Grinding an Iron Pestle into a Needle

◎張開蘭

“磨杵成針”出自宋代祝穆《方輿勝覽·眉州·磨針溪》，后常以此勉勵人刻苦用功，以求有所成就。

Track 2

Li Bai was a great poet in the Tang Dynasty.However, he was lazy and afraid of difficulties when he was a young boy.He did not like to study and always ran out to play without finishing his homework.Being1)absent-minded in class, he made slow2)progress in his studies.

One day, Li Bai met an old woman near a riverbank.She was grinding a very thick pestle on a rock.Driven by3)curiosity, he asked the old woman at once, “Why are you grinding this iron pestle?” “I want to turn this thick pestle into a needle,” replied the old woman.Li Bai was shocked and asked, “How can you turn such a thick iron pestle into a needle? This would take many years!” “This doesn’t matter.As long as I am willing to put my effort and continue to work very hard, I will be able to turn it into a fine needle!” The old woman answered confidently.

Deeply moved by what the old woman had said, Li Bai felt ashamed and made up his mind to study hard since then.Finally, he made great progress in his studies, becoming one of the greatest poets in Chinese history.

1) absent-mindedadj.心不在焉的

2) progressn.進展

3) curiosityn.求知欲；好奇心

李白是唐代一位偉大的詩人。然而，當他還是個小男孩的時候，他又懶又怕困難。他不喜歡學習，總是不完成作業就跑出去玩。由于上課心不在焉，他的學業進展緩慢。

一天，李白在河邊遇到一位老婦人。她正在一塊巖石上磨一根很粗的鐵杵。出于好奇，他立刻問老婦人：“你為什么要磨這根鐵杵？”“我想把這根粗杵變成一根針。”老婦人回答說。李白吃驚地叫起來：“這么粗的鐵杵，怎么可能磨成一根針呢？這要花很多年!”“沒關系。只要我愿意付出努力，并持續努力，我就一定能把它變成一根細針!”老婦人自信地回答道。

李白被老婦人的話深深打動了，他感到很慚愧，從那時起，他下定決心要努力學習。最終，他在學業上取得了很大的進步，成為中國歷史上最偉大的詩人之一。

Answer the following questions:

1.What did Li Bai not like to do when he was young?

2.How did Li Bai feel after talking with the old woman?

Know More

The story tells us that no one in the world can succeed casually.To get good grades in study, one must have determination and perseverance.Only with effort can one reap the rewards.With the correct goal and the appropriate method, the more efforts are put in, the more rewards will be gained.

這個故事告訴我們世界上沒有誰能夠隨隨便便成功。一個人學習上要想取得好的成績，必須有決心、有毅力。有付出才會有收獲。如果目標正確，方法得當，付出越多，收獲也就越多。