How to Be True to Yourself
My grandparents believed you were either honest or you weren’t。
There was no in between。
They had a simple motto hanging on heir living-room wall：
“Life is like a field of newly fallen snow；
where I choose to walk every step will show。”
They didn’t have to talk about it—they demonstrated the motto by the way they lived。
我的爷爷和奶奶认为，你要么是诚实的，要么不是。
不可能介于两者之间。
在他们起居室的墙上挂着一幅简单易懂的座右铭：
“生活好像一片刚刚落满白雪的土地；我走到哪里，我的每一个脚印就会出现在哪里。”
他们无需就此加以评说--他们是以身体力行的方式来证实这幅座右铭的。
They understood instinctively that integrity means
having a personal standard of morality and ethics
that does not sell out to selfishness and that is not relative to the situation at hand。
Integrity is an inner standard for judging your behavior。
Unfortunately，integrity is in short supply today—and getting scarcer。
But it is the real bottom line in every area of society。
And it is something we must demand of ourselves。
他们本能的理解是，
诚实意味着具备一定的伦理道德标准，
既不看风使舵，也不随着眼下的形势而转移。
诚实是判断你行为的内在标准。
遗憾的是，如今，诚实处在短缺状态----甚至越来越稀罕。
然而，它却是社会各个领域真正的思想上的底线，
而且是我们必须要求自己严格做到的。
A good test for this value is to look at what I call the Integrity Trial，
which consists of three key principles：
检验这种价值标准的一个有效方法是，参看我所谓的诚实三要素，
其中包括三条主要原则：
Stand firmly for your convictions in the face of personal pressure。
在个人压力面前，要坚定信念。
When you know you’re right， you can’t back down。
当你知道你做得对的时候，你就不能退缩。
Always give others credit that is rightfully theirs。
Don’t be afraid of those who might have a better idea
or who might even be smarter than you are。
对那些值得赞扬的人要常常给予肯定。
切莫害怕那些可能有更好主意的
或者那些可能比你更聪明的人。
Be honest and open about who you really are。
People who lack genuine core values rely on external factors
—their looks or status—in order to feel good about themselves。
Inevitably they will do everything they can to preserve this appearance，
but they will do very little， to develop their inner value and personal growth。
真诚、坦率地展示真实的你。
那些缺乏真正的基本价值观念的人，
为了使自己感觉良好而依靠外在因素
----相貌或社会地位。他们势必尽一切可能来保全这种表面形象，
却很少会去培养自己内在的价值和注重个人的成长。
So be yourself。
Don’t engage in a personal cover-up of areas that are unpleasing in your life。
When it’s tough， do it tough。 In other words，
face reality and be adult in your responses to life’s challenges。
因此，要展示你的真面目。
不要设法掩盖你生活中令人不快的方方面面。
艰难时刻要顽强。换言之，
要正视现实。面对生活的挑战，要老成持重，应付有方。
Self-respect and a clear conscience are powerful components of integrity
and are the basis for enriching your relationships with others。
自尊和问心无愧是构成诚实的强有力的成分，
是丰富你与他人关系的基础。
Integrity means you do what you do because it’s right
and not just fashionable or politically correct。
A life of principle， of not giving in to the seductive sirens of easy morality，
will always win the day。
It will take you forward into the 21st century
without having to check your tacks in a rearview mirror。
My grandparents taught me that。
诚实意味着，你之所以做你所做的事是因为你做的是对的，
而不是因为你的行为是时髦的或在政治上是正确的。
始终能够赢得胜利的是那种坚持行为准则、不屈从于一种安逸伦理观诱惑的生活。
这种生活将带你迈进21世纪，
而你无需从后视镜里检查你留下的痕迹。
这是我爷爷奶奶教会我的。
来源：每日学英语微信公众账号
责任编辑：陈熙
