TED演讲：你为何不会成就伟业(6)

 　　And if you don't find the highest expression of your talent, if you settle for "interesting," 而且如果你找不到你才能的最高表达，如果你在“有意思”这里止步不前，

　　what the hell ever that means, do you know what will happen at the end of your long life? 不管这他妈的是什么意思，你知道在你漫长的一生即将结束的时候会发生什么吗？

　　Your friends and family will be gathered in the cemetery¹, and there beside your gravesite will be a tombstone, 你的亲友们聚集在墓地里，在这，你的坟边上有个墓碑，

　　and inscribed² on that tombstone it will say, "Here lies a distinguished³ engineer, who invented Velcro." 这个墓碑上刻着字，写道，“此地长眠着一位发明了Velcro的杰出工程师。”

　　But what that tombstone should have said, in an alternative lifetime, 但是这个墓碑上也应该刻着，在一个平行时空里，

　　what it should have said if it was your highest expression of talent, was, 如果这是你才能的最高表达它就应该刻着，

　　"Here lies the last Nobel Laureate in Physics, who formulated⁴ the Grand Unified⁵ Field Theory and demonstrated the practicality of warp⁶ drive." “此地长眠着一位诺贝尔物理学奖得主，他规范了大统一场论，并且示范了曲速引擎的实用性。”

　　Velcro, indeed! One was a great career. One was a missed opportunity. Velcro，确实！一个是伟业。一个是失掉的机会。

　　But then, there are some of you who, in spite of all these excuses, you will find, you will find your passion. And you'll still fail. 但是，你们当中有些人，抛开这些借口，你们会找到，你们会找到自己的热忱，然后你们还是失败了。

　　You're going to fail, because -- because you're not going to do it, because you will have invented a new excuse, 你会失败，因为，因为你不会着手去做，因为你会想出新的借口，

　　any excuse to fail to take action, and this excuse, I've heard so many times: 任何让你只说不做的借口，而且这个借口我已经听过很多次了。

　　"Yes, I would pursue a great career, but, I value human relationships -- more than accomplishment⁷. “是的，我会追求一番伟业，但是相比成就，我更看重人与人之间的关系。

　　I want to be a great friend. I want to be a great spouse⁸. 我想做一个好朋友。我想做一个好伴侣。

　　I want to be a great parent, and I will not sacrifice them on the altar of great accomplishment." 我想做一个好父母，而且我不会为了伟大的成就而牺牲这些。”

1 cemetery   

n.坟墓，墓地，坟场

参考例句：

• He was buried in the cemetery.他被葬在公墓。
• His remains were interred in the cemetery.他的遗体葬在墓地。

2 inscribed   

v.写，刻( inscribe的过去式和过去分词 )；内接

参考例句：

• His name was inscribed on the trophy. 他的名字刻在奖杯上。
• The names of the dead were inscribed on the wall. 死者的名字被刻在墙上。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 distinguished   

adj.卓越的，杰出的，著名的

参考例句：

• Elephants are distinguished from other animals by their long noses.大象以其长长的鼻子显示出与其他动物的不同。
• A banquet was given in honor of the distinguished guests.宴会是为了向贵宾们致敬而举行的。

4 formulated   

v.构想出( formulate的过去式和过去分词 )；规划；确切地阐述；用公式表示

参考例句：

• He claims that the writer never consciously formulated his own theoretical position. 他声称该作家从未有意识地阐明他自己的理论见解。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• This idea can be formulated in two different ways. 这个意思可以有两种说法。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

5 unified   

(unify 的过去式和过去分词)； 统一的； 统一标准的； 一元化的

参考例句：

• The teacher unified the answer of her pupil with hers. 老师核对了学生的答案。
• The First Emperor of Qin unified China in 221 B.C. 秦始皇于公元前221年统一中国。

6 warp   

vt.弄歪，使翘曲，使不正常，歪曲，使有偏见

参考例句：

• The damp wood began to warp.这块潮湿的木材有些翘曲了。
• A steel girder may warp in a fire.钢梁遇火会变弯。

7 accomplishment   

n.完成，成就，（pl.）造诣，技能

参考例句：

• The series of paintings is quite an accomplishment.这一系列的绘画真是了不起的成就。
• Money will be crucial to the accomplishment of our objectives.要实现我们的目标，钱是至关重要的。

8 spouse   

n.配偶(指夫或妻)

参考例句：

• Her spouse will come to see her on Sunday.她的丈夫星期天要来看她。
• What is the best way to keep your spouse happy in the marriage?在婚姻中保持配偶幸福的最好方法是什么？