The Helpful Abbey

乐于助人的修道院

It had not rained on the prairie for several months. Because of the drought, the climate had become very arid. There was no moisture left in the soil. No crops could grow in the dry ground. By winter time, the people had nothing to eat.

草原上已有好几个月没下雨了。由于干旱，气候变得非常干燥。土壤也已经皲裂，没有庄稼能在干燥的土地上生长。到了冬天，人们没有吃的了。

The hungry families heard about an abbey near the mountains where food and water was still abundant. So they traveled inland, across the prairie, to the abbey.

饥肠辘辘的家庭听说山区附近有一座修道院，那里的食物和水仍然很充足。于是他们向内陆进发，穿过大草原，来到修道院。

At first only a few families arrived, seeking food and shelter. Then there was ample food. The monks fed them and let them sleep in the small cathedral.

起初，只有几户人家来到这里，寻找食物和住所。那时食物还很充足，僧侣们给他们布施食物，让他们睡在小教堂里。

Soon, however, more families were arriving every day. These people had to travel farther, so they were in worse condition. The rugged journey had made their clothes ragged. They were cold and tired. The tiny cathedral was soon full.

然而，很快，每天都有更多的家庭来到这里。这些人不得不跋山涉水来到这里，所以他们的情况更悲惨。崎岖的旅途使他们衣衫褴褛，又冷又累。小教堂很快就挤满了人。

Food became scarce. The monks began to grumble. They began to speculate that there would be no food. "If more families come, we won't make it through the winter," said a young monk. "We must ask some of them to leave."

食物变得匮乏。僧侣们开始抱怨并推测食物将耗尽。“如果还有更多人前来，我们就熬不过这个冬天了，”一个年轻的和尚说。“我们必须让他们中的一些人离开。”

The abbot heard this. "We cannot do that," he said. "It would be wrong to deprive them of food and shelter. We took an oath to help those that need help. All here are in need, so all are eligible to receive our food and shelter."

这话传到了方丈的耳朵里。“我们不能这样做，”他说。“剥夺他们的食物和住所是不对的。我们发誓要帮助那些需要帮助的人。这里所有人都有需要，所以所有人都有资格得到我们的食物和住所。”

But we won't have enough, the monk said.

“但我们物资有限，”和尚说道。

That might be true, but we must help them nonetheless. We will fast, the abbot replied. "Also, we will give our rooms in the abbey to those sleeping outside, and we will sleep in the churchyard that adjoins the cathedral."

“没错，但即使这样我们也要帮助他们。我们将实行斋戒。”方丈答道。“而且我们要把屋子腾出来让给那些睡在外面的人，我们搬到教堂院子去住。”

The monks were reluctant at first, but they did what the oldest monk said. By the end of winter, there was still enough food and shelter for everyone. They learned that sometimes helping others means you must give more help than you first expected.

起初僧侣们很不情愿，但他们还是照老和尚说的做了。冬天结束时，仍然有足够的食物和住所给每个人。他们明白了一个道理，那就是有时候帮助别人意味着你必须给予比你最初预期的更多的帮助。

核心单词表

abbey n. 大寺院

abundant adj. 丰富的

adjoin v. 毗连

ample adj. 足够的

arid adj. 干旱的

cathedral n. 大教堂

deprive v. 剥夺

drought n. 干旱

eligible adj. 合格者

fast v. 绝食

grumble v. 抱怨

inland adv. 内陆的

moisture n. 水分

nonetheless adv. 尽管如此

oath n. 誓言

prairie n. 大草原

ragged adj. 衣衫褴褛的

rugged adj. 崎岖的

scarce adj. 缺乏的

speculate v. 推测

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