内心的国王

Everyone has a king inside. If you want to talk to him， the king will appear.

Outside our hotel in Ho Chi Minh City， Vietnam， a seemingly ancient woman on crutches waited beside the door with her hand outstretched. Every day I put my hand in hers as our eyes met. She never failed to return my smile， my grasp， and my greeting.

On the last day of our visit， I found myself alone on a busy corner across the street from our hotel. Bicycles and motorbikes careened in front of me. Tonight I was by myself and felt inadequate to face the torrent of vehicles. As I hesitated on the curb， I felt a hand on my elbow and looked down to see the smile of my small beggar friend who was looking up at me. She nodded her head toward the street， indicating that she would take me across. Together， we moved slowly into the chaos as she gently prodded me forward.

When we reached the center of the crossing， I looked down at her again， and couldnt resist exclaiming， “You have the most beautiful smile.”

She obviously knew little English， but must have recognized the tone， for she threw both arms and crutches around me in a big hug， while the traffic streamed by us on both sides.

Then we precariously moved on toward the sidewalk， where she pulled my face down to hers， kissed me on both cheeks， and then limped away， still smiling and waving back to me.

I had not given her a single coin. We had shared something vastly more important—a warming of hearts in friendship.

This experience reminded me of something Mother Teresa once said，“If you cannot do great things， you can do small things with great love.” To look beggars in the eye and smile， thus acknowledging their existence， is a small thing. Putting your hand into anothers outstretched hand and grasping it firmly for a moment is also a small thing. Learning to use a greeting in the local language is not too difficult. But these are important.

Traveling in poorer nations， I have witnessed a variety of ways to deal with beggars. The most common response of tourists faced with the poverty-stricken is to ignore them and focus their eyes elsewhere. I have seen people push away an outstretched hand in angry annoyance. A few may hastily drop a few coins into a beseeching palm， and then execute a quick getaway in hopes that another 20 ragged pursuers wont immediately appear on the scene.

But I feel its worthwhile to try to live by the words of English author John Cowper Powys，“No one can consider himself wholly civilized who does not look upon every individual， without a single exception， as of deep and startling interest.”endprint

I once spotted a legless man sitting by a road at the Pushkar Camel Fair in India. I was returning to my tent after recording the exotic music of the dancing men of Pushkar and was replaying the music on my tape recorder. When the mans smile lured me to join him， we began to communicate in the kind of sign language and laughter.

After mimicking the whirling skirts and sticks， I showed him how my tape recorder worked. He motioned for me to give it to him. I hesitated， but only for a moment. After examining it carefully， he began to sing a hauntingly beautiful song， indicating that he wanted me to record it and take it home as a memory of our time together.

Moments before， we had been total strangers. Suddenly， we were cemented in a momentary friendship born of our common existence in this world. His eyes shone as we exchanged names. My experience confirmed the truth of the Scandinavian proverb，“In every man there is a king. Speak to the king， and the king will come forth.”

I have learned that those considered the worlds most hopeless are so often rich in humanity， with hearts yearning to be affirmed—and ready to respond.

My life continues to be enriched by connecting with everyday humanity. Each time I do this， I rediscover that what I have been given is far beyond monetary value. And I reaffirm that everyone is worthy—and worth knowing.

在每个人内心都有一个国王。如果你想与他交谈，国王就会出现。

在越南胡志明市，我们旅馆的外面，有一个老妇人倚着拐杖，伸着手在门口乞讨。每天，当我和她目光交汇时，我都会把手放在她的手里。对我的微笑、握手及问候，她总以同样的方式回馈我。

在我们旅行的最后一天，我突然发觉在旅馆对面街上一个交通繁忙的拐角处，只剩我一个人了。自行车和摩托车在我面前横冲直撞。晚上让我独自一人面对急流般的车流，我很不适应。当我在街头犹豫的时候，我觉察到胳膊肘处有一只手。我向下望去，看到了那个身材矮小的乞丐朋友面带笑容地望着我。她朝大街上昂了一下头，意思是会带我穿过大街。她轻轻地推着我向前走，我们一起慢慢汇入混乱的人群中。

到达十字路口的中心时，我又低头看了看她，情不自禁地对她说：“你有最美丽的微笑。”

显然，她不懂英语，但她一定可以辨认出我说话的语调，于是她张开拿着拐杖的双手拥抱我，此时，大街上的车流在我们两旁穿过。

接着，我们蹒跚地向人行道走去，到达后，她捧着我的脸靠近她，并在我的两颊各吻了一下，然后一瘸一拐地离开了，还不时地回头向我微笑和挥手。

我没有给她一分钱，但我们体验了更珍贵的东西——友谊中心灵的温暖。

这一经历让我想起特蕾莎修女曾经说过的一句话：“如果你做不了伟大的事情，那就用伟大的爱心做点小事吧。”正眼看待乞丐并微笑，认同他们的存在，这都是很小的事情；把你的手放在别人伸出的手里，紧紧地握上一会，这也是小事情；学会用当地的语言说句问候的话也不困难。但是，这些都很有意义。

在相对贫穷的国家旅行时，我目睹了对待乞丐的多种方式。最常见的回应是不理睬，或者左右旁顾。我曾看见有人生气地把他们伸出来的手推开。还有一些人急匆匆地把几个硬币丢在他们乞讨的手掌里，然后迅速地逃开，生怕另外20多个衣服褴褛的乞丐会马上出现在他跟前。

而我觉得，践行英国作家伊波斯所说的那句话是值得的。他说：“如果一个人不能无一例外地、用同样强烈的好奇心对待每一个人，那么他就不能被认为是一个十足的文明人。”

我曾经在印度普什卡尔骆驼集会上，碰到过一个没有腿的男人，当时他坐在马路边。录完普什卡尔舞者的异国音乐后，我准备回自己的帐篷，一路上我播放着录音机里面的音乐。我被他的微笑吸引住了，于是向他走近，我们开始用手语和笑声谈论起来。

模仿过旋转的裙子和鼓槌后，我告诉他录音机是怎么运转的。他向我打手势，示意要我把录音机给他看看，我犹豫了一下，还是给了他。他小心检视过录音机后就开始唱歌，歌曲很优美，让人难以忘怀。他让我把歌录下来，这样就可以带回家，作为我们在一起的欢乐时光的美好回忆。

不久前，我们完全是陌生人。然而突然间，那一刻的友谊把我们紧密联系在一起，而这友谊的诞生仅仅是因为我们在这个世界上共同存在着。在我们交换名字的那一刻，他的眼睛里闪烁着光芒。我的经历证实了斯堪的那维亚的一句格言：“在每个人内心都有一个国王。如果你想与他交谈，国王就会出现。”

我终于了解，那些被认为是世界上最没有希望的人都富有仁爱之心，他们的心灵渴望被认同，也乐于作出回应。

我一直通过与平凡的人保持联系，来丰富我的生活。每次这样做的时候，我都发现我所收获的远远超过金钱的价值。并且我再次坚信，每个人都是有价值的——值得你去了解。endprint