The Old Man who Plant Oak 種橡樹的老人

A young traveler was exploring the Alps. He came upon a vast stretch of barren land. It was desolate. It was the kind of place you hurry away from.

一個年輕的旅行者在阿爾卑斯山探險。他來到一塊一望無際的不毛之池，那裡荒無人煙，那是一種讓人急欲離開的地方。

Then, suddenly, the young traveler stopped dead in his tracks. In the middle of this vast wasteland was a bent-over old man. On his back was a sack of acorn. In his hand was a four-foot length of iron pipe.

後來，年輕的旅行者突然停住了腳步。只見遼闊的荒地中央一位老人正在彎腰播種。他揹著一大袋橡子，手裡拿著一根4英尺長的鐵管。

The old man was using the iron pipe to punch holes in the ground. Then from the sack he would take an acorn and put it in the hole. Later the old man told the traveler, "I've planted 100,000 acorns. Perhaps only tenth of them will grow." The old man's wife and son had died, and this was how he chose to spend his final years. "I want to do something useful," he said.

老人用那根鐵管在地上打洞，然後從袋子裡掏出一顆橡子，放進洞裡。後來，老人告訴那個旅行者我已經種了10萬顆橡子。大概只有十分之一的橡子能夠成長。"老人的妻兒都已經死去，而這就是他選擇度過晚年的一種方式。"我想做一些有意義的事兒他說。

Twenty-five years later the now-not-as-young traveler returned to the same place. What he saw amazed him. He could not believe his own eyes. The land was covered with a beautiful forest with two miles wide and five miles long. Birds were singing, animals were playing, and wild flowers Perfumed the air.

25年後，那個已不再年輕的旅行者又故地重遊。而眼前的情景象卻讓他驚歎不已。他無法相信自己的眼睛。那塊土地覆蓋上了5英里長，2英里寬的美麗森林。那裡，小鳥歌唱，動物嬉戲，野花飄香。

The traveler stood there recalling the desolation that once was; a beautiful oak forest stood there now - all because someone cared.

旅行者站在那裡，回憶著它以前的荒涼;一片美麗的橡樹林現在之所以聳立在那裡，都是因為某個人的關心啊。