他打開了我的心靈

He Opened My Mind

He sat on the lawn， a hard cardboard lying before him， his dog squatting beside him. On the cardboard it wrote， \"I'm in trouble， feeling very hungry and begging for your help.\"

I was a woman who was easily moved when I saw someone need help. For my peculiarity， my husband both loved and hated. I pulled over our van， watching the man and his dog from therearview mirror. He was still very young， perhaps only 40 years old. He wrapped his head with a large handkerchief， just like a motorcyclist or a pirate. He was dirty with a scraggly beard. All he had was only a small parcel. No one stopped for him. I saw other drivers only see him once and immediately looked away.

It was hot outside. From the man's deep blue eyes， I saw his frustration， boredom and exhaustion， sweat streaming down his face.

I reached into my wallet and produced a banknote of 10 dollars. My 12-year-old son Nick immediately knew what I was going to do. \"Can I bring it to him， Mom?\"

\"Be careful， dear，\" I warned him as I handed the money to him. From the rearview mirror I watched him running quickly to the man and gave him the money with a shy smile. I saw the man was shocked to stand up， take the money and put it into his pocket. \"Great，\" I thought， \"at least he can eat a warm dinner tonight.\" I felt satisfied and proud. Now I would go for my business.

When returning to the car， Nick looked at me with sad and pleading eyes， \"Mommy， his dog looks so hot. The man is really good.\" I thought I had to do something else.

\"Go back to tell him waiting there for a while until we come back in 15 minutes，\" I told Nick. He jumped off the car and ran to tell that stranger. Then， we drove to the nearest store and carefully chose gifts. \"The things cannot be too heavy，\" I explained to the kids， \"they must be the ones that he can carry.\" We finally bought something， a bag of dog food and two bottles of water as well as some fast food for the man.

We quickly went back and found he was still there waiting for us. No one stopped for him yet. With trembling hands， I grabbed the shopping bags and moved out of the car， followed my four children， each of them with a gift. When we were walking towards him， I felt a flash of fear thrilling through my mind， hoping that he was not a serial killer， or any other dangerous man. I looked into his eyes and saw he was trying to hold back his tears like a small boy.

I told him that I hoped these things were not too heavy for him， and showed him all the things we bought. When I took out the plate for water， he snatched it from my hand， as if it was made of gold. He told me before that he had no way to give his dog water. He put it down carefully， poured the bottle of water into it， stood up and looked straight into my eyes. His eyes were so blue， so nervous; when he said， \"Madam， I don't know what to say，\" my eyes brimmed over with tears. Then， he held his head wrapped with a large handkerchief in both hands and broke into tears.

Tearfully， I said with a smile， \"You don't have to say anything.\"

When we boarded our van and drove on， he knelt on the grass， held his dog with his arms and kissed its nose with a smile. I waved my hand cheerfully， and then allowed my tears to course down.

At this moment， my daughter Brandy turned to me and said in the sweetest voice of a little girl， \"I feel really great now.\"

On the surface it seems that we helped him， but in fact he gave me a gift I would never forget--it had impacted on my children profoundly.

In the following years， my children had all grown up and become useful people to the society. At a charity speech， my son Brundy told this story to the audience. He concluded in the end， \"It influenced me so greatly that it made me know that regardless of a person's appearance， their mind should get goodwill， compassion and acceptance. It was the stranger who opened my mind.\"

他坐在草地上，面前擺著一張硬紙板，他的狗蹲伏在旁邊。硬紙板上寫著:“我陷入了困境，感到很餓，懇求得到幫助。”

我是一個看到有人需要幫助就容易動心的人。丈夫對我這一特性既愛又恨。我把我們的有篷貨車開過去，從后視鏡里注視著那個男人和狗。他還很年輕，也許只有40歲。他用一條大手帕裹住頭，就像摩托車手或海盜。他身上很臟，胡子拉碴。他所有的東西只是一個小包裹。沒有人為他停留。我看見別的司機只對他看一眼，就立即把目光移向了別處。

外面很熱。我從那個男人深藍色的眼睛里看出了他的沮喪、厭倦和疲憊，汗水如溪流般從他的臉上流下來。

我把手伸進錢包，抽出一張10美元的鈔票。我12歲的兒子尼克立刻知道我要做什么了。“我能把它拿去送給他嗎，媽媽?”

