The Two Roads 兩條路的抉擇

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, and he had brought from his journey nothing but errors and remorse. Now his health was poor, his mind empty, 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 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 in 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 lives. 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.

【日積月累】

mournful adj. 悲傷的

remorse n. 悔恨

resound v. 回響

hiss v. 嘶嘶作聲

grief n. 悲痛

【參考譯文】

這是新年之夜。一個老人站在櫥窗邊，他睜開悲傷的眼睛注視著深藍色的天空，只見繁星如同那白色的百合在清澈平靜的湖面上漂浮著。接著，他又把視線轉(zhuǎn)向地面，他看見有幾個比他更無助的人正朝著他們的目的地——墳?zāi)?/FONT>——走去。他已經(jīng)年過60，而他的人生經(jīng)歷留給他的除了過失和悔恨以外，一無所有。而今他身體很差，精神空虛，內(nèi)心悲傷，而且他的年邁急需慰藉。