善行无小事美文推荐

　　I was in the Santa Cruz Mountains not long ago, speaking and singing at a women's conference. We were focusing on the theme of loving others in practical ways through our gifts, and something in particular happened during one of the sessions that will remain imprinted in my memory as a beautiful illustration of this practice.

　　不久前我在圣克鲁斯山脉，在一次妇女大会上有说有唱。我们关注的主题是通过送礼物等实用的方法来关爱他人。其中一个会议期间发生的一件特殊的事将成为最美的印迹永远铭刻在我的记忆中。

　　A young Syrian woman ("Lilith") had been invited to the conference at the last minute, and everyone seemed surprised and delighted that she'd actually come. Just a few days earlier, Lilith had fled her country and found refuge with one of the women attending the conference. As an Orthodox Christian in Syria, she and her loved ones had become targets of violent atrocities from radical terrorist groups in the country's ongoing civil war.

　　一位年轻的叙利亚女士（莉莉丝）在最后一分钟被邀请到会议上，大家看起来都很惊讶，也很高兴她真的来了。就在几天前，莉莉丝逃离她的国家，和另外一个参加会议的女士一起寻找避难所。作为叙利亚的一名东正教教徒，她和亲人们成为了这个国家正在进行的内战中激进的恐怖组织暴行的目标。

　　Lilith had witness target=_blank class=infotextkey>witnessed horrors no one her young age should ever see. Despite the further danger it presented, she'd decided to leave her home and her family to find safety here in America. Knowing some of her story, and seeing her sitting through the sessions at the retreat -- head covered in a scarf, face bowed toward the floor -- broke my heart.

　　莉莉丝目击了她这个年纪的年轻人不该见到的恐怖。尽管要面临更大的危险，但她决定离开家和家人来美国寻求安全。知道了她的一些故事，看见她会议期间有些退却——头上包着围巾，脸朝着地面压得很低——我感觉心要碎了。

　　Lilith's story touched all of us, including Pam, an attendee who was a quilt maker. Pam had just finished a gorgeous, intricately-patterned quilt, and had brought it with her. She, along with a few of the leaders, decided to give it to Lilith as a symbol of their comfort and love. Lilith had left her own mother behind in her homeland, and I can't imagine how frightened and alone she felt. But in her absence I could see there were lots of "mamas" in this community of women who were more than ready to love on her.

　　莉莉丝的故事触动了我们所有人，包括与会的被子生产商帕姆。帕姆刚做出了一床华丽的、图案精致的被子，也带过来了。她和几位领导决定把它赠给莉莉丝，被子象征了他们的安慰和爱。莉莉丝把母亲留在了家乡，我无法想象她感到多么害怕孤单。但她的离开使我看到在这个女性团体中有很多“妈妈”，她们都准备好要把爱献给她。

　　During our last session together Lilith was called forward and prayed over, hugged, and wrapped up in that beautiful quilt. I thought of the many hours Pam undoubtedly spent working on it, unaware of the horrendous events that would lead Lilith to this moment--literally surrounded by the beauty and love the quilt embodied. I wept. When they told her it was for her, she wept. We all wept, honking our noses and wiping our eyes.

　　我们最后一次在一起开会时，莉莉丝被叫去站到前面，大家为她祈祷，拥抱她，把那条漂亮的被子围在她身上。我想到帕姆毫无疑问花了好长时间做这个被子，当时她根本不知道那些可怕的事会把莉莉丝带到这里——此时却被被子蕴含的美丽和爱所围绕。我哭了，她们告诉她这个被子是给她的时候，她哭了。我们都哭了，抽泣着擦着眼泪。

　　I thought about the words from 1 Peter 4:10: Serve one another with the particular gifts God has given each of you, as faithful dispensers of the magnificently varied grace of God. The words particular and varied suggest to me that there may be as many gifts as there are people and personalities. A quilt wrapped around a ravaged young woman is just one practical, loving act of service that demonstrates God's grace.

　　我想到了彼得前书的4章10节里的话：各人要照所得的恩赐彼此服侍，作神百般恩赐的好管家。这番话特别换了一种方式提醒我有多少人和个性就有多少礼物。一位受到伤害的年轻女子身上围的被子就是体现了上帝慈悲的一个充满爱意的行为。

　　It's the particular things we do that we sometimes think are too small or inconsequential compared to the overwhelming suffering we witness target=_blank class=infotextkey>witness. But to do nothing when we see an opportunity--to serve, to comfort, to ease another's pain--is to withhold whatever facet of God's magnificently varied grace our gift offers.

