Be happy

Davy Jones

Jntroduction

“感恩是唯一的生活态度。 ”不管你遇到了什么样的挫折与低谷，什么样的失败与打击，你都要学会感恩，这会让你在风雨之后遇到彩虹。

Twenty years ago I was living in Seattle and going through hard times. To my shame I was driving a school bus to make ends meet although I had a Masters degree. I had been through five interviews with a company and one day they called to say I did not get the job. I went to the bus barn（车 库） like a zombie （僵 尸 ）of disappointment.

Later that afternoon， I had an inner wave—like a scream—arising from deep inside me and I thought “Why has my life become so hard?”

Immediately after this scream I pulled the bus over to drop off a little girl who handed me an earring saying I should keep it in case somebody claimed it. The earring said “BE HAPPY”.

At first I got angry. Then it hit me. I had been putting all of my energies into what was wrong with my life rather than what was right!I decided to make a list of 50 things I was grateful for.

At first it was hard， then it got easier. One night there was a phone call for me from a lady who was a manager at a large hospital. About a year earlier I had taught at a community college to give a course on stress management. She asked me if I would do a one-day lesson for 200 hospital workers. I said yes and got the job.

My day with the hospital workers went very well. I got a standing ovation（热烈鼓掌）and many more days of work. To this day I know that it was because I changed my attitude to gratitude.

Incidentally， the day after I found the earring，the girl asked me if anyone had claimed it.I told her no and she said， “I guess it was meant for you then.”

I spent the next year conducting training workshops and then decided to go back to Scotland where I had lived previously. One month later I met my wonderful English wife and best friend of 15 years now. We live in a small beautiful cottage.

“The only attitude is gratitude”has been my motto for years now and yes， it completely changed my life.

Reading Check

1.Why did the author feel shameful according to paragraph 1？

A.He was going through much trouble then.

B.He lost heart entirely in face of difficulties.

C.He was repeatedly turned down by employers.

D.He worked as a driver despite his Masters degree.

2.What can be inferred about the author's lesson for the hospital workers？

A.It was a difficult task.

B.It was a lasting job at first.

C.It totally changed the author's later life.

D.It brought along the author much fortune.3.What does the author intend to tell us by writing this text？

A.To recall one of his hardest times.

B.To stress the importance of gratitude.

C.To give practical advice to job hunters.

D.To be in memory of a little helpful girl.

Language Study

从《一朵红红的玫瑰》到生动形象的明喻（simile）

比喻语言具有一种诗一般的特点，它是语言中最活跃、最常用的修辞方式之一。 比喻可分 为 明 喻(simile)、 隐 喻(metaphor) 和 提 喻(synecdoche)三类。明喻(simile)是上述比喻的一种。它是就两个截然不同的事物之间的相似处进行比较，表明本体和喻体的相类关系。 明喻的表现形式各异，但它们所起的修辞作用和语言效果无不生动、具体、形象，因而留给读者隽永深长、耐人寻味的艺术魅力。

like句型是英语明喻中最基本的表现形式。 本体(the tenor) 说明客观事物， 喻体(the vehicle)用以说明比喻的事物。句型中的谓语动词大多数是be，但也可用其他动词。

The water of the pool was too dirty， and what was more， the swimmers were packed like sardine. 游泳池里的水太脏，在池里，游泳的人就像沙丁鱼一样挤在一起。

这是一个非常生动、形象、传神的比喻。作者把挤在游泳池里的人们比作 “拥挤的沙丁鱼”， 给人的直观印象是： 游泳池里人如此之多，水如此之脏。水面上泛起一层白色，就像一大锅骨头汤似的。

再请看：

O my Luve's like a red, red rose，

That's newly sprung in June;

O my Luve's like the melodie，

That's sweetly play'd in tune.

啊，我的爱人像朵红红的玫瑰，

它在六月里初开；

啊，我的爱人像支乐曲，

美妙地演奏起来。

红玫瑰作为爱情的象征源于古希腊神话。传说红玫瑰是爱神阿佛罗狄忒(Aphrodite)用自己的鲜血化出的：她为了安慰被野猪刺伤的情人阿多尼斯(Adonis)，将自己用荆棘刺伤，鲜血流出把玫瑰染红了。因此，在情人节，恋人们以红玫瑰相赠，表示真挚的爱。文学作品中以“玫瑰”喻指“爱情”的例子更是数不胜数。《一朵红红的玫瑰》(A Red, Red Rose) 是苏格兰诗人罗伯特·彭斯( Robert Burns)爱情诗的名篇之一。在这两句诗中，本体均是my Luve(love) ;喻体分别为a red， red rose that's newly sprung in June和the melodie that's sweetly play'd in tune;喻词均为like。 罗伯特·彭斯以“红红的玫瑰(a red，red rose)”这个意象比喻热恋的爱人(my Luve) ，着眼于“我的爱人”与“六月里初开的红玫瑰”之间的相似之处。感情真挚，节奏明快，歌颂了坚贞的爱情；字句质朴流畅，诗风自然清新，品读这首诗歌，如见其人，如闻其声。

本文使用了两处明喻，前者表达了作者失望茫然的心情，后者表达了作者内心情绪的冲突。 你能找到它们吗？