英语名篇诵读 生活的九条准则

Nine Rules to Live By

生活的九条准则

Og Mandino(奥格·曼狄诺)

1. Whenever you make a mistake or get knocked down by life, don't look back at it too

long. Mistakes are life's way of teaching you. Your capacity for occasional blunders is

inseparable from your capacity to reach your goals. And your failures, when they happen, are

just part of your growth. How will you know your limits without an occasional failure? Never quit.

Your turn will come.

2. Always reward your long hours of labor¹ and toil² in the very best way, surrounded by your

family. Nurture³ their love carefully, remembering that your children need models, not critics,

and your own progress will hasten when you constantly strive to present your best side to your

children. And even if you have failed at all in the eyes of the world, if you have a loving family,

you are a success.

3. Let your actions speak for you, but be forever on guard against the terrible traps of false

pride and conceit⁴ that can halt your progress. The next time you are tempted⁵ to boast, just

place your fist in a full pail of water, and when you remove it, the hole remaining will give you a

correct measure of your importance.

4. Each day is a special gift from God, and while life may not always be fair, you must never

allow the pains, hurdles⁶ and handicaps of the moment to poison your attitude and plans for

yourself and your future. You can never win when you wear the ugly cloak of self-pity, and the

sour sound of whining⁷ will certainly frighten away any opportunity for success. Never again.

There is a better way.

5. Live this day as if it will be your last. Remember that you will only find “tomorrow” on the

calendars of fools. Forget yesterday's defeats, and ignore the problems of tomorrow. Make it the

best day of your year. The saddest words you can ever utter are, “If I had my life to live over

again...” Take the baton⁸ , now. Run with it! This is your day!

6. Beginning today, treat everyone you meet, friend or foe⁹ , lover or stranger, as if they

were going to be dead at midnight. Extend to each person, no matter how trivial the contact, all

the care and kindness, understanding and love that you can muster¹⁰ , and do it without thought

of any reward. Your life will never be the same.

7. Never neglect the little things. Never skimp¹¹ on the extra effort, that additional few

minutes, that soft words of praise or thanks, that delivery of the very best that you can do. It does

not matter what others think, it is of prime importance, however, what you think about you. You

can never do your best, which should be your trademark¹² , if you are cutting corners and

shirking responsibilities. You are special. Act it. Never neglect the little things!

8. You will achieve your grand dream, a day at a time, so set goals for each day — not long

and difficult projects, but chores that will take you, step by step, toward your rainbow . Write

them down, if you must, but limit your list so that you won't have to drag today's undone¹³ matters

into tomorrow. Remember that you cannot build your pyramid in twenty-four hours. Be patient.

Never allow your day to become so cluttered¹⁴ that you neglect your most important goal — to

do the best you can, enjoy this day, and rest satisfied with what you have accomplished¹⁵.

9. Realize that true happiness lies within you. Waste no time and effort searching for peace

and contentment and joy in the world outside. Remember that there is no happiness in having or in

getting, but only in giving. Reach out. Share. Smile. Hug. Happiness is a perfume you cannot pour

on others without getting a few drops on yourself.