“小心點，親愛的。”我一邊警告他，一邊把錢遞給他。我從后視鏡里注視著他飛快地向那個男人跑去，然后帶著羞澀的微笑把錢遞給他。我看見那個男人震驚地站起來，接過錢，把它放進自己的口袋。“好極了，”我心想，“至少，他今晚可以吃一頓熱飯了。”我感到既滿意又驕傲。現在我要去辦自己的事了。

尼克回到汽車里時，眼含悲傷和懇求看著我:“媽媽，他的狗看起來是那么熱，那人真的很好。”我想我還得再做一些事。

“回去告訴他在那兒等一會兒，我們15分鐘后就回來。”我告訴尼克。他跳下汽車，跑過去告訴那個陌生人。然后，我們開車來到最近的一家商店，仔細挑選禮物。“東西不能太重。”我向孩子們解釋，“必須是他能拿得動的才行。”我們終于買好了東西，一包狗食、兩瓶水(一瓶給狗的，一瓶給那個男人的)，還為那個男人買了一些快餐食品。

我們迅速返回，他還在那兒等著我們。仍然沒有人為他停留。我顫抖著雙手，抓起購物包，走出汽車，四個孩子都跟在我身后，每個人都拿著禮物。當我們向他走去時，我的心里閃過一瞬間的恐懼，希望他不是一個連環殺人犯或其他什么危險人物。我望著他的眼睛，只見他正像小男孩一樣在竭力忍住自己的淚水。

我告訴他，我希望這些東西對他來說不是太重，并把我們買的東西拿給他看。當我取出那個盛水的盤子時，他一把將它從我的手里抓過去，好像它是用金子做成的似的。他告訴我，在此之前，他沒有辦法給他的狗水喝。他小心翼翼地將它放下，把我們買的那瓶水倒在里面，站直身子，直直地看著我的眼睛。他的眼睛是那么藍、那么緊張，當他說“夫人，我不知道該說什么”時，我的眼睛里充滿了淚水。然后，他用兩手抱著他那用大手帕裹著的頭，哭了起來。

我含著眼淚，微笑著說:“你什么也不必說。”

當我們登上車繼續前進時，他在草地上跪下來，用胳膊摟著他的狗，親吻它的鼻子，微笑著。我高高興興地揮了揮手，然后任由淚水流淌。

這時，我的女兒布蘭迪轉身面對我，用最甜美的小女孩的聲音說:“我現在感覺真的好極了。”

雖然從表面上看，似乎是我們幫助了他，但實際上他卻給了我一件令我永遠難忘的禮物——這件事對我的孩子們的影響意義深遠。

在其后的數年里，我的孩子們都陸續長大成人，成了對社會有用的人。在一次慈善演講會上，我的兒子布倫迪向聽眾們講述了這個故事。他在最后總結時說道:“那件事對我影響很大，它讓我懂得，不管一個人的外表怎樣，他們的內心都應該得到善意、同情和認可。是那個陌生人打開了我的心靈。”

注釋:

1.cardboard n. 紙板;硬紙板

2.squat vi. 蹲伏

3.peculiarity n.特色;特性

4.van n.有篷貨車

5.rearview mirror n. (汽車等的)后視鏡

6.pirate n.海盜

7.scraggly adj.(發須)蓬亂的

8.frustration n.挫敗;挫折;受挫

9.produce vt.拿出

10.pleading adj. 懇求的;請求的

11.hold back 抑制

12.snatch vt.(常與away，from連用)攫取;搶

13.course vi. 流動

14.impact on 對……產生影響

15.profoundly adv.意味深長地;意義深遠地

16.charity n.慈善

17.regardless of 不管

18.compassion n. 同情;憐憫