你所不知道的长城：如何“隔离”忧虑？
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老桑说
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「 朋友，你好，我是老桑。」
分享关于长城之旅的感悟
你去过长城吗？
这一雄伟的建筑是为了抵御外敌，管理边疆的贸易和移民而建。
长城还具有象征意义。
在我上次的长城之旅中，我思考了如何能够metaphorically（隐喻地）建起一道精神之墙，来保护和掌控自己的思想。
▲八达岭长城 老桑摄于2000年
我第一次登上长城是在1991年的2月14日。
当时我在早上7点20分之前就来到了天安门广场，观看升旗仪式，然后在前门和人群一起挤进了旅游巴士。
那是一个寒冷、灰暗、风大的日子。
一路颠簸中，巴士驶出北京，先是在成吉思汗博物馆停了下来，然后就到达了八达岭长城。
▲1991年老桑在八达岭长城
车上游客们的兴奋之情palpable（溢于言表），我对长城的雄伟壮观深感震惊。尽管我们的导游一直在讲述一些史实，但我只想走出去，亲自感受一下长城。
因为这是马年的最后一天，大多数人都在家里准备迎接羊年的到来，没有多少人来徒步旅行。
如果你对今天是否是个auspicious（吉）日有任何疑问的话，就在我快要登上山顶时，天开始下雪了。
总之，这是非常令人难忘的一天。
▲玉门关汉长城遗迹 老桑摄于2002年
时过境迁，现在爬长城要比之前容易得多。
多年来，我去过慕田峪、司马台、黄花城和金山岭长城，最远去到过敦煌附近的玉门关长城。
在我最近的一次北京之行中，我没有走老路，而是徒步来到了古北口，一个美丽而人迹罕至的路段。
▲古北口长城 老桑摄于2019年
正如那句老话所言，登上长城这么多次，我也算是个“好汉”了！
”
戴尔·卡耐基在他1984年的名作《人性的优势》中分享了一些他屡试不爽的克服焦虑的方法。
在第一章，他建议我们“用铁门把过去隔断”，别为过去已经发生的事情而后悔，使现在更难受。他说，过去的事就让它过去吧，不必为此fret（担心）。
他向我们讲述了辛尔德夫人的故事：她丈夫去世了，工作很辛苦，抑郁、孤独和恐惧使她几近自杀。
但她听到了这句话，一句她反复重复的话："对一个智慧的人来说，每天都是一个新的生命"。她学会了无悔过往，活在当下的每一天，她带着对生活的热爱走出了阴霾。
▲写作中的戴尔·卡耐基
当然，我们可以从过去的错误中吸取教训，否则这些错误就会重复发生。
在许多方面，失败是成功之母。
然而，我们不需要翻出自己过去的错误，并一直与它们纠缠。
当我们像辛尔德夫人一样，活在当下的每一天，专注于我们今天可以做的事情，向前迈进时，我们就可以重拾对生活的enthusiasm（热忱）。
正如卡耐基建议我们“关上铁门”隔断过去的事一样，我们也可以构筑一道精神长城，抵御来自过去的负面思想的攻击。
▲司马台长城 老桑摄于2008年
我们不需要重温那些早已了结的糟糕可耻之事。当你想到它们时，试着想象它们被你的长城弹回到过去。
长城是世界七大奇迹之一，地球上最宏伟的人造建筑。
”
像对过去一样，卡耐基也敦促我们对未来“关上铁门”，他说我们不该过分担心未来的不确定性而无法活在当下。
有些人只追求所谓的“遥远奇妙的玫瑰园”却忽略了当下的力量，陷入了困境。
当然，我们仍然应该为未来做计划和准备，脚踏实地达到目的。
他的这句话改变了很多人：
Our main business is not to see what lies dimly at a distance, but to do what lies clearly at hand.
