付出时间，就是付出生命 Time is Life: The Hidden Cost of Materialism

The modern world is a society overflowing with material desires.现代的世界，是一个物欲横流的社会。Almost everyone is ruled by intense cravings, elevating the improvement of material life to an unprecedented height.几乎每个人都被强烈的欲望所主宰，将物质生活的改善提升到前所未有的高度。It’s true that advanced technology makes our world change daily, and economic development makes our lives convenient. But have we ever wondered: how much of a price are we paying for all this?诚然，科技的发达使我们的世界日新月异；经济的发展使我们的生活方便舒适……可是，我们是否想过，我们在享有这一切的同时，又付出了多少代价？The relentless pursuit of material wealth forces us to spend nearly all our time making money. We have easily discarded the ethics of "contentment brings happiness" to embrace mammonism with pride.一味追求物欲，使我们把几乎所有的时间都用来赚钱。我们轻易地丢弃了几千年来奉行的知足常乐的伦理道德，开始理直气壮地拜金。What are we using to exchange for all this? Beyond our labor and skills, we must pay the price of time—and to give one’s time is to give one’s life.我们又是在用什么换取这一切？除了我们的劳动、技术及谋生手段，我们更需要付出时间的代价，而付出时间即意味着付出生命。In the explosion of desire, we have utterly lost ourselves. We consume our entire existence accumulating fame, power, and wealth, leaving no time to reflect on our inner world.在欲望的爆发中，我们已经彻底迷失了自己，把全部生命都耗费在名声、权力和金钱的积聚上，甚至无法抽出时间来反省自己的心灵世界。This lifestyle also strips humanity of inner peace. Greed creates delusions that gnaw at our defenseless hearts like demons.一味追求物欲的生活，也使得人类失去了内心的宁静。贪婪制造出的妄想，正魔鬼般啃噬着我们毫无防备的心灵。Furthermore, the obsession with material gain is the root of conflict. Within families, societies, and even between nations, the clash of interests leads to endless strife.一味追求物欲，是引发争斗的根源。在家庭中，在社会上，在国际中，因为利益的冲突，导致了无休止的争斗。Finally, it is the prime culprit in destroying our planet. In just a century, humanity has attempted to conquer nature on an unprecedented scale, nearly exhausting the wealth Earth took billions of years to create.一味追求物欲，还是破坏地球环境的罪魁。在短短的百年内，人类对自然资源盲目、过量的开采，使得地球财富几乎耗尽了一半。We give our time, and we give our lives. Is this result truly what we hoped for?我们付出时间，付出生命，希望得到的就是这个结果吗？