奧少年CYC

No matter how useless something appears to be.

There's always something valuable in it waiting to be discovered.

無論有一個東西，看起來多麼沒有用，

它總是隱藏著它的獨特、有價值的地方。

The famous Italian sculptor and artist Michelangelo completed the world renowned statue of David.

It's said that the piece of marble which David was carved from was criticized by many sculptors as being useless.

Some people said that it was cut poorly. Other said that its grain was not beautiful.

All agreed that it could never become a valuable piece of art.

But under the eye of Michelangelo this piece of marble that everyone considered useless became the famous masterpiece of the statue of David.

義大利著名的雕刻家兼畫家 ─ 「米開朗基羅」，完成了曠世傑作 ─ 大衛像，

據說曾經有很多雕刻家，批評做成大衛像的這塊大理石。

他們說沒有用，有人說切割的不好，有人說它的紋路不美，

所有的雕刻家都覺得不可能成為一個有價值的藝術品。

不過在米開朗基羅的獨特的眼光之下，這塊大家認為沒有用的大理石，

的確變成舉世矚目的大衛像了。

There are many people that don't attract much attention.

But each one of them has something very special.

Let's try to be their Michelangelo, and help them discover what's truly extraordinary about them.

有很多人不會引起其他的人的注意，

不過他們都有他們不平凡的地方。

讓我們當作他們的米開朗基羅，

幫助他們充分的發揮他們的優點。

We often accuse others of normal or abnormal behavior.

But think about it for a minute, just what is normal?

我們常常會判斷別人的行為，正常還是不正常。

不過你想一想，到底什麼是正常？

One day the Director of a certain mental institution called one of its patients in to

see him. And he said to the patient, "According to my observation you've improved a

lot recently. You've started to steal things. You tell lies. You cheat the new patients.

You do many of the bad things that normal people do. So for these reasons, I've 

decided to release you from the hospital."

But the patient very nervously asked the Director,

"Please wait a few days. In two days I can receive my disability pension check."

When the Director heard that, he was very angry and he said,

"Get out! That statement of yours proves that you're now absolutely normal. You're 

not qualified to live in this mental institution."

有一天，一個精神病院的院長叫他的病人來跟他談話。

他說：「按照我的觀察，你最近有很大的改變。你開始偷東西、開始撒謊、開始欺騙新來的病人，你現在會做很多正常人會做的壞事，所以我決定，你可以出院了。」

不過，這個病人他很緊張，他說：「院長，可不可以慢幾天，因為再過兩天，我就可以領到這個月的殘障津貼。」

院長聽到這句話，他說：「你馬上走，這句話證明你現在是完全正常了，沒有

資格再繼續住在精神病院裡。」

Normal people often do bad things that so called abnormal people are incapable of doing.

Think for a minute just what is our standard for normal and abnormal.

We should think about this before we accuse someone of abnormal behavior.

所謂的正常人，常常可以做很多壞事，不正常的人辦不到。

所以，我覺得我們應該反省一下，我們對正常的標準是什麼，

才判斷別人的行為不正常。

If we have enough to eat and enough to wear, we should be satisfied.

如果我們的食物跟我們的衣服夠了，我們應該滿足。

A man's boat broke down on the ocean. For twenty days and twenty nights he was

alone, adrift on the ocean. He depended on rain water and flying fish to stay alive.

When he was finally saved, people asked him,

"How do you feel after this experience of yours?"

The man said, "After this dangerous experience that I've had, I feel that if you give me

enough to eat and enough to drink, I will be happy and satified for the rest of my life."

有一個人，因為他的船艇發生故障，他一個人在海上，漂泊了二十天。

他是靠雨水跟飛魚，很艱苦的維持生命。

他獲救之後，有人問他：「經過那麼危險的經驗，有什麼感觸？」

他說：「經過那麼大的事情以後，現在我覺得如果你給我食物，足夠填飽我的肚子，飲料足夠解渴，我這一輩子會心滿意足了。」

When we're facing the loss of everything we own, even a little is enough to satisfy us.

