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也许我给予大卫的某种东西，至少我从他哪里学到了很多。我懂得了时间如何使人克服看上去无法逾越的痛苦，我学会了帮助需要我帮助的人。大卫还使我明白，一个人怎样才能不通过语言而去帮助他人。所需的只是一个拥抱，一个痛哭时可以依偎的肩头，一次友好抚慰，一种同情的本性，以及一双聆听的耳朵。

David

Years ago,when I was working as a psychologist at a children's institution in England , an adolescent boy showed up in the waiting room ,It was David.

David wore a black raincoat that was buttoned all the way up to his neck. His face was pale,and he stared at his feet while wringing his hands nervously.He had lost his father as an infant,and had lived together with his mother and grandfather since. But when David turned 13,his grandfather died and his mother as killed in a car accident . He was very depressed,refusing to talk to others.

The first two times we met,David didn't say a word. He sat in the chair and only looked up at the children's drawings on the wall. As he was about to leave after the second visit,I put my hand on his shoulder.He didn't shrink back,but he didn't look at me eigher.

"Come back next week,"I hesitated a bit. Then I said,"I know it hurts."

He came,and I suggested we play a game of chess.He nodded,After that we played chess very Wednesday afternoon----in complete silence and without making any eye contact. It's not wasy to cheat in chess,but I admit that I made sure David won once or weice.

It seemed as if he enjoyed my company. But why did he never look at me ?"Perhaps he senses that I respect his suffering." I kept wondering and playing with him,until some months later, suddenly,he looked up at me ,"It's your turn," he said.

After that day ,David started talking.He got friends in school and joined a bicycle club.Hw wrote to me a few times , the letters stopped. Now he had really started to live his own life.

Maybe I gave David something.At least I learned a lot from him. I learned how time makes it possible to voercome what seems to be an insuperable pain. I learned to be there for people who need me. And David showed me how one --without any words--can reach out to another person. All it takes is a hug,a shoulder to cry on ,a friendly touch ,a sympathetic nature--and a ear that listens.

参考译文

拯救大卫

许多年前，我是英国一所儿童机构的心理医生，有一天，一个十几岁的男孩出现在候诊室，他叫大卫。

大卫穿着一件黑色的雨衣，扣子一直扣到脖颈。他脸色苍白，眼睛紧盯着自己的双脚，同时还紧张地扭搓着双手。大卫很小的时候就失去了父亲，一直同母亲和祖父生活在一起。在13岁那年的时候，他的祖父去节了，母亲也在一次车祸中丧生。他情绪低落，不跟任何人说话。

在我们头两次见面时大卫一句话也没说。他坐在椅子上，抬起头时也只是看着我身后墙上孩子们画的画。他第二次来后，在他将要离开的时候，我将手放在他的肩上，他没有退缩着躲开，也没有看我一眼。

“如果愿意，下周还来吧。”我犹豫了一下说，“我知道你很难过。”

他的确来了，我提议两人下象棋，他点头同意了。之后，我们每周三下午下棋---但都不说话，他也从不和我对视。下棋时作弊并不容易，不过我得承认，我的确有意让大卫赢过一两次。

看上去他很喜欢和我在一起，但是为什么他从不看我一眼呢？“也许他只是需要有人为他分担痛苦，”我想，“也许他只是需要有人为他分担痛苦，”我想，“也许他觉得我尊重他的苦楚。”与他下棋时我一直带着这样的疑问，直到几个月后，突然，大卫抬头看着我，说道：“该你了。”

自那天起，大卫开始说话了。他在学校里有了朋友，并加入了一个自行车俱乐部。他给我写过几次信，在信中他还告诉我他将设法去上大学。一段时间之后，他就不再写信了。现在他已经真正开始了自己的生活。

也许我给予大卫的某种东西，至少我从他哪里学到了很多。我懂得了时间如何使人克服看上去无法逾越的痛苦，我学会了帮助需要我帮助的人。大卫还使我明白，一个人怎样才能不通过语言而去帮助他人。所需的只是一个拥抱，一个痛哭时可以依偎的肩头，一次友好抚慰，一种同情的本性，以及一双聆听的耳朵。

词汇释义

psychologist:心理医生
adolescent:青春期的,青少年的
wring :搓
infant:婴儿,幼儿
shrink:畏缩,本能地退却
hesitate:犹豫
insuperable:无法逾越的
reach out to sb.高某人伸出手,帮助某人
sympathetic:同情的,表示同情的