“The first thing that went through my mind was the well being of my soontoborn daughter，”Michael replied.“Then，as I lay on the ground，remembered I had two choices：I could choose to live or I could choose to die.I chose to live.”
“Weren’t you scared？Did you lose consciousness？”I asked.
Michael continued，“...the paramedics were great.They kept telling me I was going to be fine.But when they wheeled me into the operation room and I saw the expressions on the faces of the doctors and nurses，I got really scared.In their eyes，I read ‘He’s a dead man.’I knew I needed to take action.”
“What did you do？”I asked.
“Well，there was a big burly nurse shouting questions at me，”said Michael.“She asked me if I was allergic to anything.‘Yes，’I said.The doctors and nurses stopped working as they waited for my reply.I took a deep breath and yelled，‘Gravity’.Over their laughter，I told them，‘I’m choosing to live.Operate on me as if I am alive，not dead.’”
Michael lived，thanks to the skill of his doctors，but also because of his amazing attitude.I learned from him that every day we have a choice to live fully.Attitude is everything.
关键是态度
迈克尔是那种你真想恨一恨的家伙，他总是乐呵呵的，总是说些积极上进的话。如果有人问他近况如何，他会这样回答：“如果我还能再好，我就成双胞胎了！”他生来就会让人积极进取。
如果哪位雇员有天过得很糟糕，迈克尔会告诉他如何看待问题的积极一面。他的这种方式着实让我好奇，所以有一天我找到迈克尔问：“我真弄不明白。你怎么能总是那样积极乐观？你是如何做到这一点的？”
迈克尔回答说，“每天早晨醒来时我对自己说，‘迈克，今天你有两种选择。你可以选择心情愉快，你也可以选择心情恶劣。’我选择心情愉快。每次什么不愉快的事情发生时，我可以选择成为一个牺牲品，也可以选择从中吸取教训。我选择从中吸取教训。每次有什么人找我来抱怨，我可以选择接受他们的抱怨，也可以选择向他指出生活的积极面。我选择指出生活的积极面。”
“是的，不错。可并不那么容易呀。”我表示异议。
“其实很容易，”迈克尔说。“生活就是选择。从每一事物剔除一切枝节后剩下的都是一种选择。你选择如何应付生活中的种种情形。你选择他人会怎样影响你的情绪。你选择是心情愉快还是心情恶劣。说到底：如何生活是你自己的选择。”我琢磨着迈克尔的这席话。
那以后不久，我离开了工作数年的大企业去创建自己的公司。我们失去了联系，但当我对生活做出一种选择而非对它做出反应时，我时常想起迈克尔。几年之后，我听说迈克尔遭遇一场恶性事故，从一座通讯大楼的60英尺高处掉了下来。
在经历了18个小时的手术和数周的精心护理之后，迈克尔出院了，背部装有金属杆。大约事故半年之后，我见到了迈克尔。当我问他怎么样时，他回答，“如果我还能再好，我就成双胞胎了。想看看我的伤疤吗？”我拒绝看他的伤痕，但的确问了他事故发生时他是怎么想的。
“我首先想到的是我那即将出世的女儿的幸福生活，”迈克尔答道。“当时我躺在地上，我记起我有两种选择：我可以选择活着，也可以选择死。我选择了活。”
“你难道不害怕吗？你失去知觉了吗？”我问。
迈克尔接着说，“……那些护理人员棒极了。他们不停地告诉我我会好的。但当他们把我推进手术室，我看到医生和护士脸上的表情时，我真是吓坏了。在他们的眼里，我读出了‘他是个死人。’我知道我应该采取行动。”
“你采取了什么行动？”我问道。
“有一位人高马大的护士大声冲我问问题，”迈克尔说。“她问我是否对什么过敏。‘是的，’我说。医生和护士都停下手中的活儿等我回答。我深吸一口气大声说出，‘万有引力。’他们的笑声未了，我告诉他们，‘我选择活着。把我当活人而不是死人来做手术。’”
迈克尔活了下来，这要感谢那些医生的高明医术，但也要归功于他那令人赞叹的态度。我从他那里学到了我们每天都有机会充实地活着，关键是态度。
A Feeling of Eternity
No young man believes he shall ever die.It was a saying of my brother’s，and a fine one.There is a feeling of Eternity in youth，which makes us amend for everything.To be young is to be as one of the Immortal Gods.One half of time indeed is flown—the other half remains in store for us with all its countless treasures；for there is no line drawn，and we see no limit to our hopes and wishes.We make the coming age our own.The vast，the unbounded prospect lies before us.
