A certain man planted a rose and watered it faithfully and before it blossomed, he examined it.

有一个人种了一棵玫瑰。他精心地给玫瑰浇水，在它开花之前仔细地观察它。



He saw the bud that would soon blossom, but noticed thorns upon the stem and he thought, “How can any beautiful flower come from a plant burdened with so many sharp thorns？” Saddened by this thought, he neglected to water the rose, and just before it was ready to bloom, it died.



　　他看到了很快就要绽放的花蕾，但也注意到了花茎上的刺。他想：“美丽的花怎么会从一棵为许多尖刺所累的植物里长出来呢？”这么一想，他伤心起来，就忘了给玫瑰浇水。于是，玫瑰就在即将开花之时死了。



So it is with many people. Within every soul there is a rose. The God-like qualities planted in us at birth, grow amid the thorns of our faults. Many of us look at ourselves and see only the “thorns”, the defects.



　　许多人也是这样。每个人的身上都有着玫瑰花般的美好品质，这些优异品质与生俱来，在我们如刺一般的缺点中成长。我们许多人在看自己时只看到身上的“刺”——缺点。







We despair, thinking that nothing good can possibly come from us. We neglect to water the good within us, and eventually it dies. We never realize our potential.



　　我们为此绝望，认为自己不会有出息，于是就忘了培育自己身上的长处，致使它最终消亡。我们根本没有认识到自己的潜力。



Some people do not see the “rose”within themselves; someone else must show it to them. One of the greatest gifts of a great person is to be able to reach past the “thorns” of other people, and find the “rose” within them.



　　一些人看不到他们自己拥有的“玫瑰”，其他人应该帮助他们看到这些“玫瑰”。伟人的一个突出才能就是能够超越别人身上的“刺”，发现他们内在的“玫瑰”。



　This is one of the characteristic of love——to look at other people, know their true faults and all the while recognize the good within them. Help others to realize they can overcome their faults. If we show them the “rose” within themselves, they will conquer their “thorns”. Only then will they “blossom” many times over.



　　这是爱的一个特质——看别人时，既看到他们实实在在的缺点，同时也要始终看到他们内在的优点。帮助他人认识到他们能克服自己的缺点。如果能让他们看到自己内在的“玫瑰”，他们就能战胜身上的“刺”。只有这样，他们才能一遍遍地“开花”。



点评：

有个成语叫“因噎废食”，害怕吃饭时被噎到，于是拒绝进食。故事中浇花的男士，因厌倦花枝上的利刺，而忘记为花浇水，致使玫瑰枯萎。看了这些故事，我们也许会暗笑他们的愚蠢和迂腐。但类似的事情天天都在上演，只不过变换了形式。



无利刺，不玫瑰。任何人都是天使与魔鬼的结合体，区别在于比例的不同。真正的光明并不是没有黑暗的时间，只是不被黑暗所淹没；真正的英雄不是没有卑下的情怀，只不过不向卑下的情怀所屈服罢了。人的完美也在于他的不完美。一个没有缺点的人也意味着没有任何优点。