大自然與生活的教導

By+Aaron+Anthony+Vessup

自然四季循環交替，萬物代代更迭，人類生老病死。這本是最基本的規律，但科技的進步讓人有了種可超越自然法則的錯覺，執迷于“更高、更快、更強”。實際上，即便是機械設備在運行時也會發生損耗，也有一定的使用周期。在快節奏的生活中，人更要好好利用生命中的“冬日”，給自己一點時間平心靜氣地休養生息，為的是待到春暖，自然花開。

“Winter is coming” is one frequent refrain from the popular televised series Game of Thrones.1 In truth， whether we are young or old， winter may already be here.

Winter， plays a vital part in natures cycle teaching us through plants， trees， and colorful flowers that “all good things must come to an end” over time.2 However， rebirth and restoration often brings a greater glory and appreciation for the natural beauty seen around us.3 From this reality we live in expectation and hope， waiting for the return of Spring， Summer， and ultimately4 Fall.

Each day when I take my bike for a spin5 around the city streets， I am reminded that technology also teaches us lessons. Specifically， when the bicycle chain inevitably slips out of gear and refuses to shift properly，6 some man-made things needs attention， repair， or replacement. The hand brake-lines keep reacting faulty when I squeeze the handle extra-hard trying to stop.7 I tell myself that this bike is only six years old， not rusty looking， and the bright yellow paint with sharp black and red trim still gleams like new when washed.8 Everything should continue to function well.

Yet， more irritating elements associated with this bike are mounting.9 The back tire had two flats10 and needed to be replaced. The seat and handle bars now keep slipping， spinning， and need frequent adjustments.11 Yesterday， the rubber pedal on the right side broke away from my foot pressure when going up-hill.12 This mishap13 revealed bare metal gleaming from the broken rubber piece actually forming the foot pedal. Seeing this caused me to remember that pedal arm attached to the bicycle frame on this same side had broken off the first day I rode home from Wal-Mart.14

“Winter is coming.” For many this means a time to clean， oil up15， repair and adjust equipment that begs for attention around the house. In the case of my two-wheel transportation， some people have suggested， “Why dont you just get a new bike for safetys sake16？”My reluctance， however， stems from loyalty， fond attachment.17 Also， I cling to a belief that I should be a bit patient and resourceful， simply replacing worn-out parts when required.18 After all， there are many very old bicycles wheeling about Beijings busy streets. Surely my transportation machine can hold up19 for a few more years.

However， as I try to swing my legs over the seat while getting on the bike， race up subways stairs， or hoist myself quickly into a bus being pushed and meshed between impatient passengers， one truth becomes clear： “Winter is coming.”20 My legs and joints21 do not respond quickly and reliable like in the past. Extra efforts are needed.

A few months ago， hiking the Great Wall on an overnight camping expedition， I realized at the end of four and a half hours I needed more rest and restoration than ever.22 My heart rate beat furiously， my limbs and joints ached， and every muscle in my tired body screamed for relief.23 Admittedly， these pains were nothing like having a broken limb， cracked ribs， or surgery.24 Yet， the world suddenly seemed to be a very unfriendly place. Nevertheless， having in the past endured extreme physical exhaustion when in sports contests，25 I could take some comfort in the saying： “What doesnt kill you makes you stronger.” Also， I keep telling myself this sport season is ending， “Winter is coming”， and soon I can hibernate26 getting much needed rest.

It is a fact that we all need to take a break from training routines27， hard jobs， and frequent repeated tasks， to restore our bodies and minds. This is like recharging a much-used mobile phone. Senior citizens know these things and many other secrets of nature. Time teaches patience， and the cycle of nature is all about time. Often to merely pause and wait is the best solution for many challenges we face. Indeed， sometimes we just need to proceed more slowly than simply being in a rush. Some of the best “Art” is usually produced from patient， step-by-step application of specific techniques. This is just as simple as climbing up a steep28 mountain one small step at a time.

I recall my first Metal Shop class in Junior High School， teacher， Mr. Moreno， gave all of us small， thick， hunks of cold， hard， iron ingots.29 He then showed us a beautiful gleaming hammer30. “This is what you can produce if you are willing to work patiently.” We all looked at the finished piece in disbelief31. How could such an ugly， useless piece of iron become a thing of beauty， we complained. Over time， however， each of us amazed ourselves at what we eventually achieved： beautiful gleaming tools just like our teacher had promised and claimed that we could produce.