（对我们来说最重要的，不要去看远方模糊的事，而要做手边清楚的事。）
焦虑是一种强烈的负面情绪，它来自于对未来可能发生的事情的思忖。
当我们为"朦胧"的未来的不确定性而忧心忡忡时，我们为自己可能从不会欠下的债支付利息。
相反，我们应该把注意力转移到那些现在就可以做的有意义的工作和事情上，特别是在自己擅长的领域里。
▲金山岭长城 老桑摄于2010年
正如长城控制着人员和货物的进出，我们也可以控制自己对未来的想法。
当一个模糊而不确定的担忧浮现于脑海时，我们可以把它拒之门外，然后接纳关于如何更好地为未来做准备的想法或点子。
通过重新聚焦并采取行动，我们就能离焦虑更远一点。
长城作为一种与外界隔绝的心理屏障将中国统一起来。
同样地，我们也可以将积极的想法与高效的行动结合起来。
通过加强这种思想和行为的统一，形成了一道心理防线，以阻止未来难以接受的想法。
”
▲ 黄花城水长城 老桑摄于2013年
我的朋友，正如长城为保卫和统治而建，我们可以护佑自己的思想免受来自过去的袭扰，并把握自己对未来的思考。
通过隔离消极的想法，我们重新专注于抓住每一天的时光，尽量利用好这24小时，获得最大的收益。
这样，我们就能坚定信念，变得如长城般坚不可摧。
▲古北口长城 老桑摄于2019年
Live each day as if your life had just begun.
–German poet Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe
相把每一天都当作新的开始。
——德国诗人约翰·沃尔夫冈·歌德
往期文章
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敬请期待下一集。
英文版
English
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The Great Wall:
how to “wall off” worrying thoughts
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「 Hello, my friend！
I'm John Smagula. 」
Have you been to the Great Wall? This awe-inspiring structure was built to defend China against invaders and control the border for trade and immigration. The Great Wall also has symbolic value. On my last Great Wall hike, I reflected on how we can metaphorically create a mental wall to defend and control our own thoughts.
▲Yumenguan Great Wall May 2002
I first climbed the Great Wall on February 14, 1991. I arrived at Tiananmen Square by 7:20 am to watch the flag raising ceremony and then boarded my tour bus at Qianmen that we had to push to get going.
It was a cold, gray, and windy day. The bus sputtered along as we left the city, first stopping at the Genghis Khan Museum and then arriving at the Badaling Great Wall. The excitement on the bus was palpable, and I was awestruck at just how imposing the Great Wall is. Even as our guide was reciting some facts, I just wanted to get out and experience the Wall for myself.
▲Gubeikou Great Wall Oct. 2019
As this was the very last day of the Year of the Horse, most other people were home getting ready to welcome the arrival of the Year of the Sheep that evening, so there weren’t many hikers. And if there was any question about this being an auspicious day, it started to snow just as I was about to reach one of the peaks. All in all, it was a very memorable day.
Things have changed a lot since then, and the Great Wall is now more accessible than ever. Over the years, I have visited Mutianyu, Simatai, Huanghuacheng, and Jinshanling, but have gone even as far as the Jade Gate Pass near Dunhuang. On my most recent trip to Beijing, I got off the beaten path and hiked Gubeikou, a beautiful, uncrowded section.
▲Gubeikou Great Wall Oct. 2019
According to the saying, I’m now a “hero” many times over for having made so many visits to the Great Wall!
”
In his famous 1948 book, How to Stop Worrying and Start Living, Dale Carnegie shares some time-tested methods for conquering worry. In the first chapter, he advises us to “shut the iron doors on the past,” urging us not to embitter the present by regretting things that happened in the past. What’s over is over, he writes, so there’s no sense fretting about it.
He tells us about Mrs. E.K. Shields who lost her husband and had a tough job, and her depression, loneliness, and fear brought her to the brink of suicide. She encountered this quote, which she repeated regularly: “Every day is a new life to a wise man.” She learned not to regret the past, but to live life one day at a time, and she emerged with a love for life.
▲Dale Carnegie
Of course, we can learn from our past errors, as a mistake not learned from will be repeated. In many ways, failure is the mother of success. However, we need not dredge up our past mistakes and dwell on them in the present. When we live one day at a time and focus on what we can do today to move ahead, like Mrs. Shields, we can regain our enthusiasm for life.
As Carnegie advises that we “shut the iron doors” on the past, similarly, we can also construct a mental Great Wall to defend ourselves against past negative thoughts that attack us. We need not relive destructive or shameful events that are over and done with. When these bad thoughts arrive, try to visualize them bouncing off your Great Wall and going back to the past.
