在雨中奔跑
她和妈妈刚在沃尔玛结束购物。这个天真的小女孩应该有6岁了，头发是美丽的棕色，脸上有雀斑。外面下着瓢泼大雨。雨水溢满了下水槽，来不及排走，就迫不及待地涌涨上地面。
我们都站在沃尔玛门口的雨篷下。大家都在等待，有人很耐心，有人很烦躁，因为老天在给他们本已忙碌的一天添乱了。雨天总引起我的遐思。我出神地听着、看着老天冲刷洗涤这世界的污垢和尘埃，儿时无忧无虑地在雨中奔跑玩水的记忆浮现在脑海，暂时缓解了我一天的焦虑。
小女孩甜美的声音打破了这令人昏昏欲睡的气氛，“妈妈，我们在雨里跑吧。”她说。
“什么？”母亲问。
“我们在雨里跑吧。”她重复。
“不，亲爱的，我们等雨小一点再走。”母亲回答说。
过了一会儿小女孩又说：“妈妈，我们跑出去吧。”
“这样的话我们会被淋透的。”母亲说。
“不会的，妈妈。你今天早上不是这样说的。”小女孩一边说一边拉着母亲的手。
“今天早上？我什么时候说过我们淋雨不会湿啊？”
“你不记得了吗？你和爸爸谈他得癌症时，你不是说如果上帝让我们闯过这一关，那我们就没有什么过不去。”
整个人群静了下来。我发誓，除了雨声，你什么都听不到。
我们都静静地站着。接下来的几分钟没有一个人走动。母亲停了一下，想着应该说些什么。
有人也许会对此一笑了之，或者责备这孩子的不懂事，有人甚至不把她的话放在心上，但这却是一个小孩子一生中最需要被肯定的时候。若受到鼓舞，此时孩子单纯的信任就会发展成为坚定的信念。“亲爱的，你说得对，我们跑过去吧。如果淋湿了，那也许是因为我们的确需要冲洗一下了。”母亲说。然后她们就冲出去了。
我们站在那里，笑着看她们飞快地跑过停着的汽车。她们把购物袋高举过头想挡挡雨，但还是湿透了。好几个人像孩子般尖叫着，大笑着，也跟着冲了出去，奔向自己的车子。当然，我也这样做了，跑了出去，淋湿了。我也需要接受洗礼。环境或他人可以夺去你的物质财富，抢走你的金钱，带走你的健康，但没有人可以带走你珍贵的回忆。
因此，记得抓紧时间，抓住每天都给自己留下记忆的机会。
世间万物皆有自己的季节，做任何事情也有一个恰当的时机。希望你有机会在雨中狂奔一回。
Run Through the Rain
She had been shopping with her Momin Wal-Mart. She must have been 6 yearsold， this beautiful brown haired， freckle-faced image of innocence. It was pouringoutside. The kind of rain that gushes overthe top of rain gutters， so much in a hurryto hit the earth， it has no time to flow downthe spout.
We all stood there under the awningand just inside the door of the Wal-Mart.
We all waited， some patiently， othersirritated， because nature messed up theirhurried day. I am always mesmerized byrainfall. I get lost in the sound and sightof the heavens washing away the dirt anddust of the world. Memories of running，splashing so carefree as a child comepouring in as a welcome reprieve from theworries of my day.
Her voice was so sweet as it brokethe hypnotic trance we were all caught in，“Mom， lets run through the rain.” She said.
“What？” Mom asked.
“Lets run through the rain！”
She repeated.
“No， honey. Well wait untilit slows down a bit.” Mom replied.
This young child waitedabout another minute andrepeated： “Mom， lets run throughthe rain.”
“Well get soaked if we do.”
Mom said.
“No， we wont， Mom. Thatsnot what you said this morning.”
The young girl said as she tuggedat her Moms arm.
“This morning？ When did Isay we could run through the rainand not get wet？”
“Dont you remember？ Whenyou were talking to Daddy abouthis cancer， you said， if God canget us through this， he can get usthrough anything ！ ”
The entire crowd stoppeddead silent. I swear you couldnthear anything but the rain. Weall stood silently. No one came orleft in the next few minutes. Mompaused and thought for a momentabout what she would say.
Now some would laugh itoff and scold her for being silly. Some might evenignore what was said. But this was a moment ofaffirmation in a young childs life. A time wheninnocent trust can be nurtured so that it willbloom into faith. “Honey， you are absolutely right.
Lets run through the rain. If get wet， well maybewe just needed washing.” Mom said. Then off theyran.
We all stood watching， smiling and laughingas they darted past the cars. They held theirshopping bags over their heads just in case. Theygot soaked. But they were followed by a few whoscreamed and laughed like children all the way totheir cars. And yes， I did. I ran. I got wet. I neededwashing. Circumstances or people can take awayyour material possessions， they can take awayyour money， and they can take away your health.
But no one can ever take away your preciousmemories. So， dont forget to make time and takethe opportunities to make memories every day！
To everything there is a season and a time toevery purpose under heaven. I hope you still takethe time to run through the rain.
