澆灌世界

王啟國/編譯

編者按：為滿足廣大愛好英語的讀者的要求，我們從本期起，每期刊登一篇中英文對照的佳作， 以饗英語愛好者。歡迎讀者對所刊登的譯文來電來信交流。

“澆灌郵差的時間到了。”我站在超市收銀處長長的隊伍里自言自語道。排在后面的女人假裝沒有聽到我的話。我轉(zhuǎn)過身時，她用眼睛的余光不安地看著我。“我每年都這樣做，”我笑著說，“所以我才買了這么多瓶裝水。”

“那好啊。”她有些警惕地說。

我付過賬后對收銀員說：“這是為我的郵差準備的。”

“我想他一定會充滿感激的，這個星期天氣可真熱啊。”她說。

離開時，我停下來換一只手提那一箱瓶裝水，聽到剛才排在身后的女人對收銀員說：“那個人瘋了嗎？他要澆灌他的郵差？！” 因為我每天都在這個超市購物，收銀員對我很熟悉，她解釋道：“他每年都會這樣做。天熱的時候，每天他都會放上幾瓶冰鎮(zhèn)礦泉水在門廊里，他說他的郵差很喜歡。”“哦，原來是這樣。”女人恍然大悟。

我出了超市，往家走。我知道自己為什么要這樣做。我把水放在門口，得到的回報是一個朋友。我們每個人都需要這樣做，關愛那些給我們的生活帶來便利的人，為我們認為是理所當然的事表示感謝。記得小時候每年圣誕節(jié)前送煤工來送煤的時候，爸爸都熱情地邀請他到屋里坐坐，并端上一杯熱飲和一些點心。我知道爸爸是在澆灌他的送煤工。

每次去超市購物的時候，我都會說一些感激的話，對收銀員的辛勤工作表示贊賞。我那樣做是想點亮他們的一天。

每次去比薩店的時候，我都會為那兒的服務員準備一份不菲的小費，盡管我都是自助消費。不要以為我這樣做是為了博取別人的表揚，那完全是出自內(nèi)心的行為，因為我知道涓涓小流匯集在一起，也能成江河。

下一次，你也澆灌一下你身邊的人吧，在澆灌別人的同時也滋潤了你自己。一滴善意的水珠能讓我們的世界更健康、富足、充滿希望。更重要的是：當這些水滴聚集在一起時，我們貧瘠龜裂的生活就盈潤飽滿了。

［譯自國外網(wǎng)站］

附英語原文：

Watering the World

By Bob Perks

“It's time to water the mailman，” I said.

The woman standing in line with me at the supermarket pretended not to hear me. When I turned toward her， she nervously looked at me out of the corner of her eye.

I smiled. “I do it every year，”I said. She smiled and shrugged her shoulders. “That's why I'm buying this case of bottled water，” I said.

“That's nice，”she replied warily.

I was next in line， so I paid for my items and said to the clerk，“This is for my mailman.”

“I'm sure he'll appreciate it. It's going to get really hot this week，” she said.

As I walked away I paused for a moment to readjust my grip on the case of water. I could hear the woman say，“Is he crazy？ He wants to water his mailman？”

The clerk，who knows me very well from shopping there almost daily，began to explain，“He does this every year. He puts a few bottles out on his porch in ice every day when the weather gets hot. He tells me the mailman loves it.”

“Oh，that's what he meant，” she said. I continued out the door and headed home.

I thought about it for a while. I know why I do it. I do it because I appreciate him...rain，snow，sleet， heat，whatever...he delivers.

Watering the mailman. Actually，it's a good analogy. I take care of him. I add to his day. In turn， I have gained a friend. I think we need to do that in our relationships. We need to tend to those people who bring something special to our lives. We need to appreciate the things we take for granted.

I remember my father inviting the coal man into our house when he delivered coal to us the day before Christmas. He offered him a drink and some snacks. He was “watering the coal man.”

Every time I go shopping I always make appreciative comments to the clerks. I do it to brighten their day.

I give a tip to the girl at the pizza shop even when I am just picking it up myself.

Please don't see this as bragging. It doesn't call for praise. It's really something we should do all the time. Those little things add up. In the big picture， they make the world a little more bearable.

Like a gentle shower on a garden， the water represents life. A tiny drop of kindness makes the world healthier，better off，and perhaps more hopeful. Yes，that's it. All those little things， those tiny drops of water，add up to make waves in a dry and barren life.