On the Motes and Beams

窗外的芙蓉樹 The Trees Outside My Window

From the window of my room， I could see a tall cotton-rose hibiscus. In spring， when green foliage was half hidden by mist， the tree looked very enchanting dotted with red blossom. This inspiring neighbor of mine often set my mind working. I gradually regarded it as my best friend.

Nevertheless， when I opened the window one morning， to my amazement， the tree was almost bare beyond recognition as a result of the storm ravages the night before. Struck by the plight， I was seized with a sadness at the thought “all the blossom is doomed to fall”. I could not help sighing with emotion： the course of life never runs smooth， for there are so many ups and downs， twists and turns. The vicissitudes of my life saw my beloved friends parting one after another. Isn’t it similar to the tree shedding its flowers in the wind？

This event faded from my memory as time went by. One day after I came home from the countryside， I found the room stuffy and casually opened the window. Something outside caught my eye and dazzled me. It was a plum tree all scarlet with blossom set off beautifully by the sunset. The surprise discovery overwhelmed me with pleasure. I wondered why I had no idea of some unyielding life sprouting over the fallen petals when I was grieving for the hibiscus.

When the last withered petal dropped， all the joyful admiration for the hibiscus sank into oblivion as if nothing was left， until the landscape was again ablaze with the red plum blossom to remind people of life’s alternation and continuance. Can’t it be said that life is actually a symphony， a harmonious composition of loss gain？

Standing by the window lost in thought for a long time， I realized that no scenery in the world remains unchanged. As long as you keep your heart basking in the sun， every dawn will present a fine prospect for you to unfold and the world will always be bringing about new hopes.

透過我房間的窗子，可以看到一株高大的芙蓉樹。它在春日的薄霧中若隱若現，紅花點點，甚是迷人。它總能給我靈感，使我文思泉涌。我逐漸把它當成了最好的朋友。

然而，一天早晨，當我把窗子打開時，吃驚地發現前夜的那場風雨竟將芙蓉樹吹打得落紅滿地。霎時，那種“花開終有落”的悲涼之感襲上心頭，我不禁喟嘆：人生之旅，總會有各種牽絆，曲折的經歷總會伴隨著我們。我曾多次承受與摯友離別的傷感，這隨風而逝的花朵不正是脆弱生命的真實寫照嗎？

那天的感觸隨著時間的流逝在我的記憶中逐漸被淡忘。一天，我從鄉下回到家中，覺得室內的空氣令人窒息，便隨手將窗子打開。眼前的景象頓時讓我驚呆了。一棵李子樹滿樹都開了火紅的花朵，在落日余暉的映照下顯得格外漂亮。這驚奇的發現讓我興奮不已。當初我為落紅的芙蓉樹悲傷時，卻沒想到那凄涼景象背后，竟會萌生出如此頑強的生命。

當最后一片枯萎的芙蓉花瓣飄落時，人們不再對它贊美欣賞。直到李子樹成長起來，那火紅的花兒正向人們昭示著生命的更迭與繁衍。誰能否認生命原本就是一場得失共存的交響樂呢？

我站在窗前，不禁思緒萬千。我意識到，生命中沒什么恒久不變的風景，只要你的心永遠朝著太陽，那么每一個清晨都會向你展現一番美景，等待你去欣賞——這個世界總會帶給你新的希望。

生命中沒什么恒久不變的風景，只要你的心永遠朝著太陽，那么每一個清晨都會向你展現一番美景，等你去欣賞——這個世界總會帶給你新的希望。

1. Nevertheless，_________I opened the window one morning， to my amazement， the tree was almost bare_________recognition as a result of the storm ravages the night . Struck by the plight， I was seized with a_________at the thought “all the blossom is doomed to ”.

2. One day_________I came home from the countryside， I found the room stuffy and casually opened the . Something outside_________my eye and dazzled me. It was a plum tree all scarlet with blossom set off beautifully by the .

3. When the_________withered petal dropped， all the joyful admiration for the hibiscus sank into oblivion as if nothing was ， until the landscape was again ablaze with the red plum blossom to_________people of life’s alternation and continuance.

1．人生之旅，總會有各種牽絆，曲折的經歷總會伴隨著我們。

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

2．那天的感觸隨著時間的流逝在我的記憶中逐漸被淡忘。

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

3．生命中沒什么恒久不變的風景。

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

1．I was seized with a sadness at the thought “all the blossom is doomed to fall”.

be seized with：被（強烈的情感、愿望等）影響

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

2．I could not help sighing with emotion...

could not help： 禁不??；忍不住

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

月亮的智慧

Lesson from the Moon

佚名 / Anonymous

“When the moon is fullest it begins to wane， when it is darkest it begins to grow.”

——Chinese Proverb

There is a calm wisdom in this old saying that impressed me when I heard it first from a monk of a Buddhist monastery in China. It has often helped me to retain a good measure of equanimity under stress and hardship as well as when some unexpected success or good luck might have made me too exuberant. There is hope and consolation in the sure knowledge that even the darkest hours of pains and troubles won’t last， but also a warning against overrating the passing glories of wealth， power and great good fortune. A warning and a hope， not only for the individual， but also for governments， nations and their leaders， a brief summing up of all that history and human experience can tell us. And beyond all that we might hear in it an echo of the law and order that holds our universe in safe balance.

“月盈則虧，晦則明?！?

——中國古諺

這句中國的古語里有種平靜的智慧，它最初是一個中國佛教寺院中的一位和尚告訴我的，這句話給我的印象很深刻。從那時起，每當我遭遇困難阻礙，或者遇到可能使我過于興奮的成功或好運的時候，這句話總能幫我保持鎮定。這句話啟示我們，不論痛苦或困難的時刻有多么暗淡，它們不會長久持續下去，我們因此會感到希望和寬慰；這句話同時也警示我們，財富、權力或鴻運當頭的榮耀，都不過是過眼云煙，我們不必太放在心上。無論對于個人還是對于國家、民族乃至其領袖，這則諺語都是警示和希望，而且它還是歷史與人類發展所給予我們的簡要總結。除此之外，我們從這句話里面還可以聆聽到使宇宙保持平衡狀態的法則與秩序的回聲。

月盈則虧，晦則明。不論痛苦或困難的時刻有多么暗淡，它們不會長久持續下去；財富、權力或鴻運當頭的榮耀，也都不過是過眼云煙。