孤岛上的故事
在一场船难中，唯一的生存者随着潮水，漂到一座无人岛上。他天天祈祷神能够救他早日离开此处，回到家乡。他还每天观望着海上寻找可以搭救他的人，但却是除了汪洋一片，什么也没有。
后来，他决定用那片载着他漂到小岛的木头造一个简陋的小木屋以保护他在这险恶的环境中生存，并且保存他仅有的剩下的东西。
但有一天，在他捕完食物后，准备回小屋时，突然发现他的小屋竟然陷在熊熊烈火之中，大火引起的浓烟不断地向天上窜。
最悲惨的是：他所有的东西，在这一瞬间通通化为乌有了。悲痛的他，气愤地对天呐喊：神啊！你怎么可以这样对待我！顿时，眼泪从他的眼中喷涌而出。
第二天一早，他被一艘正靠近小岛的船只的鸣笛声吵醒。是的，有人来救他了。
到了船上后，他问那些船员：“你们怎么知道我在这里？”
“因为我们看到了信号般的浓烟。”他们回答说。
人在碰到困难时，很容易会沮丧。不过无论受到折磨或者痛苦，都不能因此失去信心，因为上帝一直在我们心里面做着奇妙的工作。记住：当下一次你的小木屋着火时，那可能只是上帝美妙恩典的表征而已。在所有我们所认为负面的事情，上帝都是有正面答案的。
A Story on an Island
The only survivor of a shipwreck waswashed up on a small， uninhabited island.
He prayed feverishly for God to rescue him，and every day he scanned the horizon forhelp， but none seemed forthcoming.
Exhausted， he eventually managed tobuild a little hut out of driftwood to protecthim from the elements， and to store his fewpossessions.
But then one day， after scavenging forfood， he arrived home to find his little hut inflames， the smoke rolling up to the sky.
The worst had happened； everythingwas lost. He was stunned with grief andanger. “God， how could you do this to me！”
He cried.
Early the next day， however， he wasawakened by the sound of a ship that wasapproaching the island. It had come torescue him.
“How did you know I was here？” Askedthe weary man.
“We saw your smoke signal，” theyreplied.
It is easy to get discouraged whenthings are going bad. But we shouldnt loseheart， because God is at work in our lives，even in the midst of pain and suffering.
Remember， next time your little hut isburning to the ground it just may be a smokesignal that summons the grace of God. Forall the negative things we have to say toourselves， God has a positive answer for it.
眼里有心，眼镜男孩找回自信
科迪出生时仅仅24盎司。
因为是极度早产，我们的儿子做了眼部手术以防止失明。手术结果是，他失去了右眼的周边视觉。右眼近视就意味着他终生都需要戴眼镜，终生都需要有眼科专家的密切监察。
相对于失明，我们认为这点代价实在是微不足道。
科迪极为骄傲地戴上了眼镜，那种骄傲劲儿让他的弟弟们一眼就能看出：爸爸、妈妈都戴眼镜，而他们却不戴，简直有点不像话。于是弟弟们时常轮番要求也要戴眼镜，否则就不公平。
转眼该上幼儿园了。
有一天课间休息时，两个小男孩彻底摧毁了科迪对戴眼镜所抱有的自豪感。一个男孩说，科迪，你的眼镜看上去好蠢。
而另一个竟猛地把科迪的眼镜摘下，把它弄弯。
科迪个头小，生性腼腆。他回家跟我们说起这件事时，眼泪直打转，我们的心里好难受。
但就在最近，有件事改变了他对眼镜的看法。
那是情人节的早晨。闹钟一响，我赶紧按住，然后在黑暗中摸索着找到我的眼镜。我戴上眼镜，没有开灯，摸黑走进卫生间。轻轻按下卫生间的电灯开关，我才反应过来为什么卧室是那样出奇的黑暗。
我先生斯蒂芬，在我的眼镜片上分别贴了两个红色心形贴画。在卫生间盥洗池上方那些大小不一的古董镜子上也都贴满了红心。
“我的爱，我这么地爱你！”我先生在一面镜子上潦草地写道。
在一面镜子上画有一只伸直的胳膊，手指向西边。而另一面镜子上也画有一只伸直的胳膊，手指向东边。瞅着镜中的自己，我使劲忍住不笑出声来，怕弄醒丈夫和孩子。
我也在镜子上写下了我的回复：“谢谢你，亲爱的。我的眼里满是心！”
在给科迪穿衣服准备去学校时，他低声说：“妈妈？”
“嗯，我的大男孩？”我低声应和。
“你眼镜上有红心。”
“没错，有啊。”
“你真有意思，妈妈。”他说了句，眼里放着光芒。我们俩钻进小货车的驾驶室里，又有好多心将我们包围。方向盘上贴有红心，后视镜上有一个，钥匙上有一个，换档杆上有一个，我的皮夹上还有一个。我那不知忧愁为何物的老公可真会大献殷勤。
我把那两颗心从我的眼镜上揭下，递给科迪。他小心翼翼地把它们贴到自己的眼镜片上，去学校的一路上他都是笑眯眯的。