In this age of consumerism it's important to be able to distinguish between what we

really need and what is extra.

我們面對失去一切的時候，一點點就會讓我們滿足。

在這個消費時代，我們必須常常分辨，

什麼是真正需要的，什麼是多餘的。

The clever man analyses a problem and thinks of a way to solve it.

The foolish person acts without thinking and then complains that the problem is not solved.

一個聰明的人，會先分析問題，想出解決的辦法。

一個愚笨的人，他不先思考，然後就抱怨問題為什麼沒有解決。

One cold winter's day a housewife was wiping the mist off her windows.

But no matter how fast she wiped, the windows continually fogged up.

She complained to her neighbor saying, "Every time I wipe the mist off one window another one fogs up. 

What am I going to do?"

The neighbor said, "If you go about it that way you will never finish. All you have to do is light the furnace 

and the mist will naturally disappear."

The housewife did as her friend advised and , of course, in a few minutes the mist was gone.

在一個寒冷的冬天，有一個家庭主婦，在擦拭玻璃上的霧氣。

不過，無論她擦得多快，這個霧氣不斷地冒出來。

她很懊惱的跟她的朋友說：「我每一次擦掉一塊，另外一塊就會出現霧氣，怎麼辦？」

她的朋友說：「妳這樣擦，是永遠擦不完的，妳只要把火爐點起來，霧氣很快就消失了。」

家庭主婦立刻照辦。當然，很快霧氣就不見了。

That mist is a little bit like the little defects in our lives.

We try to get rid of them but they keep coming back.

If we spent more time reflecting on our actions and consulting our conscience many

of those defects would disappear naturally.

這個霧氣，很像我們生活中的小毛病。

我們很想把它們改掉，不過它們不斷地出現。

如果我們花更多的時間，反省我們的行為，參照我們的良知，

很可能許多缺點，自然而然就不見了。

Most people pay a lot for their education in life.

The clever person uses what other people pay to gain his education.

大部分的人為了得到教育(學習的經驗)，會付出很多。

一個聰明的人，會利用別人所付出的，而得到他的教育(學習的經驗)。

A certain homeless man was often seen wandering around the market place.

Everybody in the town thought that this homeless man must be very stupid.

They often teased him, made fun of him, and laughed at him.

One of the methods they used to tease him was to take two coins, a five-dollar coin 

and a ten-dollar coin, and offer them to the homeless man.

The homeless man always picked the five dollar coin. And every one would laugh.

He was so stupid! He couldn't tell a five-dollar coin from a ten-dollar coin!

One day a kind old lady couldn't stand it any longer and she asked the homeless man.

"Really can't you tell the difference between a five-dollar and a ten-dollar coin?"

The homeless man gave her a sly smile and said, "Of course I can. But if I took the

ten-dollar coin. They wouldn't play this game with me anymore."

有一個流浪漢，常常在某一個市場裡走動，

村莊的人都覺得他很笨，他們常常會譏笑他、捉弄他。

有一個捉弄他的方法，就是拿兩個錢幣，一個五塊錢，一個十塊錢，

讓這個流浪漢自己選擇他要哪一個。

他每次都會選擇五塊錢的錢幣，大家都會捧腹大笑，看他那麼傻呼呼的，

他也不知道，五塊錢跟十塊錢的分別，

有一天，有一個很有愛心的老夫人，她有一點受不了，她問這個流浪漢說：「你

真的分不清楚五塊錢跟十塊錢的錢幣嗎？」

那個流浪漢露出一個狡猾的微笑，他說：「我當然知道，不過如果我選擇十塊錢

的錢幣，他們就不會再跟我玩這個遊戲了。」

When we try to show other people how smart we are,

we often end up showing our stupidity.

Treating people with kindness and humility is a sign of true wisdom.

當我們要表現我們的聰明，

我們常常會露出我們的愚笨跟無知。

用柔和跟謙虛的態度來對待別人，才是真正有智慧的作為。

Neglecting small problems can often lead to big problems.

