Performing for a cause

“Time flies. Youth fades; treasure each moment of your life,” accompanied by guitar and drums, the Band for One, made up of five people, sang the lyrics soulfully during a performance in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, on Nov 7.
“岁月在燃烧。青春不见了；每一分每一秒时间都在生命中刻下记号，”11月7日，伴随着吉他与鼓声，由五人组成的“一个人的乐队”在杭州的一场演出中动情地演唱着这些歌词。

Behind the band, there was a picture of a young man named Philip Hancock shown on the screen. And he is the reason they were all there. Hancock was a 27-year-old Australian who taught English in Chongqing. When he died in 2018 due to complications from diabetes, his parents followed his wishes and donated his organs with the help of the Red Cross Society of China’s Chongqing branch.
在乐队身后的屏幕上，是一张名叫菲利普·汉考克的年轻人的照片。而他也正是让这些人聚在一起的原因。27岁的澳大利亚小伙汉考克曾在重庆教英文。2018年，他因糖尿病并发症不幸离世，他的父母遵循其临终心愿，在重庆市红十字会的帮助下捐献了他的器官。

“I’m Philip’s liver”; “I’m Philip’s kidney”; “I’m Philip’s eyes.” The five people – a real estate salesperson, a farmer, a former truck driver and two doctors – introduced themselves onstage. They are the ones who received Philip’s organs.
“我是菲利普的肝”；“我是菲利普的肾”；“我是菲利普的眼。”五人中有房地产销售员、农民、前货车司机、两位医生，他们在台上这样介绍起了自己。这些人都是菲利普器官的受捐者。

“Last year, Red Cross officials … told me that Philip’s parents mentioned during an earlier memorial service that he loved music and dreamed of having his own band one day,” said former truck driver Chen Xianjun.
“去年，红十字会的工作人员……告诉我，菲利普的父母先前在一场悼念活动中提到，儿子很喜欢音乐，希望有一天能够组建自己的乐队，”曾经是货车司机的陈贤军说。

Chen was instantly on board to form a band in memory of Philip, and so were the other four recipients.
陈贤军当即就同意为纪念菲利普而组建一支乐队，其他四位受捐者也有同样的想法。

Since they had no music experience, they had to start from scratch. From learning the guitar, to mastering the maracas and taking on the drums, they took time out of their busy lives to rehearse over the past year, even during the pandemic.
由于他们都没有音乐基础，一切都只能从头开始。从学习吉他，到学会砂槌和打鼓，他们在过去的一年间从忙碌的生活中抽出时间进行练习，即便是疫情期间也是如此。

“Picking up a new instrument is certainly difficult at my age, but we have a clear goal in mind and are determined to achieve it,” said Mo Li, the 36-year-old real estate salesman. “I think Philip not only gave me a renewed life, but also some ‘musical cells’ that enable me to appreciate beautiful melodies.”
“我这个年纪学习新乐器的确很困难，但我们心中都有一个很明确的目标，并且下定决心要去实现它，”36岁的房地产销售员茉莉表示。“我觉得菲利普不光给了我全新的人生，还给了我一点‘音乐细胞’，让我能够欣赏美妙的旋律。”

Peter Hancock, Philip’s father, said after watching the band’s performance, his biggest wish is for the five to enjoy their lives more.
菲利普的父亲彼得·汉考克在看过乐队的表演后表示，他最大的心愿是希望这五个人能够更好地享受人生。

Organ donation is not only the best way to memorialize a loved one, but also a remarkable way to save the lives of others.
器官捐献不光是纪念挚爱的最佳方式，也是拯救他人生命的高尚行为。

According to Xinhua, China faces a serious shortage of organs, with about 300,000 people waiting for organ transplant surgeries each year.
据新华社报道，我国人体器官存在巨大的缺口，每年等待器官移植手术的患者约有30万人。

But the good news is, more and more people have been signing up to be organ donors, echoing the spirit of selflessness that Philip and so many others have shown.
但好消息是，越来越多的人报名登记器官捐献，体现了许许多多和菲利普一样的无私精神。

以上文章内容选自《21世纪学生英文报高中版》，详情请见《21世纪学生英文报高中版》高一813期