Stand Tall Like The Sunflower
Stand Tall Like The Sunflower
My wife, daughter, and I moved into our home nine years ago and we spent a lot of time and energy in the yard to get it looking like the way it does today.
九年前，我和我的妻子、女儿搬到了现在的家，我们花了很多的时间和精力打理院子，让其变成了今天的模样。
We live on a corner, higher than street level, and the entire side of the yard is surrounded by a professionally built rock wall.
我们住在街角，高于街道的高度，院子的一边全部被修得整整齐齐的石墙围绕着。
The front of the house though is another story because instead of a wall along the sidewalk, the rocks appear to be just thrown up onto the dirt as if someone were in a hurry to finish．
房子的正面那边又是另一回事了，因为这并不是一段人行道，石块看起来像是被随意仍在泥土上，仿佛有人想要快点完成工作。
We did the best we could with what we had to work with and called this area our “rock garden.”
我们竭尽所能来做我们必须做的工作，并把这个地方叫做我们的“石头花园”。
Whenever we had leftover flowers or plants, Denise or I would stick them out front, just to bring some color to the area.
每当我们有多余的花或者植物时，丹尼斯或者我都会把它们插到前院，只是为了给这一片区域增添一些色彩。
We would do all of the yard work on our own, even the tiring weed pulling．
所有的庭院杂事都收我们自己在做，即使是累人的除草工作。
Last summer I reached the end of the rock garden and found a tiny little plant that I could not immediately identify．
去年夏天，我在石头花园的尽头发现了一株小小的植物，我不能一下子辨认出是什么。
I knew I didn’t plant it and Denise claimed that she didn’t either．
我知道不是我自己种的，丹尼斯说也不是她种的。
We decided to let it continue growing until we could figure out what it was．
我们决定让它继续生长，直到我们可以弄清楚它到底是什么。
Weeks passed and as I made my way back to the mystery plant, it appeared to be a sunflower with a tall skinny stalk and only one head on it．
几周过去了，当我回到那株神秘植物所在之地时，它长成了一株向日葵，其茎干又高又瘦，且只有一个叶球。
I decided to baby it and weed around it．
我决定要呵护它，帮它除草。
As I pulled rocks from the area to get to the weeds, I noticed something unusual．
当我把这个地方的石头挪开以便除草时，我发现有些异常情况。
The sunflower had not started where I saw the stalk begin．
向日葵并不是从我发现茎杆的地方开始生长的。
It actually had begun under a big rock and grown under and around it to reach the sun．
它实际上是从一个大石块下面长出来的，从底部绕开石块努力接触阳光。
That’s when I realized that if a tiny little sunflower didn’t let a big rock stand in its way of developing, we too have the ability to do the same thing.
就在这时，我意识到，如果一株小小的向日葵都没有让巨石阻挡它成长的道路，我们同样也能做到。
Once our environment begins to see that we believe in ourselves like that little sunflower, we can attain the same nourishment and growth as well．
一旦周围的环境开始意识到我们对自己充满信心，正如那小小的向日葵一般，我们也可以获得同样的养分，不断成长。
Stand tall like the sunflower and be proud of who and what you are and the environment will begin to support you．
如向日葵般高高站立，为自己是谁、是什么样的人而感到骄傲，环境就会给予你支持。
You will find a way to go under or around your big obstacle in order to reach your desires．
为了达成愿望，你终会找到方法，让自己从底部绕开巨大的障碍生长。
