《牧羊少年奇幻之旅》 91 男孩倾听自己的心声

"My heart is a traitor," the boy said to the alchemist, when they had paused to rest the horses. "It doesn't want me to go on."

“我的心非常叛逆。”当两人停下来，让马匹歇歇脚的时候，男孩对炼金术士说，“它不愿让我继续前行。”

"That makes sense," the alchemist answered.

“这很好。”炼金术士回答。

"Naturally it's afraid that, in pursuing your dream, you might lose everything you've won."

“这证明你的心很活跃。为一个梦想而失去已经到手的一切，有点担心也情有可原。”

"Well, then, why should I listen to my heart?"

“那么，我为什么要倾听自己的心声呢？”

"Because you will never again be able to keep it quiet.

“因为你永远不能让它沉默。

Even if you pretend not to have heard what it tells you, it will always be there inside you,

即使你佯装不听它的话，它还是会在你的胸膛里，

repeating to you what you're thinking about life and about the world."

反复倾诉它对生活和世界的看法。”

"You mean I should listen, even if it's treasonous?"

“即使它违背我的意志？”

"Treason is a blow that comes unexpectedly. If you know your heart well, it will never be able to do that to you.

“违背意志是你不希望受到打击。如果你对自己的心非常了解，它就永远打击不到你。

Because you'll know its dreams and wishes, and will know how to deal with them."

因为你将了解它的梦想和愿望，并知道怎样应对。

"You will never be able to escape from your heart. So it's better to listen to what it has to say.

谁也不能逃避自己的心，所以最好倾听心在说什么。

That way, you'll never have to fear an unanticipated blow."

只有这样，你才永远不会遭受意外的打击。”

The boy continued to listen to his heart as they crossed the desert.

他们在沙漠中赶路的时候，圣地亚哥继续倾听自己的心声。

He came to understand its dodges¹ and tricks, and to accept it as it was.

他早已熟悉心所耍的手腕和种种花招，并接受了它的表现。

He lost his fear, and forgot about his need to go back to the oasis², because, one afternoon, his heart told him that it was happy.

于是，男孩不再害怕，并放弃了返回绿洲的打算，因为有一天下午，他的心告诉他，它非常满意。

"Even though I complain sometimes," it said, "it's because I'm the heart of a person, and people's hearts are that way.

“即便我有点抱怨，”他的心说道，“也是因为我是人类的一颗心，人心全都如此。

People are afraid to pursue their most important dreams, because they feel that they don't deserve them, or that they'll be unable to achieve them.

它们害怕实现更大的梦想，因为认为自己不配有这样的梦想，或者无法实现这样的梦想。

We, their hearts, become fearful just thinking of loved ones who go away forever,

我们的心就害怕得要命，一想到爱情去而不返，

or of moments that could have been good but weren't, or of treasures that might have been found but were forever hidden in the sands.

本该美好的时刻却并非如此，本该发现的财宝却永埋沙下。

Because, when these things happen, we suffer terribly."

因为一旦这种情况发生，我们将会痛苦异常。”

1 dodges   

n.闪躲( dodge的名词复数 )；躲避；伎俩；妙计v.闪躲( dodge的第三人称单数 )；回避

参考例句：

• He tried all sorts of dodges to avoid being called up. 他挖空心思，耍弄各种花招以逃避被征召入伍。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Those were the dodges he used to escape taxation. 那些是他用以逃税的诡计。 来自辞典例句

2 oasis   

n.（沙漠中的）绿洲，宜人的地方

参考例句：

• They stopped for the night at an oasis.他们在沙漠中的绿洲停下来过夜。
• The town was an oasis of prosperity in a desert of poverty.该镇是贫穷荒漠中的一块繁荣的“绿洲”。