It was New Year's night. An aged man was standing at a window. He raised his mournfuleyes towards the deep blue sky, where the stars were floatinglike white lilies on the surface of a clear calm lake. When 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.

這是新年的夜晚。一位老人站在窗邊，憂傷的眼睛眺望著深藍的天空。空中的繁星猶如漂浮在清澈如鏡的湖面上的朵朵百合。他慢慢將目光投向地面，此刻，沒有什么人比他還絕望，邁向他最終的歸宿--墳墓。他已走過通向墳墓的六十級臺階，除了錯誤和悔恨，他一無所獲。現在，他體弱多病，精神空虛，心哀神傷，人到晚年無慰藉。

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 poisonoussnakes hissed and crawled.

年輕歲月，如夢般展現在他面前，老人想起父親把他帶到岔路口的那個莊嚴時刻--一條路通向安寧，快樂的世界，鮮花遍布，果實豐碩，甜美輕柔的歌聲在空中回蕩；另一條路則通向幽深黑暗，沒有盡頭的洞穴，洞內流淌著的不是水而是毒液，群魔亂舞，毒蛇嘶嘶爬動。

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.

他仰望星空，痛苦的大喊：”啊，青春，回來吧！啊，父親，再一次帶我到人生的岔路口吧，我會選一條更好的道路。“但是，他的父親和青春歲月都已經一去不復返了。

He saw the lights flowing away in the darkness. 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 sorrow, struck deeply into his heart. Then he remember his friends in his childhood, which entered life together with him. But they had made their way to success and were now honored and happy on this New Year's night.

他看到亮色在黑暗中流逝，就像他揮霍掉的往昔；他看到一顆流星自天邊墜落，消失不見，就像是他的化身。無盡的悔恨，像一支利箭，深刺心間。他又記起和自己一同邁入人生之途的兒時玩伴。但他們已功成名就，在這個新年之夜，倍受尊崇，幸福快樂。

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 to look towards the heaven where his father lived. His darkened eyes were full of tears, and with a despairing effort, he burst out a cry:" Come back, my early days! Come back!"

高高的教堂鐘樓傳來敲鐘聲，這聲音使他記起父母早年對他的疼愛。他們教育他，為他祈禱。然而，他卻選擇了錯誤的道路。羞愧和悲哀使他再也沒有勇氣仰望父親所在的天堂。黯淡的雙眼噙滿了淚水，他絕望地嘶聲大呼：”回來吧，我的往昔！回來吧！”

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.

他的青春真的回來了，所有這些只是一個夢，一個他在新年之夜所做的夢。他仍然年輕，雖然他犯的錯誤是真實的；他尚未走入那幽深黑暗的洞穴，還有自由選擇通向安寧，快樂的道路。

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

仍在人生路口徘徊，仍在為是否應當選擇光明坦途而猶豫不決的人們啊，請記住：當青春不再，當你的雙腳在黑暗的山嶺間跌絆時，你會痛苦地呼喊”啊，青春，回來吧！啊，還給我往昔吧！“此時，一切已是徒勞。

更多內容》》》英語頻道

我要報班》》英語學習課程

（實習編輯：劉偉）