阿爾卑斯山的守泉人

鋮鋮

he late Peter Marshall was an eloquent speaker and for several years served as the chaplain of the U.S. Senate. He used to love to tell the story of the “Keeper of the Spring”， a quiet forest dweller who lived high above an Austrian village along the eastern slope of the Alps.

The old gentleman had been hired many years earlier by a young town councilman to clear away the debris from the pools of water up in the mountain crevices that fed the lovely spring flowing through their town. With faithful， silent regularity， he patrolled the hills， removed the leaves and branches， and wiped away the silt that would otherwise have choked and contaminated the fresh flow of water. The village soon became a popular attraction for vacationers. Graceful swans floated along the crystal clear spring， the mill wheels of various businesses located near the water turned day and night， farmlands were naturally irrigated， and the view from restaurants was picturesque beyond description.

Years passed. One evening the town council met for its semiannual meeting. As they reviewed the budget， one mans eye caught the salary figure being paid the obscure keeper of the spring. The keeper of the purse said， “Who is the old man？ Why do we keep him on year after year？ No one ever sees him. For all we know， the strange ranger of the hills is doing us no good. He isnt necessary any longer.” By a unanimous vote， they dispensed with the old mans services.

For several weeks， nothing changed.

By early autumn， the trees began to shed their leaves. Small branches snapped off and fell into the pools， hindering the rushing flow of sparkling water. One afternoon someone noticed a slight yellowish-brown tint in the spring. A few days later， the water was much darker. Within another week， a slimy film covered sections of the water along the banks， and a foul odor was soon detected. The mill wheels moved more slowly， and some finally ground to a halt. Swans left， as did the tourists. Clammy fingers of disease and sickness reached deeply into the village.

Quickly， the embarrassed council called a special meeting. Realizing their gross error in judgment， they rehired the old keeper of the spring， and within a few weeks， the veritable river of life began to clear up. The wheels started to turn， and new life returned to the hamlet in the Alps.

Never become discouraged with the seeming smallness of your task， job， or life. Cling fast to the words of Edward Everett Hale，“I am only one， but still I am one. I cannot do everything， but still I can do something； and because I cannot do everything， I will not refuse to do something I can do.”

The key to accomplishment is believing that what you can do will make a difference.

故的彼得·馬歇爾是一位雄辯的演說家，有幾年時間他曾出任美國參議院牧師。那時他愛講一個關于“守泉人”的故事。這位平靜的守泉人住在阿爾卑斯山東坡一側遠遠高出奧地利村莊的森林里。

多年前，這位老者受聘于一位年輕的鎮議員，負責清除山澗水塘中的雜物。美麗的泉水發源于那里，并緩緩流過他們的小鎮。守泉人忠于職守，默默工作。他定期在山上巡邏，清走枯枝敗葉，清除可能淤塞和污染清新泉水的泥沙。不久后，村莊便成了一處度假勝地。優雅的天鵝在晶瑩透亮的泉水上浮游，水源附近的各類水車日夜轉動，農田得到天然灌溉，從小鎮的飯館望出去，風景如畫，美得難以言喻。

這樣過了許多年。一天晚上，鎮議會舉行半年一度的會議。在審查預算時，有位議員的視線落在了那位鮮為人知的守泉人的薪水上面。這位財務主管說：“這老頭是誰？為什么我們年復一年地聘用他？根本都沒人見過他。據我們所知，這位神秘的護林員對我們一點用處都沒有。我們再也不需要他了！”鎮議會一致投票同意不再需要老人的服務。

幾周過去了，小鎮并沒有什么變化。

直至秋天來臨，樹木開始落葉。折斷的小樹枝掉落到水塘里，阻礙了波光粼粼的泉水的奔流。一天下午，有人注意到泉水出現了些許的棕黃色。幾天后，泉水變得更渾濁了。又過了一周，沿岸的多段泉水蒙上了一層黏糊糊的泥膜。不久，泉水發出惡臭。水車轉得慢了，有些最后慢慢停住了。天鵝飛走了，游客也不再光臨。各種疾病開始侵襲村莊。

尷尬的議會急忙召開特別會議。他們知道自己犯了一個重大的錯誤，于是重新聘用那位守泉老人。幾周之后，那條真正的生命之河又恢復了潔凈。水車重新轉動起來，這個阿爾卑斯山上的小村莊又恢復了勃勃生機。

永遠不要因為自己的任務、工作或生活看起來微不足道而垂頭喪氣。引用愛德華·埃弗里特·黑爾的話：“我只有一個人，但我始終是一個人。我做不了所有的事，但我依然能做一些事。因為我不能做所有的事，我不會拒絕做我力所能及的事。”

成功的秘訣就是，堅信你所能做的事情將影響這個世界。