大自然与生活的教导

By+Aaron+Anthony+Vessup

自然四季循環交替，万物代代更迭，人类生老病死。这本是最基本的规律，但科技的进步让人有了种可超越自然法则的错觉，执迷于“更高、更快、更强”。实际上，即便是机械设备在运行时也会发生损耗，也有一定的使用周期。在快节奏的生活中，人更要好好利用生命中的“冬日”，给自己一点时间平心静气地休养生息，为的是待到春暖，自然花开。

“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： 叠句，重复；televised series： 电视连续剧；Game of Thrones： 《权利的游戏》，是美国HBO频道播出的一部中世纪史诗奇幻题材的电视连续剧，该剧以美国作家乔治·R.R.马丁的奇幻巨作《冰与火之歌》七部曲为基础改编创作。

2. play a vital part in： 在……中扮演至关重要的角色；all good things must come to an end： 天下无不散之筵席，凡美好之事必有终结之时。

3. rebirth： 重生，复兴；restoration： 恢复。

4. ultimately： 最后，终于。

5. for a spin： 兜风。

6. inevitably： 无可避免地；slip out of： 从……中滑出；gear： 齿轮；shift： 换挡。

7. hand brake-line： 手刹拉线；faulty： 出故障的；squeeze： 挤，紧握；handle： 手柄；extra-hard： 特别用力，使劲。

8. 我跟自己说，这辆自行车才六年车龄，也没锈迹斑斑，亮黄色的车漆，带着鲜明的黑红涂装，刚刚洗完看起来就跟新的一样闪闪发光。rusty： 生锈的；trim： 装饰，饰边；gleam： 闪光。

9. irritating： 气人的，使愤怒的；associate with：与……有关系，与……相联系；mount： 增加。

10. flat： 漏气车胎。

11. spin： 旋转；adjustment： 调节。

12. rubber pedal： 橡胶踏板；foot pressure： 足底压力；up-hill： 上坡。

13. mishap： 災祸，不幸事故。

14. pedal arm： 踏板臂；bike frame： 车架；break off： 折断。

15. oil up： 上油。

16. for safetys sake： 为了安全起见。

17. reluctance： 犹豫；stem from： 起源于，来自；fond： 喜爱的；attachment： 依恋，喜爱。

18. cling to： 坚持；resourceful： 随机应变的，机智的；worn-out： 磨破的，不能再用的。

19. hold up： 支撑，承受住。

20. 然而，当我试着蹬腿上车、急冲上地铁阶梯，或者在焦躁的乘客中连挤带推登上公车时，一句真言愈发清晰：“凛冬将至。”race up： 向上跑；hoist： 使……上升；mesh： 原指机器部位相互啮合，这里形容人挤人的状态。

21. joint： 关节。

22. 几个月前，在一次一个晚上的长城露营远足中，我意识到在四个半小时的登山运动后，我需要长于以往的休整恢复。expedition：远足游览。

23. furiously： 猛烈地，狂暴地；limb： 肢，臂，腿；scream for： 强烈要求；relief：（痛苦、焦虑等的）减轻，解除。

24. admittedly： 无可否认地，应当承认的是；cracked ribs： 肋骨折断；surgery： 外科手术。

25. endure： 忍受；exhaustion： 体力耗竭，筋疲力尽。

26. hibernate： 冬眠，处于不活动状态。

27. routine： 例行公事，惯例。

28. steep： 陡峭的。

29. metal shop： 金属加工车间；hunk of： 大块的；ingot： 锭，铸块。

30. hammer： 锤子。

31. in disbelief： 难以置信地。

32. pay off： 得到好处，收到效果。

33. heed： 注意，留心。

3 4.这句涉及两首歌：一是“Au t u mn Leaves”，（《秋叶》），由法裔作曲家Joseph Kosma（1905—1969）创作于1945年。上世纪中叶，美国艺人Johnny Mercer将其改写成英文版“Autumn Leaves”，在美国大为风行，电影《廊桥遗梦》就出现了这首乐曲；另一首是1960年老歌“The Second Time Around”，由Bing Crosby演唱，曾提名奥斯卡最佳原创歌曲奖。

35. mythical Chinese Phoenix： 指的是“凤凰涅，浴火重生”，在传说当中，凤凰是人世间幸福的使者，每五百年，它就要背负着积累于人间的所有痛苦和恩怨，投身于熊熊烈火中自焚，以生命美丽的终结换取人世的祥和与幸福，喻指人们在肉体经受了巨大的痛苦和轮回后才能得以重生。mythical： 神话的，虚构的；phoenix： 凤凰；majestic：庄严的，宏伟的。