自己动手，是童年最大的财富

When I was a boy growing up we had several gardens around our old house. The largest one of all was used just for growing potatoes. I can still remember those potato planting days. The whole family helped.

当我还是个小男孩的时候，家里的旧宅附近有好几个花园。最大的一个里面都用来种土豆。犹记得当年种土豆的日子，全家总动员。

After my Dad had tilled the soil, my Mom, brothers, and I went to work. It was my job to drop the little seed potatoes in the rows while my Mom dropped handfuls of fertilizer beside them. My brothers then covered them all with the freshly turned earth.

在爸爸松土之后，就轮到妈妈、哥哥弟弟们还有我上场干活了。我的工作是把种子一排一排的播种，妈妈在一旁给种子们施肥。最后其他兄弟给种子们盖上新翻的土。

For months afterward I would glance over at the garden while I played outside and wonder what was going on underneath the ground. When the harvest time came I was amazed at the huge size of the potatoes my Dad pulled out of the soil.

数月以后，当我在外面玩的时候我总会时不时的瞟向院子，想着地底下的土豆在发生着什么变化。丰收季来临，爸爸把土豆从土里面拔出来，它们的尺寸总是大得惊人。

Those little seedlings had grown into bushels and bushels of sweet sustenance.

这些小小的种子最后成长成大大的、甜甜的果实。

They would be turned into meal after meal of baked potatoes, mashed potatoes, fried potatoes, and my personal favorite: potatoes slowed cooked in spaghetti sauce.

这些土豆可以做成烤土豆，土豆泥，炸土豆，还有我最喜欢的，把土豆熬成的通心粉的酱汁。

They would keep the entire family well fed throughout the whole year. It truly was a miracle to behold.

我们一家子靠着这些土豆能过一整年，想来真是个奇迹。

Thinking back on those special times makes me wonder how many other seeds I have planted in this life that have grown unseen in the hearts and minds of others.

回想这特殊的时刻，不禁想此生我到底播种了多少能让它们在看不见的其他人心里面生根发芽。

How many times has God used some little thing that I said or did to grow something beautiful? How many times has Heaven used these little seedlings to provide another’s soul with sweet sustenance?

多少次，上帝化腐朽为神奇，把我们认为微不足道的事物变的异常美丽。多少次，上天将这些小小的种子变成甜美的食物慰藉生灵。

I hope then that you always tend the garden around you with care. I hope that you plant only goodness, peace, and compassion in the lives of everyone you meet. I hope that everyday you help miracles to grow.

我希望你也有一座需要花心思的田园。也愿你只用善良、平和、慈悲的心来对待生命中遇到的每一个人。希望每一天我们都助力奇迹发生。