It was 1st January, the first day of the year and a holiday for me. What luck! I started by thinking of getting the bank work out of the way. The bank person, an elderly gentleman with a white beard, was, as usual, curt¹ to my polite "Happy New Year." He nodded and I sat in front of him.

那天是1月1日，新年的第一天，也是我的假日。真幸运！我开始盘算到银行去把工作办妥。给我办理业务的银行职员是一位老先生，留着一捋白胡子。他像平常一样简洁地回应我那句礼貌的“新年快乐”。他对我点点头，我便坐到他面前。

Minutes passed and nothing happened.

几分钟过去了，什么事情也没发生。

Then very hesitantly I put my form and booklet in front of him. He was busy filling up entries in his register. After a few minutes he took my form and from his cabinet he took out a very thick file from which he started filling in my details. I sat there wondering why we had computerized banking² if we were still filling in forms and registers.

然后，我万分犹豫地把自己的表格和小册子放到他面前。他正忙着往登记簿里录入条目。过了几分钟，他拿起我的表格，从文件柜里抽出一本厚厚的档案文件，开始登记我的信息。我坐在那里，不禁疑惑既然我们要人工填写表格和登记簿，那还要电脑化的银行业务来干嘛呢。

After waiting for a few more minutes, in which I showed all signs of being impatient, I asked him if my work was done. The moment I uttered the words, I felt as if a bombshell had fallen on him. He shouted, "Nothing is done, it will take time!"

在继续等待的几分钟里，我表现出各种不耐烦的小动作。我问他我的业务是否办理好了。就在我说话的那一刻，我觉得那像一颗炸弹落在他的身上。他大声吼道：“全都没办好，这需要时间！”

Just then I saw his morning cup of tea which had been lying there for the last ten minutes, untouched. The tea had turned almost cold while he was doing his work. Suddenly I felt what this man, who had been working at this counter for the last God-knows-how-many years, must be feeling when customers like me come who are always in a hurry to get their work done. We do not even feel the need to thank them for being there. He must be feeling so agitated³ that "here comes another person who will push me for doing his work first."

就在那个时候，我发现在刚刚过去的十分钟里，他那杯早晨热茶一直放着，一口都没喝。这杯茶在他工作时几乎凉掉了。突然之间，我明白了，当遇到像我这样总是急着想把业务办完的顾客时，这位在银行的这个窗口里干了不知道多少年的人会有怎样的感受。我们从未想过要感谢他们一直坚守岗位。他一定会很激动地想：“这次又是一个催着我快点帮他办事的家伙。”

On an instinct I told him, "Sir, you please have your tea, I am not in a hurry." This man, who I had been seeing for the last few years, suddenly looked up at me and for the first time we had eye contact—he had never made eye contact earlier. I saw a different person there, another human being who was as hard-pressed for time as I always am.

我本能地对他说：“先生，请您先喝一口茶吧，我不赶时间。”这位过去几年来我已经见过无数次的先生突然抬头看着我，这是我们第一次目光接触——之前他从未正眼看过我。我看到了一个截然不同的人，另一个和我一样为时间饱受压力的人。

I saw both of us sailing in the same boat. I felt that he was also missing the small things in life like a hot cup of tea or lying in a warm bed for a few more minutes like me. He gave me a rare smile and said, "It is an everyday affair with me; you are not in a hurry but somebody else will come who will be in a hurry."

我看出我们同是天涯沦落人。我感觉到他和我一样错过了许多生活中的小事，比如一杯热茶，或是在温暖的床上多躺几分钟。他少有地对我笑了笑，说：“这是我每天的工作；虽然你不赶时间，但总有其他匆匆忙忙的后来人。”

He really touched my heart with his wise words. I felt that we had all put shields on our hearts like we put gloves on our hands; we are scared to show our heart and reveal too much of ourselves. I felt that all this time I thought of him as a robot, someone who was there for my convenience, but today I suddenly felt a strange communion with him. I vowed⁴ to be more empathetic and friendly with people who help me with my work and be thankful that they are there for me.

他那睿智的话语触动了我的心。我觉得我们总是给内心罩上防护盾，就像给双手戴上手套那样；我们害怕显露自己的内心或曝露太多自我。这些年来我总把他看作一个机器人，一个为我提供便利的存在，但今天我突然感到与他产生了一种奇妙的情感交融。我发誓日后定当更加替他人着想，对协助我的工作的人更加友好，并为他们出现在我的身边而心怀感激。