实现梦想永远不会太迟

Never Too Old to Live Your Dream

By Dan Clark

The first day of school our professor introduced himself to our chemistry class and challenged us to get to know someone we didn’t already know. I stood up to look around when a gentle hand touched my shoulder. I turned around to find a wrinkled， little old lady beaming up at me with a smile that lit up her entire being.

She said， “Hi， handsome. My name is Rose. I’m 87 years old. Can I give you a hug？”

I laughed and enthusiastically responded， “Of course you may！” And she gave me a giant squeeze.

“Why are you in college at such a young， innocent age？” I asked.

She jokingly replied， “I'm here to meet a rich husband， get married， have a couple of children， and then retire and travel！”

“No seriously，” I asked. I was curious what may have motivated her to be taking on this challenge at her age.

“I always dreamed of having a college education and now I’m getting one！” she told me.

Over the course of the year， Rose became a campus icon and easily made friends wherever she went. She loved to dress up and she reveled in the attention bestowed upon her from the other students. She was living it up.

At the end of the semester we invited Rose to speak at our football banquet. I’ll never forget what she taught us.

“We do not stop playing because we are old； we grow old because we stop playing. There are only four secrets to staying young， being happy and achieving success.

“You have to laugh and find humor every day.

“You’ve got to have a dream. When you lose your dreams， you die！ We have so many people walking around who are dead and they don’t even know it！

“There is a huge difference between growing older and growing up. If you are nineteen years old and lie in bed for one full year and don’t do one productive thing， you will turn 20 years old. If I am 87 years old， and stay in bed for a year， and never do anything， I will turn 88. Anybody can grow older. That doesn’t take any talent or ability. The idea is to grow up by always finding the opportunity in change.

“Have no regrets. The elderly usually don’t have regrets for what we did， but rather for things we did not do. The only people who fear death are those with regrets.”

She concluded her speech by courageously singing “The Rose”. She challenged each of us to study the lyrics and live them out in our daily lives.

At the year’s end， Rose finished the college degree she had begun all those years ago. One week after graduation Rose died peacefully in her sleep. Over 2000 college students attended her funeral in tribute to the wonderful woman who taught by example that it’s too late to be all you can possibly be.

上学的第一天，教授向我们化学班作了自我介绍，并鼓励我们去结识还不认识的人。我起身张望，这时有人轻轻地拍了拍我的肩。我转过身，发现一位身材矮小、满脸皱纹的老太太正愉快地朝我微笑，她的笑容让她容光焕发。

她说：“你好，漂亮的年轻人。我叫罗斯，今年87岁。我可以拥抱你吗？”

我笑了起来，热情地回答道：“当然可以。”她友好地拥抱了我一下。

我打趣地问她：“为什么要在年纪这么轻、这么纯真的时候上大学？”

她也开玩笑地答道：“我来是为了找个有钱的丈夫，结婚，生几个孩子，然后退休去旅行。”

“不是认真的吧？”我问道。我很好奇，：是什么促使她在这样的年纪去接受如此的挑战。？

“我一直梦想获得大学教育，现在如愿了。”她对我说。

在这一学年，罗斯成了校园里的偶像，无论走到哪儿，都能很轻松地交朋友。她喜欢打扮，陶醉于大家给予的关注。她纵情欢乐。

学期末，我们邀请罗斯在足球宴会上致辞，。我永远不会忘记她对我们的谆谆教导。

“不是因为老了，我们才动不了，；而是因为动不了，我们才老了。保持年轻、快乐、成功，只有四个秘诀。

“每天要笑，要有幽默感。

“要有梦想。一旦失去梦想，你就完蛋了。我们身边有许多人，他们已经死了，却以为自己还活着。

“渐渐老去与不断成长有天壤之别。你19岁，躺在床上一整年，不做任何有益的事，你成了20岁的人。我87岁，在床躺一年，什么事都不做，我会是88岁。所有的人都会渐渐老去，这不需要任何才能。我的想法是，要通过寻找变化中的机会来发展自己。

“不要有遗憾。老年人通常感到遗憾，不是为自己做过的事，而是为自己没有做过的事。怕死的人都是一些留有遗憾的人。”

她精神十足地唱起歌曲《玫瑰花》来结束演讲，激励我们每一个人去研读歌词，在日常生活中实践歌中传达的箴言。

年底，罗斯获得了多年前开始攻读的大学学位。毕业一周后，罗斯在睡梦中安详地离开了人世。超过2 000名大学生参加了她的葬礼，以此来表达对这位了不起的女士的尊重，她以自身为例告诉我们：要想实现自己的梦想，任何时候开始都不晚。