By Lin Yu Tang
I think that from a biological standpoint, human life almost reads like a poem. It has its own rhythm and beat, its internal cycles of growth and decay. It begins with innocent childhood, followed by awkward adolescence trying awkwardly to adapt itself to mature society, with its young passion and follies, its ideals and ambitions; then it reaches a manhood of intense activities, profiting from experience and learning more about society and human nature; at middle age, there is a slight easing of tension, a mellowing of character like the ripening of fruit or the mellowing of good wine, and the gradual acquiring of a more tolerant, more cynical and at the same time a kindlier view of life; then in the sunset of our life, the endocrine glands decrease their activity, and if we have a true philosophy of old age and have ordered our life pattern according to it, it is for us the age of peace and security and leisure and contentment; finally, life flickers out and one goes into eternal sleep, never to wake up again. One should be able to sense the beauty of this rhythm of life, to appreciate, as we do in grand symphonies, its main theme, its strains of conflict and the final resolution.
No one can say that a life with childhood, manhood and old age is not a beautiful arrangement; the day has its morning, noon and sunset, and the year has its seasons, and it is good that it is so. There is no good or bad in life, except what is good according to its own season. And if we take this biological view of life and try to live according to the seasons, no one but a conceited fool or an impossible idealist can deny that human life can be lived like a poem.
人生就像一首诗
从生物学角度来看，我认为人生读起来就像一首诗。人生有着独特的律动和节奏，有着内在的发展和衰退周期。人生始于天真无邪的童年时代，随之而来的是不知所措的少年时代，笨手笨脚地努力适应成熟的社会。在此期间，既有青春的激动和傻气，也有人生的理想和野心。紧接着就到了紧张激烈的成年时期，人们从经验中受益，更多地了解社会和人性。人值中年，可以稍事放松，此时性格趋于成熟，如同成熟的果实和甘醇的美酒；人生态度逐渐变得更加宽容，更加冷峻，同时也更加仁慈。再往后，就到了人生夕阳时代。此时，内分泌腺活动减弱。假如我们真正参透老年哲学，并据此安排我们的生活模式，晚年对我们来说就是平和、安定、闲适、满足的岁月。最后，生命之火熄灭，一个人永远睡去，不再醒来。我们应该能够感受人生节奏之美，如同欣赏宏大的交响乐，我们能够欣赏它的主题，它的冲突段以及最后的和声。
谁也不能否认，由童年、成年和晚年构成的人生是一种绝妙的安排。一日之中有清晨、正午和日落，一年之中有四季。大自然如此安排自有其道理。人生并无好坏之分，只有看能否适应“季节”才可以品评优劣。假如我们能从这种生物学角度来看待人生，尽量顺时而生，适季而活，除了傲慢自大的傻瓜和无可救药的理想主义者，谁又能否认，人生可以像一首诗。 |
