英语故事:塞翁失马,焉知非福
Once upon a time, there lived an old man near the border. People called him Saiweng. One day, his horse, for no apparent reason, ran away into the territory of the northern tribes. His neighbors all came to comfort him for this great loss. But Saiweng was not worried at all. He said, "How can we know this isn't a blessing?"
从前,在边境附近住着一位老人。人们都叫他塞翁。一天,他的马无缘无故地跑到北方少数民族的领地去了。邻居们都来安慰他遭受了这么大的损失。但塞翁一点也不担心。他说:“我们怎么知道这不是一件好事呢?”

A few months later, to everyone's surprise, his horse returned, leading a fine horse from the north. The neighbors congratulated him on this unexpected gain. However, Saiweng seemed rather concerned. He said, "Getting a free horse might bring us trouble."
几个月后,令所有人惊讶的是,他的马回来了,还带回了一匹北方的骏马。邻居们都来祝贺他这意外之喜。然而,塞翁却显得忧心忡忡。他说:“白白得到一匹马,可能会给我们带来麻烦。”
Saiweng's son loved riding. One day, while riding the new horse, he fell off and broke his leg. The neighbors came to express their sympathy. But Saiweng said, "This could turn out to be a good thing."
塞翁的儿子喜欢骑马。一天,他骑着这匹新马时,不小心摔了下来,摔断了腿。邻居们又来表示同情。但塞翁说:“这说不定会变成一件好事。”

Sure enough, soon after, a war broke out, and all the young men were conscripted to fight. Many lost their lives on the battlefield. Because of his broken leg, Saiweng's son was spared from the war and thus survived.
果然,不久之后,战争爆发了,所有的年轻人都被征召去打仗。很多人都在战场上丢了性命。由于塞翁的儿子摔断了腿,他免于参战,因此活了下来。
This story tells us that we should not be overly happy or sad about the immediate gains or losses, as the fortunes of life are unpredictable.
这个故事告诉我们,对于眼前的得失,我们不应该过于高兴或悲伤,因为人生的祸福是难以预料的。
