The Many Moods We Pass Through
情感之旅:我们经历的多种情绪
词汇:考研| 句法:四级| 文本:考研
刘立军 供稿
Often we overlook the fact that our emotions are as transient as the skies above, a truth seemingly etched in the cosmos since our creation. Our spirits are in a state of perpetual motion, mirroring the restless parade of weather systems across a fickle sky.
我们常常忽视一个事实:我们的情绪就像头顶的天空一样变幻无常,这一真相似乎自我们诞生之日起就被铭刻在宇宙之中。我们的精神处于不断变化的状态,就像变幻莫测的天空中不断变化的天气系统。
Thus, permanence is an illusion: a peaceful, beautiful day will likely be succeeded by a gloomy one, a tranquil morning by a tempestuous afternoon, and a fierce storm by a calm sunset.
因此,永恒只是一种幻觉:平静美好的一天很可能会紧跟着阴郁的一天,宁静的早晨可能会紧跟着狂风暴雨的下午,猛烈的风暴可能会紧跟着平静的日落。
We persistently seek stability, as if we were unyielding stone. We assert our beliefs, preferences, and desires as if they were unchangeable. Yet, life has a way of challenging these assertions with a headache, a sleepless night, digestive issues, a fleeting moment of joy, a surge of energy, or a pang of conscience, turning our world upside down.
我们不断地寻求稳定性,就好像我们是坚不可摧的石头一样。我们坚定地表达我们的信仰、喜好和愿望,就好像它们是不可改变的。然而,生活总是通过头痛、难眠之夜、消化问题、片刻欢愉、能量爆发或良心刺痛等方式来挑战这些说法,把我们的世界掀翻过来。
We must move with more caution, quietly acknowledging the provisional nature of our convictions. This job seems to make perfect sense for now. I feel I’ve figured things out for now. This is who I am for now. Our emotional landscape can shift dramatically with minor fluctuations in our serotonin levels.
我们必须更加谨慎地行事,默默承认我们的信念其实是暂时的。这份工作看起来很合适,但只是现在。我觉得自己把事情都想清楚了,但只是现在。这就是我,但只是现在。我们的整个情绪状态可能会随着血清素水平的轻微波动而发生显著变化。
There’s a humorous interplay between the body and the mind, a dance between our higher cognitive functions and our basic physiological needs. We might believe our views on politics or love, our judgments on literature or friendships, are founded on solid, unbiased ground. Yet, we often fail to recognize how much our convictions are influenced by the most basic of factors, such as sleep or blood sugar levels. We might solemnly declare life not worth living, only to realize later that what we needed was rest or a glass of orange juice.
身体和心灵之间存在着一种幽默的互动,就像是一场我们高级认知功能与基本生理需求之间的舞蹈。我们可能认为我们对政治或爱情的观点、对文学或友谊的判断是建立在坚实、无偏见的基础之上的。然而,我们往往没有意识到,我们的信念在多大程度上受到睡眠或血糖水平等最基本因素的影响。我们可能会庄严地宣布生活不值得继续过下去,但后来才意识到,我们所需要的可能只是一场休息或一杯橙汁。
By keeping this in mind, we can be more compassionate and understanding towards those around us. Their midnight confessions of hatred or never wanting to see a loved one again might simply be a sign that it’s late, and a heavy meal at that hour was unwise.
记住这一点,我们对周围的人就更能共情,更能理解他们。他们深夜倾诉对某人的憎恨,或者再也不愿见到所爱之人等等,可能仅仅是因为夜深了,而在那个时候吃一顿油腻大餐是不明智的。
Recognizing our emotional complexity is especially helpful during dark moments when our inner sky is devoid of hope. With experience, we learn that even if we can’t see a way out at the moment, if we patiently wait, something will eventually come to disperse the clouds of despair. And when we’re on the mountaintops of joy, unable to fathom why we ever felt sadness, we should remember that life’s seasons change, and autumn’s winds will come.
在我们的内心天空一片绝望的黑暗时刻,认识到情绪的复杂性尤其有帮助。凭借经验,我们了解到即使目前看不到出路,如果耐心等待,绝望的乌云终会被驱散。而当我们处于喜悦之巅,无法理解为何自己曾经感到悲伤时,应该记得,生活的季节总会变迁,秋风终将吹拂而来。
We falter by prematurely etching our identity in stone, declaring “this is me and always will be.” But life is more like a series of weather events ― a heatwave, a squall, a shower, an Indian summer. We desire constancy, but we are more like air and water, gas and heat, currents and fronts. We should approach our beliefs with a healthy, amused skepticism, always ready with an umbrella for life’s unpredictable storms.
我们过早地将自己的身份刻板化,宣称“这就是我,永远都是”,从而踉跄前行。但生活更像是一系列气候变化——热浪、暴风雨、阵雨或是深秋的回暖天。我们渴望稳定,但我们更像是空气和水、气体和热量、洋流和气团。我们应该以一种健康、带一点幽默的怀疑态度来看待我们的信念,随时准备好一把伞,来应对生活中不可预测的风暴。
【词汇】
1. etch v. 雕刻,铭记
2. fickle adj. 多变的,不稳定的
3. permanence n. 永久,持久
4. tempestuous adj. 暴风雨般的,动荡的
5. fleeting adj. 短暂的,一闪而过的
6. provisional adj. 临时的,暂时的
7. serotonin n. 血清素(神经递质,亦影响情绪等)
8. interplay n. 相互影响,相互作用
9. devoid adj. 缺乏的,完全没有的
10. fathom v. 理解,彻底明白
11. falter v. 蹒跚,犹豫,畏缩不前
12. squall n. 狂风暴雨,突然的一阵
13. Indian summer 深秋初冬季节的一段异常温暖的时期,给人带来意外的温暖和舒适。
14. constancy n. 恒定性,不变性
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