Gifts from the heart

Ayoung man came across a spring of delicious crystal-clear water while roaming the desert.The water was so sweet that he filled his leather canteen to bring some back to an elder who had been his teacher.

The old man took a deep drink,smiled warmly and thanked his student for the sweet water.The young man returned to his village with a happy heart.

Later,the teacher let another student taste the water.He spat it out,saying it was awful.It apparently had become stale （adj.走味；不新鲜） because of the old leather container.

The student challenged his teacher,“Master,the water smelt.Why did you pretend to like it?”

The teacher replied, “You only tasted the water.I tasted the gift.The water was simply the container for an act of loving-kindness and nothing could be sweeter.”

I think we understand this lesson best when we receive innocent gifts of love from young children.Whether it's a ceramic （adj.陶器的）tray or a macaroni （n.通心粉）bracelet,the natural and proper response is appreciation and expresses thankfulness because we love the idea within the gift.

Gratitude doesn't always come naturally.Unfortunately,most people value only the thing given rather than the feeling contained in it.We should remind ourselves about the beauty and purity of feelings and expressions of gratitude.After all,gifts from the heart are really gifts of the heart.

一个年轻的男子在漫游沙漠途中看到一泉如水晶般清澈而可口的水。水的味道非常甘甜，于是他灌满了他的皮水壶，这样就可以带一些回去，送给一位曾经是他老师的长者。

老人深饮一口，和蔼地笑了笑，并感激学生赠予他甜美的水。年轻人怀着愉快的心情回到了村庄。

后来，老师让他的另一个学生品尝水。学生吐了出来，说水太难喝了。它显然已经因为陈旧的皮革容器而变得不再新鲜了。

学生质疑他的老师：“师父，水是臭的，你为什么要假装喜欢它呢？”

老师回答说，“你只品尝了水的味道，我却是在品尝礼物的味道。水仅仅是装载善与爱之行为的容器，而没有什么东西比善与爱更甜美了。”

我认为当我们从天真的孩子们那里收到爱的礼物时，最能透彻地明白这个道理。无论它是一个陶瓷托盘还是通心粉手镯，我们自然而恰当的反应是欣赏，并表示感激，因为我们喜欢礼物所包含的心意。

感恩并不总是自然而来的。不幸的是，大多数人只看重被赠予的东西本身，而不是它所体现的情谊。我们应该提醒自己，感情和对感激之情的表达是美丽而纯洁的。毕竟，发自内心给予的礼物才是真正的礼物。