The Daffodil Principle《水仙花法则》· John

为你读英语美文 · 往期回顾 | 第69期

主播：严喆，John

录制地点：柏林，2015年2月

John McAuley是严喆在大连读本科时的外教。2015年，严喆前往柏林留学，当时定居香港的John到柏林游玩，在严喆的邀请下，John录制了这期节目The Daffodil Principle。这篇文章，是大学时，John推荐给严喆的。

9年过去了，随着生活阅历的的增加，再次读起这篇文章，对“水仙花法则“有了更深的感触：

Learning to move toward our goals and desires one step at a time—often just one baby step at a time—and learning to love the doing, learning to use the accumulation of time. When we multiply tiny pieces of time with small increments of daily effort, we too will find we can accomplish magnificent things. We can change the world.

那就是，懂得向我们的目标迈进，只求一步一个脚印——懂通常一次就一小步——懂得去热爱正在做的事，懂得利用时间的积累。当我们把时间的碎片叠加，再加上每天的一点努力，我们会发现我们也能成就辉煌。我们也能改变这个世界。

9年过去了，John 72岁，回到了纽约。他将再一次做客“为你读英语美文”，为我们带来美文，就在下期，敬请期待哦。

The Daffodil Principle

《水仙花法则》

Several times my daughter had telephoned me to say, "Dad, you must come to see the daffodils before they are over. "I wanted to go, but it was a two-hour drive from Laguna to Lake Arrowhead.

好几次了，我女儿打电话来说： “爸爸，你务必得在那些水仙花凋谢之前来看看它们。”我是想去，可从拉古娜到箭头湖要开两个小时的车。

"I will come next Tuesday, "I promised, a little reluctantly, after her third call.

“那我下周二去吧。”在她第三次打来电话时，我极不情愿地答应道。

Next Tuesday dawned cold and rainy. Still, I had promised, and so I reluctantly drove there.

到了那个周二，清晨很冷又下着雨，不过既然答应了， 我还是开车去了。

When I finally walked into Carolyn's house, I was welcomed by the joyful sounds of happy children. I delightedly hugged and greeted my grandchildren.

等我终于到了卡罗琳家，拥抱问候过我的外孙们，说:

"Forget the daffodils, Carolyn! The road is invisible in the clouds and fog, there is nothing in the world except you and these children that I want to see badly enough to drive another inch! "

“卡罗琳，别想那水仙了！天阴又有雾，路都看不清。这世上除了你和这些孩子，没有什么能让我为想去看他们再开一步车了！”

My daughter smiled calmly and said, "We drive in this all the time, dad."

女儿平静地笑着说：“爸爸，我们一直都在这种天气里开车 的呀！”

"Well, you won’t get me back on the road until it clears, and then I’m heading for home! "I told her.

“那反正你甭想让我再开车上路了，除非天晴了，然后我就直接开车回家！”我重申道。

"But first we're going to see the daffodils. It's just a few blocks," Carolyn said. "I'll drive. I'm used to this."

“但首先我们要去看水仙花。就几个街区而已，”卡罗琳说。“我来开。我已经习惯了。”

"Carolyn," I said, "please turn around."

“卡罗琳，”说，“请你掉头回去。”

"It’s all right, dad, I promise. You will never forgive yourself if you miss this experience."

“没事的，爸爸，我保证。如果你错过了这次经历，你永远不会原谅自己的。”

After about 20 minutes, we turned onto a small gravel road and I saw a small church. On the far side of the church, I saw a hand-lettered sign that read, Daffodil Garden.

大概过了 20分钟，我们转到了一条碎石小路上，我看到一个小教堂。在教堂的稍远一侧，我看见一个手写的牌子，上面写着：“水仙花园”。

We got out of the car and each took a child’s hand, and I followed Carolyn down the path. Then, as we turned a corner of the path, and I looked up and gasped. 

我们走下车，一人领着一个孩子。我跟着卡罗琳顺小道而行， 转到小道的一角，我抬头一看，惊住了。

Before me lay the most glorious sight. It looked as though someone had taken a great vat of gold and poured it over the mountain peak and its surrounding slopes. The flowers were planted in majestic, swirling patterns, great ribbons and swathes of deep orange, creamy white, lemon yellow, salmon pink, and saffron and butter yellow. Each different-colored variety was planted in large groups so that it swirled and flowed like its own river with its own unique hue. There were five acres of flowers.

在我面前是极为壮观的景象，看上去仿佛有人把一大缸金子倾倒下来，覆盖了峰顶和山坡。那些花栽种成宏伟的漩涡图案——宽宽窄窄的条纹有很多颜色，有深橘、白、柠檬黄、橙红、番红和乳黄。每种不同色系的 多种颜色种植为一组，这样看上去每组都用自己独特的色调一圈 圈地在自己的河流中流淌。那有五亩花。

"Who did this?" I asked Carolyn. 

