“不是所有的英雄都穿着披风”。如何成为平凡生活里的英雄？

This is Chen Si.

这是陈思。

He works at a logistics agency in Nanjing, China. He also spends his free time saving other people’s lives. Let me tell you his story.

他在中国南京的一家物流公司工作。他把业余时间花在拯救别人的生命上。我来告诉你他的故事。

In 2003, a very close relative of Chen’s committed suicide after watching his sons argue over who would take care of him. The incident was deeply traumatizing. Having to lose someone he held so dear to his heart just because his sons didn’t seem to show enough respect and compassion for him. Chen also read in the local newspaper that the Nanjing-Yangtze River Bridge was a major suicide hotspot — in fact, by 2006, about 2,000 people were estimated to have killed themselves by jumping off the bridge since the year it was constructed (1968). He then became greatly determined to devote the rest of his life saving those of others trapped in hopelessness by foiling suicide attempts.

2003年，陈的一个非常亲密的亲戚在看到他的儿子们为谁来照顾他而争吵后自杀了。这一事件给人留下了深刻的精神创伤。失去一个他深爱的人就因为他的儿子们没有对他表现出足够的尊重和同情。陈还在当地报纸上读到，南京长江大桥是一个常见的自杀地点——事实上，到2006年，据估计，自该桥建造那一年(1968年)以来，大约有2000人自杀。于是，他下定决心用自己的余生去拯救那些因挫败自杀而陷入绝望的人们。

In response, Chen began to patrol the Nanjing-Yangtze bridge either on his motorbike or on foot, continuously on the lookout for people willing to jump from it. He has been there almost every day, even on holidays and weekends, regardless of the weather. He has kept a lookout for signs of depression, for example, in the way some of them walk, which Chen describes as “passive with no spirit or direction”.

陈开始骑摩托车或步行在南京长江大桥上巡逻，不断寻找想从桥上跳下去的人。不管天气如何，他几乎每天都去那里，节假日和周末也不例外。他一直在观察他们是否有抑郁的迹象，比如，他们中的一些人走路的方式，陈形容为“被动，没有精神和方向”。

Chen also keeps a diary documenting the people he has encountered and the reasons why they wanted to kill themselves. Some had been greatly shamed for not being successful enough in school. Some had broken up with their boyfriend or girlfriend. Some had wasted away their money on needless things. There was also, for example, a migrant worker who was drowning in debt because he couldn’t pay off the $15,000 bill for his daughter’s leukemia treatments. Chen also gives out suicide prevention pamphlets to potential jumpers, detailing emergency contacts.

陈还写日记记录他遇到的人，以及他们想自杀的原因。有些人因为在学校不够成功而感到非常羞愧。有些人因为和他们的男女朋友分手。还有些人把钱浪费在不必要的事情上。比如，还有一位移民工人因为无法支付女儿白血病治疗的1.5万美元账单而想要自杀。陈还向想要跳台自杀的人分发了预防自杀的小册子，里面有紧急情况的详细联系方式。

And not only does he simply pull people off the bridge. In fact, he has spent 10,000 yuan ($1,457 in dollars) renting a two-room house not far from the site, which he calls “a station for the soul to rest in”. He sits with people and lets them share all their suffering in their stories, which in a way ignites friendship, trust, and newfound confidence. Chen also occasionally brings victims back to the bridge as volunteers, helping others see a way forward in life.

他不仅简单地把人从桥上拉下来。事实上，他已经花了1万元(1457美元)在离工地不远的地方租了一套两居室的房子，他称之为“灵魂休憩站”。他与人们坐在一起，让他们在自己的故事中分享所有的痛苦，这在某种程度上点燃了友谊、信任和重新获得的信心。陈也会偶尔带受害者到桥上做志愿者，帮助其他人看到生活的未来。

Throughout his time engaging in this, Chen has stopped over 300 people from ending their lives. That is an example of being a hero without having to fight. An example of generosity and compassion at work without the necessity for bloodshed. Sometimes the best heroes simply dedicate themselves to lending a hand to people who feel like they’ve got nothing left for them. Chen Si isn’t called the “Angel of Nanjing” for nothing.

在他参与这项活动的过程中，他已经阻止了300多人结束自己的生命。这是一个不用战斗就能成为英雄的例子。这是一个在工作中不需要流血的慷慨和同情心的例子。有时候，最好的英雄只是致力于帮助那些觉得自己一无所有的人。陈思被称为“南京天使”并非无缘无故。

“Not all heroes wear capes”, they say. That is most definitely true.

他们说:“不是所有的英雄都穿披风。”这是千真万确的。