建造你自己的房子

An elderly carpenter was ready to retire. He told his employer of his plans to leave the house building business and live a more leisurely life with his wife enjoying his extended family. He would miss the paycheck, but he needed to retire. They could get by.

The employer was sorry to see his good worker go and asked if he could build just one more house as a personal favor. The carpenter said yes, but in time it was easy to see that his heart was not in his work. He resorted to shoddy workmanship and used inferior materials. It was an unfortunate way to end his career.

When the carpenter finished his work and the employer came to inspect the house and handed the front-door key to the carpenter. “This is your house,” he said, “my gift to you.”

What a shock! What a shame! If he had only known he was building his own house, he would have done it all so differently. Now he had to live in the home he had built none too well.

So it is with us. We build our lives in a distracted way, reacting rather than acting, willing to put up less than the best. At important points we do not give the job our best effort. Then with a shock we look at the situation we have created and find that we are now living in the house we have built. If we had realized, we would have done it differently.

Think of yourself as the carpenter. Think about your house. Each day you hammer a nail, place a board, or erect a wall. Build wisely. It is the only life you will ever build. Even if you live it for only one day more, that day deserves to be lived graciously and with dignity. The plaque on the wall says, “Life is a do-it-yourself project.” Who could say it more clearly? Your life tomorrow will be the result of your attitudes and the choices you make today.

【助讀詞匯】

◇carpenter n. 木工，木匠

◇shoddy adj. 劣等的，假冒的

◇inferior adj. 下等的，差的，下級的

◇inspect v. 檢查，檢閱，審查，視察

◇plaque n. 匾，名牌，飾板

【參考譯文】

建造你自己的房子

一位上了年紀的木匠打算退休。他告訴雇主自己要離開建筑行業，和妻子以及其他眾多家庭成員過更休閑的生活。他會想念這里的工資，但是他還是得退休。他們過得下去。

看到自己最得力的木匠要走雇主很遺憾。他問是否能再多建一座房子，算是幫個忙。木匠答應了，但是不用多久就能看出他的心已經不在工作上了。他建的馬馬虎虎，用得是劣質的建材。以這種方式來告別他的職業生涯真是不幸。

木匠完工后，雇主過來查看房子，并把前門的鑰匙給了木匠。“這是你的房子了，”他說，“我送給你的禮物。”

木匠又震驚又羞愧。如果他早知道是給自己建房子，他就不會這樣建了。現在他得在自己建造過最差的房子里生活。

這也是發生在我們身上的事。建設自己的生活的時候，我們三心二意，不主動出擊反而處處被動，不愿意竭盡全力，只得過且過。在最關鍵的時候我們不全力以赴。然后驚訝地看到自己一手造成的局面，發現自己生活在自己建造的房子里。如果我們早醒悟過來，我們就不會那樣做了。

設想你就是那位木匠。想想你的房子。每天你明智地揮錘釘釘子，搭木板，塑墻。這是你能建設的唯一一次人生。即使這種生活你只能再過一天，你也應該懷著感恩的心，有尊嚴地度過這天。墻上的匾上寫著：“生活是你自己動手建造的工程。”誰還能把這道理說得更清楚？今天你的態度和選擇決定你明天的生活。

【人生啟迪】

海爾集團的說過一句很有名的話：“什么叫做不容易，把每件容易的事都做好就叫不容易；什么叫做不簡單，把每件簡單的事都做好就叫做不簡單。”生活中沒有哪些事是可以不那么用心的。你現在做的每一件事都是將來的鋪墊。成功就建造在每天的努力之上。只有事事認真，時時認真的人才能贏得成功。