?A?little?boy?almost?thought?of?himself?as?the?mostunfortunate?child?in?the?world?because?poliomyelitismade?his?leg?lame?and?his?teeth?uneven?andprotrudent.?He?seldom?played?with?his?classmates;and?when?the?teacher?asked?him?to?answerquestions,?he?always?lowered?his?head?without?a?word.
一个小男孩几乎认为自己是世界上最不幸的孩子，因为小儿麻痹症使他腿脚行动不便，牙齿参差不齐。他很少跟同学们玩耍，老师叫他回答问题时，他也总是低着头一言不发。
One?spring,?the?boy"s?father?asked?for?some?saplings?from?the?neighbor.?He?wanted?to?plantthem?in?the?front?of?the?house.?He?told?his?children?to?plant?a?sapling?each?person.?The?fathersaid?to?the?children, "Whose?seedling?grows?best,?I?will?buy?him?or?her?a?favorite?gift."?The?boyalso?wanted?to?get?his?father"s?gift.?But?seeing?his?brothers?and?sisters?carrying?water?to?waterthe?trees?bouncily,?anyhow,?he?hit?upon?an?idea:?he?hoped?the?tree?he?planted?would?die?soon.So?watering?it?once?or?twice,?he?never?attended?to?it.
一年春天，小男孩的父亲从邻居家讨了些树苗，他想把它们栽在房前。他叫孩子们每人种一棵。父亲对孩子们说:"谁栽的树苗长得最好，我就给谁买一件最喜欢的礼物。"小男孩也想得到父亲的礼物，但是看到兄弟姐妹们欢快地提着水去浇树，不知怎么回事，他萌生了一个想法:他希望自己栽的树苗早日死去。因此他浇水一两次后，就再也没去照管小树苗了。
?A?few?days?later,?when?the?little?boy?went?to?see?his?tree?again,?he?was?surprised?to?find?it?notonly?didn"t?wilt,?but?also?grew?some?fresh?leaves,?and?compared?with?the?trees?of?his?brotherand?sister,?his?appeared?greener?and?more?vital.?His?father?kept?his?promise,bought?the?littleboy?his?favorite?gift?and?said?to?him:?from?the?tree?he?planted,?he?would?become?anoutstanding?botanist?when?he?grew?up.
几天后，小男孩再去看他种的树苗时，惊奇地发现它不仅没有枯萎，而且还长出了一些新叶，显得更加翠绿、更有生气。父亲履行了他的诺言，为小男孩买一了件他最喜欢的礼物，并对他说:从他栽的树来看，他长大后一定能成为一名出色的植物学家。
?Since?then,?the?little?boy?slowly?became?optimistic.?One?day,?the?little?boy?lay?on?the?bed?butcouldn"t?sleep.?Looking?at?the?bright?moonlight?outside?the?window,?he?suddenly?recalled?whatthe?biology?teacher?once?said,?plants?general?grow?at?night.?Why?not?go?to?see?the?tree??Whenhe?came?to?the?courtyard?on?tiptoe,?he?found?his?father?was?splashing?something?under?histree?with?a?ladle.?All?of?a?sudden,?he?understood:?his?father?had?been?secretly?fertilizing?his?smalltree!?He?returned?to?his?room,?tears?running?down?his?face?without?restraint.
从那以后，小男孩慢慢变得乐观起来。一天晚上，小男孩躺在床上睡不着，望着窗外明亮的月光，突然想起生物老师说过植物一般都在晚上生长。何不去看看自己种的那棵小树呢? 当他轻手轻脚地来到院子里的时候，却看见父亲正用勺子在自己栽种的那棵树下泼洒着什么。顿时，一切他都明白了，原来父亲一直在为自己栽种的树苗偷偷地施肥!他返回房间，止不住泪流满面。
?Decades?passed.?The?little?boy?didn"t?become?a?botanist,?but?he?was?elected?President?of?theUnited?States.?His?name?was?Franklin?Roosevelt.
几十年过去了，小男孩并没有成为植物学家，却成为美国总统，他的名字叫富兰克林·罗斯福。
?Love?is?the?best?nourishment?of?life;?even?if?it?is?just?one?ladleful?of?clear?water,?it?can?make?thetree?of?life?thrive.?Maybe?that?tree?is?inconspicuous;?perhaps?that?the?tree?is?so?thin,?and?evensome?withered,?but?as?long?as?there?is?nourishment?of?love,?it?can?flourish?and?even?grow?intotowering?trees.
爱是生命最好的养料，哪怕只是一勺清水，它都能使生命之树茁壮成长。也许那棵树是那样不起眼，或是它还有些弱小，甚至还有些枯萎，但只要有爱的养料孕育，它就能枝繁叶茂，甚至长成参天大树
