利用人類同情心的慈善騙局...Slow Dance...反倒讓我看到了人性的光明面...

今天早上在我的電子信箱中...看到了一封朋友轉寄自哥大國際學生會的信

文中提到一位罹患癌症壽命僅剩半年...目前身在紐約某醫院的小女生

寫了一篇名為Slow Dance的動人短詩...

只要接到信件的人幫忙轉寄給朋友...每多一個收信人

美國癌症協會The American Cancer Society就會捐出美金3cent

那位朋友甚至還很熱心地提供了精采的中文翻譯...希望讓收信的人不會因為內容全是英文就直接跳過

而少了一次幫助那可憐但卻堅強的小女生的機會



以下就是那篇意境優美的短詩



SLOW DANCE



Have you ever watched kids

On a merry-go-round?

Or listened to the rain

Slapping on the ground?

Ever followed a butterfly's erratic flight?

Or gazed at the sun into the fading night?

You better slow down.

Don't dance so fast.

Time is short.

The music won't last.



Do you run through each day

On the fly?

When you ask How are you?

Do you hear the reply?

When the day is done

Do you lie in your bed

With the next hundred chores

Running through your head?

You'd better slow down

Don't dance so fast.

Time is short.

The music won't last.



Ever told your child,

We'll do it tomorrow?

And in your haste,

Not see his sorrow?

Ever lost touch,

Let a good friendship die

Cause you never had time

To call and say,"Hi"

You'd better slow down.

Don't dance so fast.

Time is short.



The music won't last.



When you run so fast to get somewhere

You miss half the fun of getting there.

When you worry and hurry through your day,

It is like an unopened gift.....

Thrown away.

Life is not a race.

Do take it slower



Hear the music



Before the song is over.



很動人...不是嗎?

尤其當你想到一個無法活著完成高中學業...無法參與畢業舞會

生命的最後幾個月只能躺在病床上看著窗外四季更迭的美景

卻無法親身走進那美麗景色中的小女孩正撐著她孱弱的身軀

和癌症病魔為其生命拔河的同時還吃力地寫著這首詩時

不管是誰...都會毫不猶豫地把這封信轉寄給所有自己認識或是不認識的朋友

希望能完成這個小女生的遺願...在更多人欣賞這首詩的同時...也能對癌症病患提供實質上的幫助



雖然我對The American Cancer Society如何追蹤到所有信件被轉寄的狀況感到疑惑

不過畢竟自己並非網路專家...而且該信又來自於哥大國際學生會

我應該也沒有必要擔心太多...總之就是盡一己之力幫幫那位小朋友完成心願就是了...

就在我準備把信轉寄給公司其他員工...正在重新用英文寫些簡短介紹時

我發現收到的信件本文中...詩的段落編排因為多次轉寄而出現了一些跳行的現象

出於追求完美的個性...我決定上網搜尋該詩的原文...希望能讓那位小女生的作品被忠實呈現

於是我在Google中鍵入了"The American Cancer Society"和"Slow Dance"進行搜尋

不出意外地...出現在網頁清單中的第一個候選人就是ACS :: Slow Dance

我心想這應該就是The American Cancer Society針對該行動所架設的網頁

將鼠標移到該連結上...我的食指輕敲了滑鼠左鍵兩下...



Slow Dance



Email :

One of the most common email hoaxes showing up in email inboxes is this one, which reprints a poem supposedly written by a terminally ill young girl in New York, and claiming the American Cancer Society will make a donation to her treatment and recovery plan for each name the email is forwarded to.



Fact :

The email is thought to be a revised version of an email that has been around in some form or another since at least 1997. The American Cancer Society is in no way involved in this effort, and never lends its name to chain emails. We certainly do understand the good intentions of those who respond to the email, and hope people who do want to help will find legitimate ways to assist the millions of cancer patients who rely on reputable organizations to improve the daily lives of cancer survivors, and reduce the suffering caused by cancer.



在網頁中我除了看到Slow Dance的全文之外...我還看到了以上兩段話

為求謹慎...我重新回到了Google搜尋結果頁面...試圖看看其他列出的網頁都是些怎樣的內容



Slow Dance poem written by a girl with cancer-Fiction!



Slow Dance Charity Hoax



"Slow Dance" Poem Written By A Sick Girl?



看來這個調查結果是不言可喻了...You're busted !



進一步的閱讀以上網頁中提供的資訊後

發現這封信其實早在1997年就以類似的形式出現在世界上

在2001年之後更進化成被大量轉寄的電子郵件...

最初的版本甚至還提供了那位虛擬主角的姓名...Jessica Mydeck...一位罹患腦癌壽命僅剩半年的小女生

而本詩真正的作者...其實是一位名為David L. Weatherford的兒童心理醫生兼作家

在某些版本中號稱是撰寫原始信件希望大家幫幫這位小女生的Dr. Dennis Sheilds...其實是真有其人

不過任教於Albert Einstein College Of Medicine表示自己對這件事情一無所知

他的名字是被有心人士刻意利用來增加該信件的可信度

但是還有一個版本的說法是...Dr. Dennis Sheilds其實也是眾多被該騙局所騙的人之ㄧ

因為轉寄該信件而讓自己的email signature自動地被附在該信件中傳送出去

沒想到卻無心插柳成為該信件的背書人...Orz

所有跟該信件有關聯的人都已在2001年此信首度被大量轉寄時出面澄清或是發表聲明

事件發生的六年後又出現另一波轉寄熱潮...也是他們始料未及的吧...



BTW...雖然整件事件被證實是個騙局

不過看到大家如此熱心地轉寄該信...甚至還盡一己之力讓該信件更被重視的表現

其實是相當令人感到欣慰的...這個世界還是處處充滿溫情的

雖然始作俑者的動機不明...

不過我寧可相信他是想要藉由這封信來提醒大家記得關心他人...不要吝惜對他人伸出援手



或許前些日子風靡全世界的MSN i'm 運動...幾乎所有我認識的人都在暱稱前加上了text code

希望透過和朋友的交談就能為參與 i'm 的非營利組織增加捐款的活動

就是受到了這封Slow Dance的啟發也說不定...who knows ?