It’s easy and often convenient to say what you don’t mean, to claim what is not true, to hide what is real. But the further you venture from the truth, the more difficult is your way forward. 说出你不想要的东西，声称什么是不真实的，隐藏什么是真实的，这很容易而且往往很方便。但你离真相越远，你前进的道路就越困难。

By very definition, reality always has a way of asserting itself. Every falsehood requires additional falsehoods to support it, and also to support those, until at some point no more falsehoods are possible. 从定义上讲，现实总是有办法维护自己。每一个谎言都需要额外的谎言来支持它，也需要支持这些谎言，直到某个时候没有更多的谎言是可能的。

As difficult as truth can often be, it is easier than the alternative. Especially when truth is difficult, the sooner you accept it and express it, the better. 尽管真理往往很困难，但它比其他选择更容易。尤其是当真相难以时，越早接受并表达出来越好。

For once the truth is out, it does not have to be constantly propped up. Though living truthfully can be a lot of work, it has the great advantage of not being at odds with reality itself. 因为一旦真相大白，它就不需要不断的支撑。虽然诚实地生活可能是一项艰巨的工作，但它有一个很大的优势，那就是不会与现实本身相矛盾。

Though it could take years and years, being delusional eventually ends up as the only remaining alternative to being truthful. And acting from a delusional perspective quickly becomes ineffective. 虽然这可能需要很多年，但妄想最终会成为诚实的唯一选择。从妄想的角度行事很快就会变得无效。

Truth can be a hard and painful choice. Yet it’s a whole lot easier than any other choice. 真相可能是一个艰难而痛苦的选择。然而，这比任何其他选择都要容易得多。

— Ralph Marston — 拉尔夫·马斯顿