12-Let Us Smile

The thing that goes the farthest toward making life worthwhile,

That costs the least and does the most, is just a pleasant smile.

The smile that bubbles from the heart that loves its fellow men,

Will drive away the clouds of gloom and coax¹ the Sun again.

It'sfull of worth and goodness, too, with manly² kindness blent;

It’s worth a million dollars, and it doesn’t cost a cent.

There is no room for sadness when we see a cheery smile;

It always has the same good look; it’s never out of style;

It nerves us on to try again when failure makes us blue;

The dimples of encouragement are good for me and you.

It pays the highest interest — for it is merely lent;

It’s worth a million dollars, and it doesn’t cost a cent.

A smile comes very easy — you can wrinkle up with cheer,

A hundred times before you can squeeze out a salty tear;

It ripples³ out, moreover, to the heartstrings that will tug⁴,

And always leaves an echo that is very like a hug.

So, smile away! Folks understand what by a smile is meant;

It’s worth a million dollars, and it doesn’t cost a cent.

那最能赋予生命价值、代价最廉而回报最多的东西，

不过一个令人心畅的微笑而已。

由衷地热爱同胞的微笑，

会驱走心头阴郁的乌云，心底收获一轮夕阳。

它充满价值和美好，混合着坚毅的仁爱之心；

它价值连城却不花一文。

当我们看到喜悦的微笑，忧伤就会一扫而光；

它始终面容姣好，永不落伍；

失败令我们沮丧之时，它鼓励我们再次尝试；

鼓励的笑靥于你我大有裨益。

它支付的利息高昂无比──只因它是种借贷形式；

它价值连城却不花一文。

来一个微笑很容易──嘴角欢快翘起来，

你能百次微笑，可难得挤出一滴泪；

它的涟漪深深波及心弦，

总会留下反响，宛若拥抱。

继续微笑吧！谁都懂得它意味着什么；

它价值连城却不花一文。

1 coax   

v.哄诱，劝诱，用诱哄得到，诱取

参考例句：

• I had to coax the information out of him.我得用好话套出他掌握的情况。
• He tried to coax the secret from me.他试图哄骗我说出秘方。

2 manly   

adj.有男子气概的；adv.男子般地，果断地

参考例句：

• The boy walked with a confident manly stride.这男孩以自信的男人步伐行走。
• He set himself manly tasks and expected others to follow his example.他给自己定下了男子汉的任务，并希望别人效之。

3 ripples   

逐渐扩散的感觉( ripple的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The moon danced on the ripples. 月亮在涟漪上舞动。
• The sea leaves ripples on the sand. 海水在沙滩上留下了波痕。

4 tug   

v.用力拖(或拉)；苦干；n.拖；苦干；拖船

参考例句：

• We need to tug the car round to the front.我们需要把那辆车拉到前面。
• The tug is towing three barges.那只拖船正拖着三只驳船。