Spiritual Handholds on Life
by Dr. Fred Dow Fagg, JR
The view of the high Sierra Lake, nestled in the snow and rock slightly below the timber line, was beautiful from my vantage point some five hundred feet above its shimmering surface. I was anxious to rejoin my companions and try the fishing before are afternoon shadow - edging out from the surrounding array of peaks - entirely covered the lake. Just a short distance beyond the intervening shale, the trail zigzagged down to the valley. I disliked the thought of returning by the long, tedious trail I had ascended, and decided to chance the shale - even though part of it lay above a sheer drop-off of several hundred feet.
I started working my way over the loose rock with considerable caution and had covered about half the distance when I became aware of a slight but persistent yielding of the shale under my feet. Desperately, I looked for something that would offer support and lurched forward to grasp a light outcropping of solid rock just as the surface shale underfoot - loosened from its foundation by the warm noonday sun - cascaded downward and disappeared over the cliff. Several seconds passed before I heard it rattle into the lake.
Finally - after due consideration of the folly of short cuts - I managed to move from handhold to handhold and, at last, pulled myself to the trail by the aid of a dwarf juniper root. I have forgotten how many trout I caught that afternoon, but I have not forgotten the value of handhold.
Handholds are needed also during the course of everyday life. They provide security when the things we depend upon seem to be slipping out from under us. What are the spiritual handholds I have found to be most value?
First, the teachings of the humble carpenter of Nazareth - for their insistence on the supreme worth of the individual, for their stressing of the significance of sympathetic understanding, and for their unsurpassed evidence of dauntless faith.
Second, the conviction that, while every person should delight in making a courageous and self-reliant effort to live up to his capabilities, there are well-springs of power outside himself that can be tapped - if he will avail himself of them.
Third, that the nature of this world and of the people in it is determined more by our individual vision, understanding and conduct than by any material environmental factors, and that - in other words - nothing will produce the good world but the good man.
These are the principal spiritual handholds I have found to possess enduring value. They offer both an exciting challenge and a calm assurance. They are the things I believe.
生命的精神支撐
小弗雷德.道.法格博士
坐落在高山上的謝拉湖，依偎在積雪與巖石的懷抱中，巖層往上是一片森林。從高出湖面約500英尺的觀景點看下去，湖面微波蕩漾，美不勝收。我著急與同伴再次會合，準備在午后周圍群山的陰影尚未籠罩全湖之前，一起釣魚。離錯層的頁巖不遠，便是一條通往山谷的蜿蜒小路。我不想再走上山時所走的那條漫長而乏味的小道，便決定試著走上頁巖——雖然這其中一段路的下面是幾百英尺的垂直峭壁。
我小心翼翼地走在松動的頁巖上。大約走到一半時，我發現腳下的頁巖正一點點地不斷下滑。我急忙尋找可以抓住的東西。我向前一撲，抓住了一塊露出地表的堅硬巖石。就在這時，腳下被午后陽光照射的發熱的頁巖表層開始松動，從山上滑了下去，消失在峭壁上。幾秒鐘后，我聽到它落進湖中的聲音。
稍微考慮了一下抄近路這愚蠢行為的后果后，我想辦法從一個支撐點挪到另一個支撐點，最終借助一棵矮松的`根將自己拉到小路上。那天下午釣了多少鮭魚，我已經不記得了，但我絕對忘不了支撐點的重要性。
在日常生活中，支撐點也是非常重要的。當我們的依靠即將從腳下溜走時，支撐點會帶給我們安全的保障。我發現的最有價值的精神支撐是什么呢?
首先，是拿撒勒卑微的木匠的教誨——他堅決主張個人價值至上，強調同情與理解的重要性，并為堅定的信仰提供了無可厚非的證明。
其次，盡管我們每個人都應該樂于勇敢、獨立地發揮自己的能力，但也要相信，只要我們愿意，我們也能從外界獲得力量之源。
再次，除了物質環境因素外，世界和人類的本質更多的是取決于我們個人的視野、理解和行為。也就是說，唯有出色的人才能創造出美好的世界。
這些便是我所發現的精神支撐點，它們具有永恒的價值。它們給予我們的不僅是刺激的挑戰，還有令人安心的承諾。這就是我信仰的一切。
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