1. 每当你犯了错误或被生活击倒时，不要过久地回头张望。错误是生活教育你的方

式。你偶尔犯错的能力与你达到目标的能力紧密相连。失败是你成长中的一部分。没有偶

尔的失败，你怎知自己的局限？不要放弃。你的转机就会来临。

2. 总是以最好的方式，与家人在一起，犒劳自己长时间的辛劳。用心滋养家人的爱，

记住你的孩子们需要榜样，而不是批评家。当你不断努力把自己最好的一面展现给孩子们

时，你的进步就加快了。即使你在世人眼中一无是处，只要你有一个充满爱的家，你就是

一个成功者。

3. 让你的行动说话，但永远提防会妨碍你进步的妄自尊大和自负。下次你禁不住要吹

牛时，就把一只拳头放进一满桶水里，拿出拳头时，水中留下的洞将使你能够正确地测出

你的斤两。

4. 每个日子都是上帝的特殊礼物，虽然生活并不总是公平的，但决不要让一时的痛

苦、障碍和种种不利毒害你的态度，妨碍你为自己和未来制订的计划。如果你愁容满面，

自怜自哀，你永远不会赢。酸楚的抱怨声肯定会吓跑任何成功机会。再不要这样。会有更

好的办法。

5. 把今天当作最后一天去过。记住，你只能在傻瓜的日历里才能找到“明天”。忘记昨

天的失败，不管明天的问题。使今天成为你一年中最好的日子。你能说出口的最糟糕的话

是：“但愿我能重新活一次……”现在拿起接力棒，带着它跑！这是你的日子！

6. 从今天开始，对待遇到的每一个人，无论是朋友或敌人，情人或陌生人，好像他们

在午夜就会离开人世。向每一个人，无论亲疏，献出你全部的关心、仁慈、理解和爱心，

而且不求回报。你的生活会更精彩。

7. 决不要忽视小事情。不要吝啬额外的努力，不要吝啬多几分钟，不要吝啬温柔的赞

扬或感谢，不要吝啬给出你最好的东西。别人怎么看待你无关紧要，但你如何看待自己至

关重要。如果你走捷径，逃避责任，你就不可能做得最精彩，而你的人生本该出彩。你是

独特的。行动吧。决不要忽视小事情。

8. 你可以每天一点点去实现你的宏伟梦想，这样，每天确定的目标——不是长久而困

难的目标，而是很平常的目标，将带着你一步步走向彩虹般的梦想。如有必要，把这些目

标写下来，但要限制你的清单，不要过多，以免今天做不完而拖到明天。记住，你不能在

24小时之内建成你的金字塔。要有耐心。切勿让日子被事务塞满，而忽视了你最重要的目

标——尽力而为，欣赏今天，并为所取得的心满意足。

9. 记住，真正的幸福存在于心灵深处。不要浪费时间和精力在外部世界中去寻找平

静、满足和快乐。记住，快乐不在拥有或得到中，而只在付出中。伸出双臂。分享。微

笑。幸福是香水，你要先洒几滴在自己身上，才能倾洒到别人身上。

1 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

2 toil   

vi.辛劳工作，艰难地行动；n.苦工，难事

参考例句：

• The wealth comes from the toil of the masses.财富来自大众的辛勤劳动。
• Every single grain is the result of toil.每一粒粮食都来之不易。

3 nurture   

n.养育，照顾，教育；滋养，营养品；vt.养育，给与营养物，教养，扶持

参考例句：

• The tree grows well in his nurture.在他的培育下这棵树长得很好。
• The two sisters had received very different nurture.这俩个姊妹接受过极不同的教育。

4 conceit   

n.自负，自高自大

参考例句：

• As conceit makes one lag behind,so modesty helps one make progress.骄傲使人落后，谦虚使人进步。
• She seems to be eaten up with her own conceit.她仿佛已经被骄傲冲昏了头脑。

5 tempted   

v.怂恿（某人）干不正当的事；冒…的险（tempt的过去分词）

参考例句：

• I was sorely tempted to complain, but I didn't. 我极想发牢骚，但还是没开口。
• I was tempted by the dessert menu. 甜食菜单馋得我垂涎欲滴。

6 hurdles   

n.障碍( hurdle的名词复数 )；跳栏；（供人或马跳跃的）栏架；跨栏赛

参考例句：

• In starting a new company, many hurdles must be crossed. 刚开办一个公司时，必须克服许多障碍。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• There are several hurdles to be got over in this project. 在这项工程中有一些困难要克服。 来自辞典例句

7 whining   

n. 抱怨，牢骚 v. 哭诉，发牢骚

参考例句：

• That's the way with you whining, puny, pitiful players. 你们这种又爱哭、又软弱、又可怜的赌棍就是这样。
• The dog sat outside the door whining (to be let in). 那条狗坐在门外狺狺叫着（要进来）。

8 baton   

n.乐队用指挥杖

参考例句：

• With the baton the conductor was beating time.乐队指挥用指挥棒打拍子。
• The conductor waved his baton,and the band started up.指挥挥动指挥棒，乐队开始演奏起来。

9 foe   

n.敌人，仇敌

参考例句：

• He knew that Karl could be an implacable foe.他明白卡尔可能会成为他的死敌。
• A friend is a friend;a foe is a foe;one must be clearly distinguished from the other.敌是敌，友是友，必须分清界限。

10 muster   

v.集合，收集，鼓起，激起；n.集合，检阅，集合人员，点名册

参考例句：

• Go and muster all the men you can find.去集合所有你能找到的人。
• I had to muster my courage up to ask him that question.我必须鼓起勇气向他问那个问题。

11 skimp   

v.节省花费，吝啬

参考例句：

• She had to skimp to send her son to college.她必须节俭来供她儿子上大学。
• Older people shouldn't skimp on food or heating.老年人不应过分吝惜食物或取暖方面的开销。

12 trademark   

n.商标；特征；vt.注册的…商标

参考例句：

• The trademark is registered on the book of the Patent Office.该商标已在专利局登记注册。
• The trademark of the pen was changed.这钢笔的商标改了。

13 undone   

a.未做完的，未完成的

参考例句：

• He left nothing undone that needed attention.所有需要注意的事他都注意到了。

14 cluttered   

v.杂物，零乱的东西零乱vt.( clutter的过去式和过去分词 )；乱糟糟地堆满，把…弄得很乱；（以…） 塞满…

参考例句：

• The room is cluttered up with all kinds of things. 零七八碎的东西放满了一屋子。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• The desk is cluttered with books and papers. 桌上乱糟糟地堆满了书报。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

15 accomplished   

adj.有才艺的；有造诣的；达到了的

参考例句：

• Thanks to your help,we accomplished the task ahead of schedule.亏得你们帮忙,我们才提前完成了任务。
• Removal of excess heat is accomplished by means of a radiator.通过散热器完成多余热量的排出。