时间：2022-03-14 02:47:52
高素菊 供稿
During the second world war, a steamer carrying Indian Sepoys was bombed by the Japanese and was sunk. Many lost their lives. Five among them managed to row their lifeboat and hoped to have a chance of surviving in spite of the surging ocean. They were tossed about for many hours.
One of them became desperate and cried: “The sea will swallow me. I will be a meal for the sharks”. In that panic, he got drowned.
Another sepoy wept for his family: “Oh, I am dying without arranging for the future of my family.” He too lost faith in his survival and breathed his last.
The third sepoy thought: “I have with me the policy and documents of insurance. What a pity!” I should have kept them at home. “What will my wife do? I am sure to die.” He also died.
The other two men reinforced each other’s faith. They said: “We shall not yield to fear. We shall prove that however desperate the situation may be, we are to be saved.” Even as they were talking like this, a helicopter sent from a coastal ship which had received signals for help, caught sight of these two men and hauled them up. When they were safe on land, they said, “It is only five minutes between victory and defeat. Faith earned the victory; lack of it brought about defeat and death.”
第二次世界大战期间，一艘满载印度士兵的汽船遭到日本军队的轰炸后不幸沉没。船上很多人因此丧生，但是有五个人成功地登上了救生艇，期待着在这波涛汹涌的大海里寻得一线生机，他们的船已经在汹涌的海浪中上下翻滚了很多个小时。
他们中的一个人开始感到绝望，哭着说：“我将被大海吞噬，然后变成鲨鱼的美餐。”后来，他在惊恐中溺水而死。
另一个印度士兵想到了他的家庭便痛哭起来，说道：“唉！我还没有来得及安排家庭的未来就要死去了。”后来，他也失去了生存的信念并被海水淹没了。
第三个印度士兵想：“我随身还带着那些保险单，太遗憾了！应该把它们放在家里的，我是必死无疑了，我的妻子该怎么办呀！这个人最后也死了。
剩下的两个士兵相互鼓励，并没有丧失信念。他们说：“我们不应该向恐惧低头，我们要证明无论在多么令人绝望的情况下，我们终将会得救的。”话音未落，从海岸救援队飞来的直升机收到求救信号后就立即赶来了，救援人员发现了那两个人，并把他们拉到了直升机上。当他们成功获救并安全着陆后说道：“成功或失败就在这短短的五分钟内有了答案。信念换来的是胜利和生存，而丧失信念则带来了失败和死亡。”
（责编：王莉娟）