在赛马场谋生活的男孩

Many years ago I drove a taxi for extra money. I primarily worked in the east end of Toronto. This was back in the days when the Greenwood Racetrack was in operation.

很多年前，我做过一阵兼职出租车司机。我主要在多伦多东区拉活。当时，格林伍德赛马场还营业着。

The track was a pretty lively place. Crowds of people were always streaming in and out. I did a lot of business down there dropping off fares and picking them up. When I think of those days, I remember one particular summer about 30 years ago.

这座赛马场是个非常热闹的地方，总是不断地有许多人进进出出。我的大量业务就是到那里接送这些来来往往的人。当我回想那段日子时，总会记起三十年前的一个夏天。

Each time a taxi drove up to the front of the track, a group of local kids would run along the sidewalk angling for a position by the passenger door. One lucky kid, or to be more accurate the most aggressive kid, would open the passenger door and say "Good luck at the track, Mister!"

每当有出租车开到赛马场门前时，都会有一群当地的孩子沿着人行道跑过来，抢占出租车停下来时乘客门的位置。某个幸运的孩子，或者更准确地说是最积极的孩子，会打开乘客门，说一句：“先生，祝您在赛马场好运！”

The man getting out of the cab would invariably mumble 'thanks' and flip the kid a quarter on his way from the taxi to the entrance of the track.

从出租车上下来的人总是嘴里咕哝一句：“谢谢”，然后在从出租车到赛马场入口的路上用手指弹给那个孩子一枚25分的硬币。

It was a routine that everybody knew. Sometimes the cops would chase these kids away but they always came back a couple of hours later or the next day.

当时每个人都知道这个规矩。有时，会有警察把这些孩子们赶走，但每次他们都会在几个小时后或者第二天就回来。

Throughout the summer, one kid caught my eye. He was bigger than most of them but he was pushed away by even the smallest of all the other kids. He never pushed back. In fact, he would even step aside when others pushed forward. He was actually courteous in the midst of all these aggressive kids.

整个夏天，有一个孩子给我留下了深刻的印象。他在那群孩子中算个头比较高的，但即使最矮小的孩子也能把他推开。而且，他被推开时，从来没有还过手。事实上，当别人向前推搡时，他甚至会让开。他在这些积极的孩子中，显得太有礼貌了。

Each time my cab or any other cab drove up it was another chance for those kids to be the one to open the door and say, "Good luck Mister!" and maybe get a quarter. This kid never stopped trying. He would watch the cab approach, figure out where it would stop along the sidewalk and then try his best to get to the door. He never made it. He always got pushed aside. But he never gave up. Then one day his chance arrived.

每当我的出租车或其他出租车驶来时，都是一次新的机会让这些孩子成为那个打开车门并说上一句“先生，祝您好运！”的人，或许还能得到一枚25分的硬币。那个孩子从来没有停止过这样的尝试。他会注视着出租车驶来，判断其将要停靠在人行道旁的位置，然后尽最大努力靠近车门。但他从来没成功过。他总是被推到一边。不过，他也从来没有放弃。终于有一天，他的机会来了。

As I was pulling up to the sidewalk all the kids were scrambling for a cab that had arrived just ahead of mine. They didn't notice me pulling up. Only the boy saw me and walked towards my taxi. As I pulled up I made sure to position the passenger door right beside him. He didn't miss a beat. He opened the passenger door with a flourish and said to the man getting out, "Good luck at the track, Mister!"

当我要把我的出租车停在人行道旁时，所有孩子们都在争抢一辆刚刚在我之前到达的出租车的开门机会。他们没有注意到我的车要停下来。只有那个男孩看见了，并朝我的出租车走来。我故意把车停在了最靠近他的位置。他没错过机会。他用一个有点夸张的姿势打开了乘客门，对要下车的人说：“先生，祝您在赛马场好运！”

But the man who got out of my cab did not say thanks. He did not flip him a quarter. He said, "Get out of my way kid!" and he pushed him aside so hard that the boy fell on the sidewalk and I knew it hurt him bad. I was out of the cab in less than 10 seconds but I knew I would never find the man that pushed this boy down. He was gone in the crowd.

但是，从我出租车里出来的那个人并没有说谢谢，也没有弹给他25分的硬币，只仍下了一句：“小孩儿，别挡我的路！”，然后把男孩推到一边，因为推的力气太大，男孩摔倒了人行道上。我知道这深深地伤害到了孩子。我用了不到10秒钟就下了车，但我知道我永远也找不到那个推倒男孩的人。他已经消失在人群中了。

So I looked for the kid. I decided to give him $20 for his efforts and gumption that he had shown. By the time I spotted him he was far up ahead, walking away through the crowd, hands in his pockets and his head hanging down. I could not get to him. The other cabs behind mine were honking their horns and drivers were screaming obscene words at me, telling me to move the cab. The traffic cop was waving at me to get back in my taxi and get going.

于是，我开始找那个孩子。我决定给他20元，以鼓励他付出的努力，以及表现出来的进取精神。当我发现他的时候，他已经在我前面很远的地方了，正双手插在衣服口袋里，耷拉着脑袋，穿过人群向远处走去。我没法去追他。我后面的出租车正不停地按着喇叭，而且车上的司机们正冲我叫骂着，让我把车挪开。而且，交警正向我挥手示意，让我回到我车上，把车开走。

The kid was walking the opposite way. By the time I got the cab turned around I lost sight of him. All I could do was pound my fist on the steering wheel. I never saw him again.

那个孩子正朝相反的方向走去。当我掉头把车子转过来的时候，他已经从我的视线中消失了。我能做的只是重重地把拳头砸在方向盘上。从此我再也没见过他。

Over time I have thought about that kid. I thought I would like to find him one day and tell him that if only he had stuck around a little longer I would have given him a whole $20 instead of the lousy quarter he was after, because I was so struck by his spirit.

随着时间的过去，我经常会回想起那个孩子的事情。我希望有一天会找到他，告诉他如果他再多呆一会儿，我就会给他整整20元，而不是那可怜的25分，因为我被他的精神打动了。

After 30 years I realized that maybe I learned an important lesson from this kid. And maybe I am supposed to pass it along.

30年后，我意识到也许我从这个孩子身上学到了一些很重要的东西。也许我应该把它们传播给更多的人。

When things seem so hopeless that you are ready to give up, that is the time when things are most likely to turn around for you. One day we will all be recognized for how we tried. Not necessarily for what we did. So don't ever let up on, or walk away from integrity, then you will be rewarded.

当事情看起来如此绝望，以至于你已做好放弃的准备时，也是事情最有可能向你有利的方向转变的时候。终究有一天，我们会得到别人的认可，是因为我们怎样去尝试的，而并不一定是因为我们做了什么。所以，永远不要放弃，也不要偏离诚实正直的道路，如此以往，我们终将得到回报。