A story is told about a soldier who was finally coming home after having fought in Vietnam1. He called his parents from San Francisco.
“Mom and Dad, I’m coming home, but I’ve a favor to ask. I have a friend I’d like to bring home with me.”
“Sure,” they replied, “we’d love to meet him.”
“There’s something you should know,” the son continued, “he was hurt pretty badly in the fighting. He stepped on a land mine2 and lost an arm and a leg. He has nowhere else to go, and I want him to come live with us.”
“I’m sorry to hear that, son. Maybe we can help him find somewhere to live.”
“No, Mom and Dad, I want him to live with us.”
“Son,” said the father， “you don’t know what you’re asking. Someone with such a handicap would be a terrible burden on us. We have our own lives to live, and we can’t let something like this interfere with our lives. I think you should just come home and forget about3 this guy. He’ll find a way to live on his own.”
At that point, the son hung up the phone. The parents heard nothing more from him. A few days later, however, they received a call from the San Francisco police. Their son had died after falling from a building, they were told. The police believed it was suicide.
The grief-stricken4 parents flew to San Francisco and were taken to the city morgue5 to identify the body of their son. They recognized him, but to their horror they also discovered something they didn’t know, their son had only one arm and one leg.
The parents in this story are like many of us. We find it easy to love those who are good-looking or fun to have around, but we don’t like people who cause us inconvenience or make us feel uncomfortable. We would rather stay away from people who aren’t as healthy, beautiful, or smart as we are.
Thankfully, there’s someone who won’t treat us that way. Someone who loves us with an unconditional love that welcomes us into the forever family, regardless of how messed up6 we are.
Tonight, before you tuck yourself in7 for the night, say a little prayer that God will give you the strength you need to accept people as they are, and to help us all be more understanding of those who are different from us! There’s a miracle called Friendship that dwells in8 the heart. You don’t know how it happens or when it gets started. But you know the special lift9 it always brings.
Friends are a very rare jewel, indeed. They make you smile and encourage you to succeed. They lend an ear, they share a word of praise, and they always want to open their hearts to us. Show your friends how much you care....
有一个故事讲一个终于从越南战场打完仗启程回家的士兵在旧金山给父母打电话。
“爸爸妈妈，我就要回来了，但我想求你们帮个忙，我有个朋友，我想带他回家。”
“当然可以，”父母说道，“我们很乐意见他。”
“不过有些情况你们应该知道，”儿子说，“他在战斗中受了重伤，踩到地雷，失去了一只胳臂和一条腿。他无处可去，我想让他和我们一起住。”
“听到这事我很难过，孩子。也许我们可以帮他另外找地方住。”
“不，爸爸妈妈，我要他和我们住在一起。”
“孩子”，父亲说道，你不了解你的要求意味着什么。伤残这样严重的人对我们会是很麻烦的包袱。我们自己还得生活，不能让这种事影响我们的生活。我想你应该回家，忘了那个人，他会想办法自食其力的。”
听到这里，儿子挂了电话。父母再也没听到他的任何消息。但几天后，他们接到了旧金山警方的电话，被告知他们的儿子坠楼身亡，警方认为是自杀。
悲痛欲绝的父母飞到旧金山，被带到市停尸房认领尸体。他们认出是儿子，并看到了原来不知道的事，这让他们惊吓万分，儿子只有一只胳臂和一条腿。
故事中的父母很像现实中的许多人。我们发现很容易喜欢周围那些面容娇好或有趣的人，但我们不喜欢那些给我们带来不便或让我们感到不舒服的人。我们宁愿同那些不如我们健康、漂亮、聪明的人保持距离。
庆幸的是有人不那么对待我们。纵然我们深陷困境，他都无条件地爱我们，永远像家人一样欢迎我们。
今晚睡觉前向上帝祈祷吧，让他赐你接受他人的力量，帮助你更好地理解那些与我们不同的人。友谊是根植于我们内心的奇迹，你不知道它怎样或何时产生，但你知道它能带给你特别的愉悦。
朋友确是稀世珍宝，他们使你微笑，鼓励你成功。他们倾听你的心声，同他人一道夸赞你的优点，永远对你敞开心扉。让朋友知道你多看重他们吧……
Notes:
1． Vietnam 越南
2. land mine 地雷
3. forget about 忘记
4. grief-stricken 悲痛的
5. morgue 太平间
6. mess up 搞糟，陷入困境
7. tuck in 安置于（被窝里）
8. dwell in 停留于，居住
9. lift （心情）愉快 |