Death，old age are words without a meaning that pass by us like the idea air which we regard not.Others may have undergone，or may still be liable to them—we “bear a charmed life”，which laughs to scorn all such sickly fancies.As in setting out on delightful journey，we strain our eager gaze forward—
Bidding the lovely scenes at distance hail！
—and see no end to the landscape，new objects presenting themselves as we advance；so，in the commencement of life，we set no bounds to our inclinations.nor to the unrestricted opportunities of grastifying them.we have as yet found no obstacle，no disposition to flag；and it seems that we can go on so forever.We look round in a new world，full of life，and motion，and ceaseless progress；and feel in ourselves all the vigour and spirit to keep pace with it，and do not foresee from any present symptoms how we shall be left behind in the natural course of things，decline into old age，and drop into the grave.
It is the simplicity，and as it were abstractedness of our feelings in youth，that（so to speak）identifies us with nature ，and（our experience being slight and our passions strong）deludes us into a belief of being immortal wlike it.Our shortlives connexion with existence we fondly flatter ourselves，is an indissoluble and lasting wunion—a honeymoon that knows neither coldness，jar，nor separation.As infants smile and sleep，we are wrocked in the cradle of our wayward fancies，and lulled into security by the roar of the universe around us；we quaff the cup of life with eager haste without draining it，instead of which it only overflows the moreobjects press arounds，filling the mind with their magnitude and with the strong of desires that wait upon them，so that we have no room for the thoughts of death.
青春常在
年轻人不相信自己会死。这是我哥哥的话，可算得一句妙语。青春有一种永生之感——它能弥补一切。人在青年时代好像一尊永生的神明。诚然，生命的一半已消逝，但蕴藏着不尽财富的另一半还有所保留，我们对它也抱着无穷的希望和幻想。未来的时代完全属于我们，无限辽阔的远景在我们面前展现。
死亡，老年，不过是空话，毫无意义；我们听了，只当耳边风，全不放在心上。这些事，别人也许经历过，或者可能要承受，但是我们自己，“在灵符护佑下度日”，对于诸如此类脆弱的念头，统统付之轻蔑的一笑。像是刚刚走上愉快的旅程，极目远眺向远方的美景欢呼！
此时，但觉好风光应接不暇！
而且，前程更有美不胜收的新鲜景致。在这生活的开端，我们听任自己的志趣驰骋，放手给它们一切满足的机会。到此为止，我们还没有碰上过什么障碍，也没有感觉到什么疲惫，因此觉得还可以一直这样向前走去，直到永远。我们看到四周一派新天地——生机盎然，变动不居，日新月异；我们觉得自己活力充盈，精神饱满，可与宇宙并驾齐驱。而且，眼前也无任何迹象可以证明，在大自然的发展过程中，我们自己也会落伍、衰老，进入坟墓。
由于年轻人天真单纯，可以说是茫然无知，因而将自己跟大自然划上等号；并且，由于经验少而感情盛，误以为自己也能和大自然一样永世长存。我们一厢情愿，痴心妄想，竟把自己在世上的暂时栖身，当作千古不变、万世长存的结合，好像没有冷淡、争执、离别的蜜月。像婴儿带着微笑入睡，我们躺在用自己编织成的摇篮里，让大千世界的万籁之声催哄我们安然入梦；我们急切切，兴冲冲地畅饮生命之杯，怎么也不会饮干，反而好像永远是满满欲溢；森罗万象纷至沓来，各种欲望随之而生，使我们腾不出工夫想死亡。
There Is No Better Than Here
Many people believe that they will be happy once they arrive at some specific goal they set for themselves.However，more often than not，once you arrive “there”you will still feel dissatisfied，and move your “there”vision to yet another point in the future.By always chasing after another “there”，you are never really appreciating what you already have right “here”.It is important for human beings to keep soberminded about the ageold drive to look beyond the place where you now stand.On one hand，your life is enhanced by your dreams and aspirations.On the other hand，these drives can pull you farther and farther from your enjoyment of your life right now.By learning the lessons of gratitude and abundance，you can bring yourself closer to fulfilling the challenge of living in the present.
Gratitude to Be Grateful