父親所忘的

明天是父親節, 請您一起分享短文 -- "父親所忘記的".

祝福天下所有的父子有親, 父女有愛!
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'Father Forgets' was first published several decades ago. Since then it has been published several times in well known books and magazines including 'Readers Digest'. The famous author Dale Carnegie found it worth inserting it in his best seller ‘How to win friends and influence People’.

【父親所忘記的】- 雷米特 著

我兒，你靜靜的聽著：
我在你酣睡去的時候這樣說，你的小手掌壓在你的頸下，金色的頭髮給汗水黏貼在你額上，我悄悄的近來你地房裡。

那是幾分鐘前，我在書房看書的時候，突然一股強烈的悔意，激動了我的心，使我失去了抗禦，使我感到自咎的來到你的床沿。

孩子，這些是我所想到的事----我覺得我對你太嚴苛了。你早晨穿衣上學的時候，你用毛巾輕輕擦了下臉，我就責備了你；由於你沒有把鞋拭乾淨，我也責備了你；當我看到你把東西亂丟在地上時，我也大聲的責備你。

吃早餐的時候，我挑剔你的過錯；說你這又不對，那又不是‧‧‧‧你把臂肘擱在桌上，你在麵包上敷的奶油太多。

當你開始去遊戲，而我去趕火車的時候，你轉過身來，向我揮手說：『爹地，再見！』我又把眉皺了起來，說：『快回家去！』

午後，這一切的情形又再重新開始。我從外面回來，發現你跪在地上玩石子，你襪子上有許多破洞，我看到那些小朋友羞辱你，馬上叫你跟我回來。買襪子要花錢；如過你自己花錢買的話就會特別小心了！孩子，你想想，這種話竟然是由一個父親的口中說了出來！

你還記得嗎？後來我在書房看報的時候，你畏怯的走了進來，眼裡含著傷感的神情。當我抬起頭看到你時，又覺得你來攪擾我，而覺得很不耐煩。我惱怒的問你：『你想幹甚麼？』
你沒有說甚麼，突然跑過來，投進我的懷裡，用手臂摟著我的頭顱，吻我‧‧‧你那小手緊緊的摟著我，那是充滿了孺慕的熱情。這種孺慕的熱情是上帝栽種在你心裡的，像一朵鮮麗的花朵，雖然是被人忽略了，可是不會枯萎。

你吻了我後，就離開我，跑上樓去了。

孩子，你走後沒多久，我的報紙從手上滑了下，來突然一種可怕的痛苦和恐懼，襲擊到我身上。那事惜慣支配了我，整天責罵你，增厭你；吹毛求疵的挑剔你的過錯。難道這是我對你的一種獎勵？孩子，不是爹地不愛你，不喜歡你，那是我對你的期望太高了，我用了我現在自己的年紀來衡量你。其實，你的品性中有很多的優點，都是令人喜愛的，你幼小的心靈，就像晨曦中的一線曙光‧‧‧這些都由你突然的返近來吻我、說晚安的真情表現出來。孩子，在這寂靜的夜晚，我悄悄的來到你房裡，內疚不安的向你懺悔，這是一個不懂事的父親，一個可憐的父親。

如果你沒有睡去，我向你說出這些話，在你赤子的心理，也不會瞭解的。
可是，明天我必須要做到的是，做一個真正的好父親。你笑的時候，我也跟著笑，你痛苦的時候，我願意陪同你承受這些痛苦。

當我有時沉不住氣要責罵你時，我會咬自己的舌頭，把這話阻止下來。我會對自己不斷的這樣說：『是的，他只是一個幼小的孩子‧‧‧他還是個小孩子。』

我恐怕自己已把你看作一個成年人了。我現在看到你疲憊的酣睡在小床上；現在我明白過來了，你還是個小孩子。昨天你還躺在你母親的懷裡，你把頭依偎在她的肩上。是的，你還是個眷戀著慈母愛撫的小孩子，我對你的要求實在太多了..............太多了！

[另一個版本的翻譯]

孩子！你听我说！当我进来时，你已经睡着了。你把一只小小的手掌压在腮旁，你前额的汗把你的金发贴住。还只几分钟之前，我的心中曾引起一阵思潮，使我不由自主地跑来看你。
孩子！我深深悔悟，以前我是待你大凶狠了！你晨起洗脸粗忽，挨我一顿恶骂；你皮鞋忘了擦净，受我一阵痛斥；你随地乱丢东西，我就暴跳如雷。0早点时，我怪你打翻杯子，怪你吃得太急，怪你不该把手肘搁上桌沿，怪你在面包上涂了过多的牛油。当我出门，你送我出来，并问我道别时我粗声恶气地说“进去！”

