Farewell Letter 加西亞·馬爾克斯：我的告別信

張燕

加西亞·馬爾克斯是20世紀最有影響力的作家之一，也是拉丁美洲魔幻現實主義文學的開山鼻祖，代表作有《百年孤獨》、《霍亂時期的愛情》等，并于1982年獲得了諾貝爾文學獎。1999年，時年72歲的馬爾克斯患上了淋巴癌，于是他寫了一封言辭懇切的信，與讀者們鄭重道別。

If God， for a second， forgot what I have become and granted me a little bit more of life， I would use it to the best of my ability.1

I wouldnt possibly， say everything that is in my mind， but I would be more thoughtful of all I say… I would give merit to things not for what they are worth， but for what they mean to express.2

I would sleep less， I would dream more， because I know that for every minute that we close our eyes， we waste 60 seconds of light. I would walk while others stop； I would awake while others sleep， and I would listen when others talk， and how I would enjoy a good chocolate ice cream！

If God would give me a little bit more of life， I would dress in a simple manner， I would place myself in front of the sun， leaving not only my body， but my soul naked.3

My God， if I had a heart， I would write my hatred on ice and wait for the sun to come out. With a dream of Van Gogh I would paint on the stars a poem by Benedetti， and a song by Serrat would be my serenade to the moon.4 With my tears I would water the roses， to feel the pain of their thorns and the incarnated kiss of their petals5... My God， if I only had a scrap of6 life.

To all ， I would say how mistaken they are when they think that they stop falling in love when they grow old， without knowing that they grow old when they stop falling in love.

I would give wings to children， but I would leave it to them to learn how to fly by themselves.

To old people I would say that death doesnt arrive when they grow old， but with forgetfulness.

I have learned so much with you all， I have learned that everybody wants to live on top of the mountain， without knowing that true happiness is obtained in the journey taken and the form used to reach the top of the hill.7

I have learned that when a newborn baby holds， with its little hand， his fathers finger， it has trapped8 him for the rest of his life.

I have learned that a man has the right and obligation to look down at another man， only when that man needs help to get up from the ground.9

Say always what you feel， not what you think. If I knew that today is the last time that I am going to see you asleep， I would hug you with all my strength and I would pray to the Lord to let me be the guardian angel of your soul.

If I knew that these are the last moments to see you， I would say “I love you”.

There is always tomorrow， and life gives us another opportunity to do things right， but in case I am wrong， and today is all that is left to me， I would love to tell you how much I love you & that I will never forget you.

Tomorrow is never guaranteed10 to anyone， young or old. Today could be the last time to see your loved ones， which is why you mustnt wait； do it today， in case tomorrow never arrives. I am sure you will be sorry you wasted the opportunity today to give a smile， a hug， a kiss， and that you were too busy to grant them their last wish.

Keep your loved ones near you； tell them in their ears and to their faces how much you need them and love them. Love them and treat them well； take your time to tell them “I am sorry”； “forgive me”， “please”， “thank you”， and all those loving words you know！

Nobody will know you for your secret thought.11 Ask the Lord for wisdom and strength to express them. Show your friends and loved ones how important they are to you.

For you， With much love，

Your Friend，

Gabriel Garcia Marquez

1. 如果上帝一時忘記了我現在的樣子，再多賜予我一段時間的話，我一定盡力不辜負這一段時光。

2. 我評判事物的標準不再是它本身的價值，而是它代表的意義。merit： 價值，功過。

3. 如果上帝賞我一段生命， 我會簡裝素服，在陽光下袒露的不僅是身體，還有我的靈魂。

4. 我會用梵高的夢在星星上畫一首貝內德蒂的詩，而色拉特的歌將是我獻給月亮的小夜曲。Van Gogh： 梵高（Vincent van Gogh， 1853—1890），荷蘭最偉大的畫家之一；Benedetti： 馬里奧·貝內德蒂（Mario Benedetti， 1920—2009），烏拉圭著名詩人、作家和文學批評家；Serrat： 色拉特（Joan Manuel Serrat， 1943— ），西班牙著名唱作人；serenade： 小夜曲。

5. thorn： 刺；incarnated： 具體化的，人格化的； petal： 花瓣。

6. a scrap of： 少量的。

7. 與你們在一起我所獲良多，我了解到每個人都想立于巔峰之上，殊不知，真正的幸福恰恰就存在于攀登峰頂的過程和方式中。

8. trap： 捕獲，抓住。

9. 我了解到，一個人只有在幫助別人站起來時才有權利俯視別人。obligation： 義務，職責。

10. guaranteed： 有保證的。

11. 沒人會因你秘而不宣的想法而了解你。