"That's what I thought at first too," the first sailor said, "but it turned out to be good luck... As soon as we took the sails down to fix the masts, we were hit by a squall so suddenly and so hard, it would surely have blown us over if our sails were up at the time."
"How lucky!"
"That's exactly what I thought at the time, too. But because our sails were down, we couldn't steer ourselves, and because of the wind, we were blown onto a reef. The hole in the hulls was too big to fix. We were stranded."
"That is bad luck indeed."
"That' s what I thought, too, when it first happened. But we all made it to the beach alive and had plenty to eat. But now here's the real kicker: While we were on the island whining about our terrible fate, we discovered a buried treasure!"
As this story illustrates, you don't know if an event is "good" or "bad" except maybe in retrospect, and even then you don't really know because life keeps going. The story's not over yet. Just because something hasn't turned out to be an advantage yet doesn't mean it is not ever going to.
Therefore, you can simply assume whatever happens is "good". I know that sounds awfully airy-fairy, but it's very practical. If you think an event is good, it's easy to maintain a positive attitude. And your attitude affects your health, it affects the way people treat you and how you treat others, and it affects your energy level. And those can help pave the way for things to turn out well. A good attitude is a good thing. And a bad attitude does you no good at all.
So get in the habit of saying "That's good!". Since you don't know for sure whether something will eventually work to your advantage or not, you might as well assume it will. It is counterproductive to assume otherwise. Think about it. If someone ahead of you in line at a store is slowing everything down, say to yourself, "That's good!" They may have saved you from getting into an accident when you get back in your car. Or maybe, because you slowed down, you might meet a friend you would have missed. You never know. The truth is, life is uncertain. And even that can work to your advantage.
两个水手在一个酒吧偶遇，喝了几杯啤酒后，其中的一个水手向另一个说起了他最近的航海经历。他说：“我们在海上走了一个月后，发现桅杆被白蚁蛀空了！几乎什么都没有留下来。”
“那太可怕了。”另一个水手说道。
“开始我也是这么认为的，”第一个水手说，“但后来情况有了转机，因为我们刚把帆降下来准备修桅杆时，就遭到一场突如其来的暴风雨的袭击。如果当时我们挂着帆，船肯定被掀翻了。”
“真幸运啊。”
“我们当时也是这么想的。但是因为帆降下来了，我们无法控制帆船。由于风很大，我们被风吹着触礁了。船撞出一个无法修补的大洞，我们都束手无策。”
“那确实太倒霉了。”
“一开始我也这么想。但我们都活着来到沙滩上，并且有充足的食物。然后就发生了真正让人兴奋的事：就在我们抱怨自己时运不济时，我们发现了一处深埋在地下的宝藏！”
就像这个故事阐释的，一件事的好坏，也许只有在你回顾过去时，才能确定；即使是那个时候，你可能仍然不知道，因为生活还在延续，故事尚未结束。一件事还没有呈现出它有利的方面时，并不意味着它永远不会。
因此，发生的所有事情你都可以简单地假定是“好事”。我知道这听起来像天方夜谭，但非常实用。如果你认为一件事是好事，要保持一种积极的心态就比较容易。而且，你的态度影响着你的健康，影响着你和他人彼此间的态度，并且对你的精力也有影响。而这些又有助于事情向好的方向发展。良好心态本身就是一件好事，而不良心态则对你毫无益处。
所以，我们要养成说“那很好！”的习惯。既然一件事最终对你是否有利，你无法确定，那就先假设，来肯定它。否定的假设会产生不良的效果。好好想想吧！你购物时，如果排在你前面的人正在磨磨蹭蹭，浪费其他人的时间，你可以对自己说：“那很好！”这也许能使你避免回到车上时碰到事故。或者，因为你的速度放慢了，你可能会碰见一个朋友，而本来你们会错过，你永远都不知道。事实是，人生变幻无常。即使这样，你仍然可以从中受益。
老子说：“福兮祸之所倚，祸兮福之所伏。”世间万物均在各自矛盾交替的轮回中存在着，没有一劳永逸的成功，也不存在永恒的失败。正如阴晴雨雪的天气一样，成与败，喜与悲，总是轮流登场，而你只要拥有良好的心态，天阴的时候，也可以心晴。
termite ['t:mait] n. 白蚁；白蚁类
Termite often destroys wood.
白蚁经常破坏树木。
strand [str鎛d] v. 使搁浅；使处于困境
He was left stranded penniless in a strange city.
他流落到一个陌生的城市里，身无分文，一筹莫展。
kicker ['kik] n. （一连串事情的）意外结局
The real kicker is that he takes the same way back!
真正让人意外的是，他采取同样的方法回来了！
counterproductive ['kauntpr,dktiv] adj. 产生反效果；适得其反
Increases in taxation would be counterproductive.
多征税的效果会适得其反。
一件事还没有呈现出它有利的方面时，并不意味着它永远不会。
良好心态本身就是一件好事，而不良心态则对你毫无益处。
事实是，人生变幻无常。即使这样，你仍然可以从中受益。
Two sailors ran into each other in a pub.
run into：偶然遇见
You don't know if an event is "good" or "bad" except maybe in retrospect.
in retrospect：回顾往事；检讨过去
学校里无硝烟的战争
Challenges of School
佚名 / Anonymous
Life is full of challenges. School has to be the most challenging obstacle in the lives of youth today.
Elementary school brings about a few challenges characteristic of those years spent there. There's the challenge of coloring in the lines, a very real problem to any youngster. Or how about the challenge of remembering to raise one's hand before one speaks? There are hundreds of rules and regulations that govern these young children. The one thing that keeps these children in line is the hope of reward. Yes, this is the brass ring. The reward for a clean desk is an extra five minutes of recess! The prize for having all homework done, a shiny-new pencil topper! These small wonders keep small people in line. They make the children love challenge.
Middle school is not so easy. It is not easy for the students, and it also isn't easy for the teachers. The challenge of staying out of trouble, or writing that research paper—these are the new confrontations of an older, wiser group. This clan has outgrown the recess and pencil-topper tricks. They know that their efforts have to bring them something really useful, so morn and pop are pulled onto the scene. How does five, ten dollars for each "A" sound? Or, how about no telephone if one doesn't do good in school? Need I say more?
By the time high school arrives, a student's place in academic excellence or else their unlikelihood to even graduate has been established. Little can be done now to make life's challenges seem interesting, especially where school comes in. The slothful are rewarded with a nice job at a gas station, and a fifteen-year-old Ford. The diligent are rewarded with an SAT score of over 1100, acceptance into Yale University,and a ticket to life. By meeting the challenges of school, sticking it out, and pulling through, they are given their greatest reward: success.
生活中处处有挑战。如今，年轻人所面临的最大挑战莫过于学校。