　　这就是我们所做的特别的事，有时我们认为这和我们见到的势不可挡的苦难相比太过渺小或不重要。但有机会时-服务、安慰、缓解别人的痛苦-你什么都不做，就没有体现出上帝给予的恩赐所展现的各种慈悲的任何一面。

　　西方文化:数字13为什么不吉利?

　　很多人都知道，在西方国家13是个不吉利的数字。有很多楼层、门牌号都会直接跳过13，12之后直接是14，或是用12A代替13。

西方文化:数字13为什么不吉利?

　　很多人都知道，在西方国家13是个不吉利的数字。有很多楼层、门牌号都会直接跳过13，12之后直接是14，或是用12A代替13。那么，为什么13是个不吉利的数字呢？原因有很多种：

　　1. 最后的晚餐中的13门徒

　　Some Christian traditions have it that at the Last Supper, Judas, the disciple who betrayed Jesus, was the 13th to sit at the table.

　　传说耶稣遇难前和弟子们共进了一次晚餐。参加晚餐的第13个人是耶稣的弟子犹大。就是这个犹大为了30块银元，把耶稣出卖给犹太教当局，致使耶稣受尽折磨。而且参加最后晚餐的是13个人，晚餐的日期恰逢13日，“13”给耶稣带来苦难和不幸。从此，“13”被认为是不幸的象征，也成为背叛和出卖的同义词。

　　2. 北欧火神洛基的传说

　　Triskaidekaphobia may have also affected the Vikings-it is believed that Loki in the Norse pantheon was the 13th god. More specifically, Loki was believed to have engineered the murder of Balder, and was the 13th guest to arrive at the funeral. This is perhaps related to the superstition that if thirteen people gather, one of them will die in the following year.

　　在北欧神话中，火神洛基(Loki)是诸神中的第13位，他本身邪恶而狡诈。他欺骗并唆使黑暗盲神Hoder害死了自己的兄弟、光明之神 Balder，又成为葬礼上的第13位吊唁者。此后西方就有迷信：如果葬礼中有13个人出席，那么其中一人会在第二年死去。这也是“恐数字13症”的一种由来。

　　3. 波斯黄道十二宫的传说

　　Ancient Persians believed the twelve constellations in the Zodiac controlled the months of the year, and each ruled the earth for a thousand years at the end of which the sky and earth collapsed in chaos. Therefore, the thirteenth is identified with chaos and the reason Persians leave their houses to avoid bad luck on the thirteenth day of the Persian Calendar, a tradition called Sizdah Bedar.

　　古代的波斯人相信天空中的黄道十二星座掌控着一年的十二个月，而每个星座会统治地球一千年。等到十二个轮回结束，天空和大地就会崩塌。因此，第十三就和混乱联系了起来。波斯人在波斯历上的第十三天会外出、以避免厄运，这个传统被称为“Sizdah Bedar”，意思是“十三户外”。

　　However, the number 13 is not uniformly bad in the Judeo-Christian tradition. For example, the 13 attributes of God (also called the thirteen attributes of mercy) are enumerated in the Torah. Some modern Christian churches also use 13 attributes of God in sermons.

　　除此以外，不吉利的13还有很多传闻，包括汉莫拉比法典(code of Hummurabi)的第13条法规、十字军东征时的13圆桌骑士以及Friday the 13th（十三号星期五）等等。不过，也不是所有基督教传统的国家都认为13是不吉利的，在某些基督教祭典中还有13信条的仪式。

　　打造和谐办公环境 4步建立信任文化

　　你是否认识某些不相信公司或老板的人？也许他们有正当的理由，也许是因为同事失信于人，或者是因为他们所在的公司不正规不靠谱。

　　Do you know someone who doesn’t trust their company, or maybe their boss? Maybe they have good reasons. Perhaps promises were broken, or the company was deceptive or unethical.

　　你是否认识某些不相信公司或老板的人？也许他们有正当的理由，也许是因为同事失信于人，或者是因为他们所在的公司不正规不靠谱。

　　“Once bitten, twice shy,” is understandably a good explanation why some employees become skeptical. But the only way for a business relationship to work is if it’s based on a foundation of mutual trust.

　　“一朝被蛇咬，十年怕井绳。”这就合理地解释了某些员工难以对公司产生信赖的原因了。然而建立和谐的合作关系的唯一途径，在于能否建立在双方的相互信任的基础之上。

　　Here are five tips I have shared with colleagues and team members who find it difficult to trust others in the workplace.

　　下面的5个小秘诀，笔者曾经分享给团队中难以对他人建立信任感的同事们。