“这是谁种的呢？”我问卡罗琳。

"Just one woman," Carolyn answered. "She lives on the property. That's her home." Carolyn pointed to a well-kept A-frame house, small and modestly sitting in the midst of all that glory. We walked up to the house. On the patio, we saw a poster, said, "Answers to the Questions I Know You Are Asking”, that was the headline.

“就一个女人，”卡罗琳回答， “她就以这片花为生。那是她的家。”卡罗琳指着一个整修得很好的A字形房子，在一片壮丽的景象当中，这房子看起来小而朴素。我走到房子跟前，在院子里我看到一张海报，标题是“答案我知道你要问的这些问题”。

The first answer was a simple one. "50,000 bulbs," it read.

第一个答案很简单，写着：“50,000株”。

The second answer was, "One at a time, by one woman. Two hands, two feet, and very little brain."

第二个答案是：“一次种一株，一个女人，两只手，两只脚，不需多动脑。”

The third answer was, "Began in 1958."

第三个答案是：“开始于1958年”

For me, that moment was a life-changing experience. I thought of this woman whom I had never met, who, whom more than 35 years before, had begun—one bulb at a time—to bring her vision of beauty and joy to an obscure mountain top.

对于我，那一刻是一次改变生活的经历。我在琢磨这个我从未谋面的女人，她在35年前，开始一次种一株——给她自己带来了美的景象和花满山顶的快乐。

Planting one bulb at a time, year after year, this unknown woman had forever changed the world in which she lived. One day at a time, she had created something of extraordinary magnificence, beauty, and inspiration.

就这样一次种一株，年复一年，这个不知名的女人永远地 改变了她所居住的世界，她创造了无法形容的壮丽、美好和感动。

The principle her daffodil garden taught is one of the greatest principles of celebration. That is, learning to move toward our goals and desires one step at a time—often just one baby step at a time—and learning to love the doing, learning to use the accumulation of time.

在这个水仙花园中得出的定律是值得庆祝的最伟大的定律之一。那就是，懂得向我们的目标迈进，只求一步一个脚印——懂通常一次就一小步——懂得去热爱正在做的事，懂得利用时间的积累。

When we multiply tiny pieces of time with small increments of daily effort, we too will find we can accomplish magnificent things. We can change the world.

当我们把时间的碎片叠加，再加上每天的一点努力，我们会发现我们也能成就辉煌。我们也能改变这个世界。

"It makes me sad in a way," I admitted to Carolyn. " What might I have accomplished if I had thought of a wonderful goal thirty-five or forty years ago and had worked away at it ‘one bulb at a time’ through all those years? Just think what I might have been able to achieve!"

“ 这让我在某种意义上有点丧气。”我跟卡罗琳说，“ 如果我35年前有一个宏伟的目标，然后也像这样“一次种一株”地做下去，这些年我会有什么成就呢？想想我到底能做成什么！”

My daughter summed up the message of the day in her usual direct way. "Start tomorrow," she said.

女儿直截了当地总结了那天的收获。她说：“从明天开始。”

She was right. It's so pointless to think of the lost hours of yesterdays. The way to make learning a lesson of celebration instead of a cause for regret is to only ask, "How can I put this to use today?"

她是对的。追忆昨天失去的时光是毫无意义的。吸取成功经验，而非悔不当初的方法是只问：“我今天怎么过好今天？”

Use the Daffodil Principle. 

运用水仙花原理

Stop waiting.....

停止等待….

Until your car or home is paid off

Until you get a new car or home

Until your kids leave the house

Until you go back to school

Until you finish school

Until you clean the house

Until you organize the garage

Until you clean off your desk

Until you lose 10 lbs.

Until you gain 10 lbs.

Until you get married

Until you get a divorce

Until you have kids

Until the kids go to school

Until you retire

Until summer

Until spring

Until winter

Until fall

Until you die...

直到你的车贷房贷还清

直到你有了新车或新家

直到你的孩子离开家

直到你回到学校

直到你完成学业

直到你打扫完房子

直到你整理好车库

直到你把桌子清理干净

直到你减掉10磅。

直到你体重增加10磅。

直到你结婚

直到你离婚

直到你有了孩子

直到孩子们上学

直到你退休

直到夏天

直到春天

直到冬天

直到秋天

直到你逝去…

There is no better time than right now to be happy.

Happiness is a journey, not a destination.

So work like you don't need money.

Love like you've never been hurt.

Dance like no one's watching.

没有比现在更幸福的时刻。

幸福是一段旅程，而不是目的地。

所以像不需要钱一样工作。

爱，就像你从未受过伤害。

跳舞，就像没人在看一样。

Wishing you a beautiful, daffodil day!

愿你有一个美丽的水仙花日！

▎背景音乐

広橋真紀子 - Some Day My Prince Will Come

広橋真紀子 - 花によせて

石进 - 花的微笑

特别感谢：严喆，后期制作：永清

文章，音乐，图片非商业用途，版权归作者或版权方所有

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