个人自述写作之一-My First Job

弗兰克．唐

My First Job 我的第一份工作

　 I was studying theater at Southern Methodist University in Dallas and feeling anxious and uncertain about my future. Will I be able to support myself? I wondered. That summer, I decided to see if I could get out on my own.

　　 Two girlfriends and I piled into a car and headed to Aspen, Colo. where I found a job as a maid at a resort hotel. I don't remember what I earned, but it was so little that I lived on spaghetti, brown rice and Kool-Aid.

　　 I was at the hotel by six o'clock every morning to help with continental breakfast. When breakfast was finished, I cleaned the room where it was served and then the conference rooms and lobby rest rooms. I had never been in a men's room before, and I was always terrified of someone walking in while I was on my knees scrubbing the floors and toilets.

　　 I came from an upper-middle-class background, and my parents' friends always treated me well. But now that I was a servant, I found that many of the guests of the same background were not so nice. That was a shock.

　　 People were supposed to serve themselves at the continental breakfast; it was my job to circulate through the room and replenish coffee and juice. But some people wanted me to do everything for them. I remember one man who kept ordering me to get his food and demanding things we did not serve. He was also very critical. Even though I wanted to say, " Go get it yourself." I knew it was my job to be quiet and do in a nice way whatever I was told.So I'd take a deep breath and somehow get what he wanted.

　　 Still, I've never forgotten how it felt to be spoken to so rudely. Today, whenever I am in a cab or being waited on, I always try to be as considerate as possible. Service-industry jobs are not easy, and they're even harder when people treat you like dirt.

My first job also helped me achieve more confidence. After that summer I realized that what I had been afraid of in acting was failure. I now knew that the worst thing would be if I failed at it without really trying. I decided to give it all my energy. If failed, at least I would always know that I had done my best.

我在达拉斯的南方卫理公会大学学习戏剧专业，对未来感到忧虑和不安。我能自食其力吗?我暗暗自问。那个夏天，我决定尝试自己是否能单独闯荡。

我和两个女友挤进一辆车，驰向科罗拉多的阿斯彭。在那儿，我在一家假日饭店找到一份当侍者的工作。我不记得自己挣多少钱，只知薪水微薄，每天仅靠意大利面条、糙米饭和自助冷餐为生。

每天清晨6点，我就到饭店做大陆风味早餐的服务工作。早餐之后，我打扫已有人入住的客房以及会议室和大堂休息室。此前我从未在一个男人的房间中呆过，所以当我跪着擦洗地板和卫生间时，生怕会有人走进来。

我的家庭属中上阶层，我父母的朋友们待我总是很好。但我现在是一个服务生，我发现许多同样家庭背景的客人对我并不那么友好，这令我震惊。

按饭店的方式人们在吃大陆风味早餐时是自助式的；我的工作是在餐厅里巡回服务并添加咖啡和果汁。但是有些人希望我为他们提供一切服务。我记得一个男人不断地支使我为他拿食物，并提出超范围的服务要求，非常吹毛求疵。尽管我很想对他说："你自己去拿吧。"但我知道无论别人对我说什么，我的工作要求我做到平和并用一种优雅的方式来对待这些。因此，我会做一个深呼吸并尽量满足他的要求。

我永远不会忘记，别人以这么粗鲁的方式跟我说话时的那种感受。今天，无论我是坐出租车，还是接受他人的服务，我总是尽量地多为他人考虑。服务行业的工作并不容易，而当别人把你看得一钱不值时尤其艰难。

我的第一份工作还帮助我获得了更多自信。那个夏天以后，我意识到自己害怕表演是担心遭到失败。现在我知道了，最糟糕的事情莫过于我还没有真正尝试便告失败。我决定全力以赴地做事。如果失败了，至少我知道自己已尽了力。