下午我回来了。一切情形仍是如此。我在路上碰见你正在与小朋友们伏在地上玩石子，我就当面把你申斥一顿，扯你回家。我教训你说：“你看你把袜子都弄破了，你知道它们是你爸爸用血汗换来的吗？”试想：说这话的是你的亲爸爸呀！

以后我走到书房去读报、你就跟了进来，你那种懦弱可怜的样儿，我一看见你就又怒声喝道：“进来干什么？”可是你没有回答我，却突然奔到我的跟前，两手绕住我的脖子，狂一般地吻我。我猛然感到一种不可磨灭的爱!我看见你后来放开手臂走了，但是我自己呢？一种茫然无措的心境占据了我，手中的报纸已经不知什么时候滑落。

我想起来了！以往我做了些什么？我一直把你看做像我一样的大人。我要求你应该和我一样懂事，但却忽略了你的年龄，——你还是一个小孩子哩!我整天用斥责、厌恨、吹毛求疵来对付一个像你这样的小孩子！

我想起来了！你是多么天真而又光明哟！这一切在你吻我并道晚安时完全表现出来了。孩子，我不想再说什么。现在窗外夜色茫茫，我已悄悄地在你床前跪下仟悔。我知道这一番话即使在你醒着时告诉你。你也不会懂得。可是现在我已下了决心：从明天起决不再向你恶气粗声地斥骂了。我要做你的好爸爸，好朋友；我要跟着你笑，跟着你愁；我要永远记住一句话，“你还是一个天真的小孩子！”

我后悔不该用成人的眼光，对你过于苛求。瞧，你睡得多么天真！我完全知道了，你还不过是一个小小的孩子呀！你昨天还把头倚在母亲的怀里睡呢！我太糊涂了。


視頻:戴爾-卡內基朗讀的原文:

"Father Forgets" by Livingston Larned, As read by Dale Carnegie.

[Original Text]

Father Forgets
© W. Livingston Larned

Listen, son: I am saying this as you lie asleep, one little paw crumpled under your cheek and blond curls stickily wet on your damp forehead. I have stolen into your room alone. Just a few minutes ago, as I sat reading my paper in the library, a stifling wave of remorse swept over me. Guiltily I came to your bedside.

These are the things I was thinking, son: I had been cross to you. I scolded you as you were dressing for school because you gave your face merely a dab with a towel. I took you to task for not cleaning your shoes. I called out angrily when you threw some of your things on the floor.

At breakfast I found fault, too. You spilled things. You gulped down your food. You put your elbows on the table. You spread butter too thick on your bread. And as you started off to play and I made for my train, you turned and waved a hand and called, "Good-bye, Daddy!" and I frowned, and said in reply, "Hold your shoulders back!"

Then it began all over again in the late afternoon. As I came up the road I spied you, down on your knees, playing marbles. There were holes in your socks. I humiliated you before your friends by marching you ahead of me to the house. Socks were expensive, and if you had to buy them you would be more careful! Imagine that, son, from a father!

Do you remember, later, when I was reading in the library, how you came in, timidly, with a sort of hurt look in your eyes? When I glanced up over my paper, impatient at the interruption, you hesitated at the door. "What is it you want?" I snapped.

You said nothing, but ran across in one tempestuous plunge, and threw your arms around my neck and kissed me, and your small arms tightened with an affection that God had set blooming in your heart and which even neglect could not wither...and then you were gone, pattering up the stairs.

Well, son, it was shortly afterwards that my paper slipped from my hands and a terrible sickening fear came over me. What has habit been doing to me? The habit of finding fault, reprimanding--this was my reward to you for being a boy. It was not that I did not love you; it was that I expected too much of youth. It was measuring you by the yardstick of my own years.

And there was so much that was good and fine and true in your character. The little heart of you was as big as the dawn itself over the wide hills. This was shown by your spontaneous impulse to rush in and kiss me goodnight. Nothing else matters tonight, son. I have come to your bedside in the darkness, and I have knelt here, ashamed!

It is a feeble atonement; I know you would not understand these things if I told them to you during your waking hours. But tomorrow I will be a real daddy. I will chum with you, suffer when you suffer, and laugh when you laugh. I will bite my tongue when impatient words come. I will keep saying as if it were a ritual, "He is nothing but a boy, a little boy!"

I am afraid I have visualized you as a man. Yet as I see you now, son, crumpled and weary in your bed, I see that you are still a little boy. Yesterday you were in your mother's arms, your head on her shoulder. I have asked too much, too much.