忽略小問題，常常是大問題的來源。

A certain family lived next to a large city wall.

One day out of the crack in the wall sprouted a small tree.

One of the neighbors in a kindhearted way told the owner.

"Better to pull that sprout out now before it grows large and becomes uncontrollable."

But the owner neglected to do so.

After ten years that small sprout had become a large tree and one night during a

serious storm a tremendous noise was heard.

The tree and the wall had fallen down crushing the owner and his entire family.

有一戶人家，住在城牆的隔壁。

有一天，城牆的磚縫中，長出一株樹苗。

旁人很好心的告訴主人，最好趁早拔掉，免得後來很麻煩。

不過這個主人，一直忽略這個小樹苗，也沒有去處理。

過了十年，這個小樹苗變成一顆大樹。

有一個暴風雨的夜晚，大家聽到很大的聲音，

那棵樹跟整個城牆都倒塌下來，壓死主人一家。

Do you often neglect small mistake, defects on bad habits?

The more you neglect them the larger they will grow.

One day when you are no longer able to control them

they'll be serious danger to you.

你會不會常常忽略小問題、小的毛病。

我們越忽略他們，他們長的越大。

將來有一天，當你再也無法控制他們的時候，

他們將會對你產生相當嚴重的危險。

Better to be a little slow than too fast and make mistakes.

Better to be a little stupid than too clever and fail.

寧可慢一點，而不要因為太快而犯錯。

寧可笨一點，而不要因為太聰明而導致失敗。

A man drove his car into the filling station and stopped in the fast service section.

Three attendants quickly came out to meet him and began to go about their work of 

servicing the car.

One washed the windows; the second one checked the oil and the third one checked

the air in the tires. And after taking money for ten gallons of gas, the man drove off.

But in three minutes, he came back again and he asked the attendants,

"Excuse me, but did any of you put gas in my car?" The three attendants looked at

each other and realized that in their haste they had forgotten the most important item.

They had forgotten to give the man gas.

有一個人開車到加油站，停在快速服務區。

三個服務生很快的出來招呼他，並且開始他們的服務工作。

其中一個洗車窗，另外一個檢查機油，還有一個檢查胎壓。

在收了十加侖的汽油錢之後，那個人就開車走了。

三分鐘之後，那個人又回來了，他問服務生：「不好意思，你們之中有人幫我加油了嗎？」

這三位服務生互相看了看，了解了他們因為匆忙，忘了最重要的事項。

他們忘了給他加油。

In our busy lives, do we sometimes forget to give top priority to the really important things?

Like spending time with our family and caring for our health.

在我們忙碌的生活中，是否有時候會忘記重要事情的優先順序？

像花時間陪我們的家人，以及照顧我們的健康。

No matter how difficult the road is, a strong hearted person will make it to the end.

一條路不論多麼艱苦，一個意志堅強的人，會一路走到底。

At a very important  marathon, the three winners had already been announced.

Prizes had been given and the crowd was beginning to disperse.

Just then in one corner of the stadium, there was the sound of applause and the last runner in the race entered the stadium.

He had fallen many times.

His body was covered with scratches but he gritted his teeth and was determined to finish the race.

As the crowd watched him limp towards the finish line they all stood up and applauded him and gave him great encouragement until he'd finished.

And everybody presented that day who witnessed the determination of that last runner learned a great lesson.

一個盛大的馬拉松比賽，快要接近尾聲的時候，三位優勝者已經宣佈，頒獎典禮就快要結束了。

大家慢慢的離開會場，那時在運動場的一個角落，大家聽到鼓掌的聲音，最後一位跑者進來了，他好像跌倒了很多次，全身都是傷痕，不過他咬著牙，決心要跑完全程。

觀眾看到了，都站起來鼓掌，看他一拐一拐的往前衝，大家都給他很大的鼓勵，直到他抵達終點。

那一天，所有參加馬拉松比賽的人，看到這個跑者的勇氣跟決心，學到很珍貴的一堂課。

The road of life is filled with obstacles and difficulties.

