood, who entered on life together with him. But they had made their way to success and were now honoured and happy on this New Year’s night.

The clock in the high church tower struck and the sound made him remember his parents’ early love for him. They had taught him and prayed to God for his good. But he chose the wrong way. With shame and grief he dared no longer look towards that heaven where his father live. His darkened eyes were full of tears, and with a despairing effort, he burst out a cry: "Come back, my early days! Come back!"

And his youth did return, for all this was only a dream which he had on New Year’s night. He was still young though his faults were real. He had not yet entered the deep, dark cave, and he was still free to walk on the road which leads to the peaceful and sunny land.

Those who still linger on the entrance of life, hesitating to choose the bright road, remember that when years have passed and your feet stumble on the dark mountains, you will cry bitterly, but in vain: “O youth, return! Oh give me back my early days!”

【助讀詞匯】

◇mournful  adj. 悲哀的

◇remorse  n. 懊悔，自責，同情，憐憫

◇hiss  v. 嘶嘶作聲，用噓聲表示

◇linger  v. 逗留，閑蕩，拖延，游移

【參考譯文】 

青春

除夕之夜，一位老人站立窗前。他滿眼哀傷地望著深藍色的天空，那里星星好像清澈平靜的湖面上的白蓮在漂移著；后來，他將目光投向地面，幾個比他更加絕望的人正在走向人生的終點——墳墓。在通往人生終點的道路上，他已走過了60多個驛站，除了過失和悔恨，他一無所獲�，F在，他健康欠佳，精神空虛，心情憂郁，缺少晚年應有的舒適。

青春的歲月像夢一樣浮現在他眼前，他想起父親將他放在人生岔路口上的關鍵時刻，當時，他面前有兩條路：一條通向和平寧靜、陽光燦爛的地方，那里到處是花果，到處回蕩著柔和甜美的歌聲；另一條則通向黑暗無底的深淵，那里流淌著毒液而不是清水，到處都是惡魔，毒蛇嘶嘶爬動。

他仰望天空，痛苦地哭喊：“哦，青春，回來吧！哦，爸爸，請把我重新放到人生的路口上吧，我會做出更好的選擇。”然而他的父親和他的青春歲月都離他遠去。

他看見燈光消逝在黑暗中，那便是他虛度的時光。他看見一顆星星劃過天空、消失，那是他自身的象征。悔恨如同一支利箭，深深地刺進他的心。接著，他想起童年時代的朋友，他們曾與他一同踏上人生的旅程，現已獲得成功，受到人們的尊敬，此刻正在幸福中歡度除夕。

教堂塔頂的鐘聲響了，使他回憶起父母早年對他的愛，他們曾教導他，曾為他向上帝祈禱�？伤�選擇了錯誤的路。羞愧和憂傷使他再也不敢去看他父親所在的天堂。他雙眼黯然無光，飽噙著淚水，在絕望中，他高喊：“回來吧，我那逝去的年華！回來吧！”

青春真的回來了，因為以上所發生的一切只是他在除夕所做的一場夢。他仍舊年輕，雖然他曾真的犯有過失，但還沒陷得太深，完全還可走上通向寧靜和光明的道路。

那些仍然在人生路口徘徊，猶豫該不該選擇光明大道的年輕人啊，記住：當你青春已逝，雙足在黑暗的群山中跌跌撞撞之時，你才痛心疾首地呼喚：“哦，回來吧、青春！哦，把我的美好年華還給我！”，這只會是徒勞的。

【人生啟迪】

對每個人來說，青春都是別人無法奪去的內在財富。人生富有，要從青春時期開始積累。沒有意識到青春的價值，人生就好像是落了潮的荒灘；沒有珍惜過青春年華，人生的火焰就會想黯淡的殘燭；青春不是在搏擊與進取中度過，人生的回憶便是一杯平淡的白水。青春會在春夏秋冬的洗禮中悄然逝去，但是，青春時期創造的社會價值卻會像玫瑰香一樣飄在人生征途上，可以使你感到歡悅，聞到清香。