▲Simatai Great Wall Oct. 2008
As one of the Seven Wonders of the World, the Great Wall is the largest man-made structure on Earth.
”
Like the past, Carnegie also urges us to “shut the iron doors” on the future, saying we should not put off living in the present to worry about future uncertainties. Some people become stuck by yearning for a “magical rose garden over the horizon” and ignoring the power of the present. We should still plan and prepare for the future, of course, but take practical steps to get there.
He writes that this quote has changes the lives of many:
Our main business is not to see what lies dimly at a distance, but to do what lies clearly at hand.
Anxiety is an intense, negative emotion that comes from thinking about things that may or may not happen in the future. When we are apprehensive about uncertainties that lie “dimly” in the future, we pay interest on a debt we may never owe. Instead, we should redirect focus to the meaningful work and effort that we can do in the present, especially in our areas of strength.
As the Great Wall controlled entry and exit of people and goods, so can we control the thoughts about the future we entertain. If a worry about a dim uncertainty enters our mind, we can deny it entry, and then admit a thought or idea about how to better prepare for the future. By redirecting focus and taking action, we move another step away from worry.
The Great Wall also united China with a psychological barrier to the outside world. Likewise, we can unite our positive thoughts with productive actions. By strengthening this unity of mind and behavior, we form a mental barrier against future unwelcome thoughts.。
”
▲ Jinshanling Great Wall Oct. 2010
My friend, as the Great Wall was built for defense and control, we can defend our thoughts against attacks from the past and control how we think about the future. By walling off negative thoughts, we refocus on seizing the day and getting the utmost from these 24 hours. This way, we fortify our minds and may become just as indomitable as the Great Wall itself.
▲ The Commune by the Great Wall Nov. 2008
Live each day as if your life had just begun.
–German poet Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe
Great Wall photos all taken by John Smagula
{ 今日英文速记卡 }
Metaphorically \ ˌme-tə-ˈfȯr-i-k(ə-)lē \
a)含义：adv. 隐喻地，打比方
b)例句：
i.On my last Great Wall hike, I reflected on how we can metaphorically create a mental wall to defend and control our own thoughts.
在我上次的长城之旅中，我思考了如何能够隐喻地建起一道精神之墙，来保护和掌控自己的思想。
ii.You're speaking metaphorically, I hope.
我希望你是在打比方。
c)近义词： figuratively, freely, loosely
Palpable \ ˈpal-pə-bəl \
a)含义：adj. 明显的
b)例句：
i.The excitement on the bus was palpable, and I was awestruck at just how imposing the Great Wall is.
车上游客们的兴奋之情溢于言表，我对长城的雄伟壮观深感震惊。
ii.The tension in the room was almost palpable.
几乎能感觉到屋子里的紧张气氛。
c)近义词：appreciable, detectible, perceptible
Auspicious \ ȯ-ˈspi-shəs \
a)含义：adj. 吉利的，有望成功的
b)例句：
i.And if there was any question about this being an auspicious day, it started to snow just as I was about to reach one of the peaks.
如果你对今天是否是个吉日有任何疑问的话，就在我快要登上山顶时，天开始下雪了。
ii.His career as a playwright had an auspicious start.
他的剧作家生涯开了个好头。
c)近义词：hopeful, propitious, rosy
Fret \ ˈfret \
a)含义：v. 担心
b)例句：
i.What’s over is over, he writes, so there’s no sense fretting about it.
他说，过去的事就让它过去吧，不必为此担心。
ii. I was working all hours and constantly fretting about everyone else's problems.
我一刻不停地工作着，还一直担心着其他人的问题。
c)近义词：sweat, trouble, worry
Enthusiasm \ in-ˈthü-zē-ˌa-zəm \
a)含义：n. 热情，热忱
b)例句：
i.When we live one day at a time and focus on what we can do today to move ahead, like Mrs. Shields, we can regain our enthusiasm for life.
当我们像辛尔德夫人一样，活在当下的每一天，专注于我们今天可以做的事情，向前迈进时，我们就可以重拾对生活的热忱。
ii.The news was greeted with a lack of enthusiasm by those at the meeting.
与会者对这消息未表现出多少兴趣。
c)近义词： ardor, fervor, passion
Thank you for watching me to inspire, encourage, and accompany you.
See you next time.
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