In the final analysis， nature is not very complicated at all. Trees， plants， and delicate flowers show us the way. Patience pays off32 when you attend to your gardens with faithful attention to each of natures jewels. Hopefully， as we grow， each of us learns the art of repair， restoration， and the necessity for timing， patience， and practice. Failure to heed33 and learn often will cause us to pay very painful costs. There are many patterns to discover when we examine nature closely. Perhaps some of us will even discover that as Winter arrives and departs life becomes even more glorious than ever. “Those Autumn leaves…” or “The Second Time Around”…may even become one of your favorite songs.34 And perhaps， like the mythical Chinese Phoenix， you will discover the glory of rebirth after Winter， being reborn and restored to even more powerful majestic glory.35

1. refrain： 疊句，重復；televised series： 電視連續劇；Game of Thrones： 《權利的游戲》，是美國HBO頻道播出的一部中世紀史詩奇幻題材的電視連續劇，該劇以美國作家喬治·R.R.馬丁的奇幻巨作《冰與火之歌》七部曲為基礎改編創作。

2. play a vital part in： 在……中扮演至關重要的角色；all good things must come to an end： 天下無不散之筵席，凡美好之事必有終結之時。

3. rebirth： 重生，復興；restoration： 恢復。

4. ultimately： 最后，終于。

5. for a spin： 兜風。

6. inevitably： 無可避免地；slip out of： 從……中滑出；gear： 齒輪；shift： 換擋。

7. hand brake-line： 手剎拉線；faulty： 出故障的；squeeze： 擠，緊握；handle： 手柄；extra-hard： 特別用力，使勁。

8. 我跟自己說，這輛自行車才六年車齡，也沒銹跡斑斑，亮黃色的車漆，帶著鮮明的黑紅涂裝，剛剛洗完看起來就跟新的一樣閃閃發光。rusty： 生銹的；trim： 裝飾，飾邊；gleam： 閃光。

9. irritating： 氣人的，使憤怒的；associate with：與……有關系，與……相聯系；mount： 增加。

10. flat： 漏氣車胎。

11. spin： 旋轉；adjustment： 調節。

12. rubber pedal： 橡膠踏板；foot pressure： 足底壓力；up-hill： 上坡。

13. mishap： 災禍，不幸事故。

14. pedal arm： 踏板臂；bike frame： 車架；break off： 折斷。

15. oil up： 上油。

16. for safetys sake： 為了安全起見。

17. reluctance： 猶豫；stem from： 起源于，來自；fond： 喜愛的；attachment： 依戀，喜愛。

18. cling to： 堅持；resourceful： 隨機應變的，機智的；worn-out： 磨破的，不能再用的。

19. hold up： 支撐，承受住。

20. 然而，當我試著蹬腿上車、急沖上地鐵階梯，或者在焦躁的乘客中連擠帶推登上公車時，一句真言愈發清晰：“凜冬將至。”race up： 向上跑；hoist： 使……上升；mesh： 原指機器部位相互嚙合，這里形容人擠人的狀態。

21. joint： 關節。

22. 幾個月前，在一次一個晚上的長城露營遠足中，我意識到在四個半小時的登山運動后，我需要長于以往的休整恢復。expedition：遠足游覽。

23. furiously： 猛烈地，狂暴地；limb： 肢，臂，腿；scream for： 強烈要求；relief：（痛苦、焦慮等的）減輕，解除。

24. admittedly： 無可否認地，應當承認的是；cracked ribs： 肋骨折斷；surgery： 外科手術。

25. endure： 忍受；exhaustion： 體力耗竭，筋疲力盡。

26. hibernate： 冬眠，處于不活動狀態。

27. routine： 例行公事，慣例。

28. steep： 陡峭的。

29. metal shop： 金屬加工車間；hunk of： 大塊的；ingot： 錠，鑄塊。

30. hammer： 錘子。

31. in disbelief： 難以置信地。

32. pay off： 得到好處，收到效果。

33. heed： 注意，留心。

3 4.這句涉及兩首歌：一是“Au t u mn Leaves”，（《秋葉》），由法裔作曲家Joseph Kosma（1905—1969）創作于1945年。上世紀中葉，美國藝人Johnny Mercer將其改寫成英文版“Autumn Leaves”，在美國大為風行，電影《廊橋遺夢》就出現了這首樂曲；另一首是1960年老歌“The Second Time Around”，由Bing Crosby演唱，曾提名奧斯卡最佳原創歌曲獎。

35. mythical Chinese Phoenix： 指的是“鳳凰涅，浴火重生”，在傳說當中，鳳凰是人世間幸福的使者，每五百年，它就要背負著積累于人間的所有痛苦和恩怨，投身于熊熊烈火中自焚，以生命美麗的終結換取人世的祥和與幸福，喻指人們在肉體經受了巨大的痛苦和輪回后才能得以重生。mythical： 神話的，虛構的；phoenix： 鳳凰；majestic：莊嚴的，宏偉的。