But our efforts are worth it.

Heaven and earth applauds and praises the ones who make it to the end.

在人生的道路上，我們一定會遇到很多阻礙和挫折。

不過，我們的努力是值得的。

那些有決心要跑到最後的人，一定會得到天地的鼓掌跟讚美。

Three things will last forever: faith, hope and love,

and the greatest of these is love.

有三件東西會永遠存在：信、望、愛，

其中最美好的是愛。

There was an Englishman who was a big fan of the lottery, and every week he would buy one ticket for the English National Lottery.

According to his custom he always used the same number.

But one Valentine's Day he decided not  to buy a lottery ticket that week, but to use that money to buy a Valentine's card to show his love for his wife.

It just to happened that that week the number that he used every week won the grand prize of the lottery: two million eight hundred thousand English pounds.

He was miserable. He thought to himself, "I don't think my children will ever forgive me, but I believe my wife will understand."

有一個英國人是一個獎券迷，他每一個禮拜一定要買一張英國國家彩券，而且按

照他的習慣，每一個禮拜他會用同樣的一個號碼。

有一次情人節，他決定這個禮拜不要買彩券。

他用那些錢替他太太買了一張情人卡，表示他對她的愛，

剛好那個禮拜，他每次押寶的那六個數字，偏偏中了頭獎。

有兩百八十萬英鎊的獎金，那個英國人很痛心，他心想：「我的三個小孩恐怕永遠不會原諒我，

不過我相信我的太太會諒解的。」

Maybe you've never had an experience quite so special as that Englishman but we all know the feeling that luck has passed us by.

Do you fret over lost opportunities?

Forget them. It's a waste of energy.

Live in the present and get ready to grasp the good opportunities that are coming your way.

可能你沒有像這個英國人一樣有那麼特殊的經驗，

不過，相信每一個人都有這種失去好機會的經驗。

你會不會因為失去那些好機會而一直覺得難過、遺憾。

把它們捨棄吧，活在現在，

要準備好抓住將要來臨的好機會。

Money cannot purchase love and devotion.

愛跟孝順是不能用錢買的。

Once there was an old man whose wife had died at an early age.

His sons didn't care about him and refused to take care of him in his old age,

so the man was left alone.

One day the man's younger brother came to see him and brought a big heavy chest.

He said to the old man, "Times are not good, I'm afraid. I cannot be responsible for

the things inside this chest, so I'm returning them to you."

When the man's sons saw this big heavy chest, they thought it must be filled with valuables.

And their attitude towards the old man changed.

They began to be polite to him, care for him, and when the old man died they could hardly wait until he was buried before they opened the chest and prepared to share the valuables.

But when they opened the chest what they found was nothing but a pile of stones.

And on the top was a note that said "These stones are just what your stony hearts deserve."

從前有一個老先生，他的太太很早就過世了。

他有幾個兒子，但都不孝順。年老的時候，沒有人照顧他。

有一天，這個老先生的弟弟，帶來一個又大又重的箱子。

弟弟跟哥哥說：「最近情況不太好，我要把這個箱子還給你，我怕我付不起賠償的責任。」

那個老先生的兒子們看到這個又大又重的箱子，他們在想：裡面一定有很多寶物。所以，他們對父親的態度改變了，開始對他比較有禮貌，比較孝順。

老先生過世，他的兒子們還等不及父親下葬，就撬開這個箱子，準備分了這些寶物。

不過箱子裡面並沒有寶物，只有一大堆石頭，還有一張字條。

這張字條上寫著：這些石頭，給你們這些心腸很硬的人，是最適合的。

Our devotion to our parents is a responsibility. It's also an unconditional gift.

If love can be purchased with money it's not real love and it's not worth a pile of stones.

我們對父母的孝順，是一種責任，也是一份無條件的禮物。

用錢買的愛，是假的，連一堆石頭都不如。