我的五個不勞所得

Over the last year I have read lots of material on self-improvement and success. One common theme I found in almost everything I read was an emphasis on gratitude. In an effort to increase gratitude in my life, I have listed the top 5 things that have been given to me for nothing:
去年我看過很多關於自我成長和成功的材料，我發現幾乎所有材料都有一個共同點，那就是強調感恩。爲了增強我的感恩之心，我找出了五個對我來講最重要的不勞所獲。

1. My Car
When my Gramma bought a new car, she sold her 1997 Ford Tauras to me for $1. A white Tauras isn’t exactly the coolest car on the block, but I have driven it for 7 years with minimal maintenance costs. After 14 years and 100,000+ miles, it still gets me where I need to go.
我的車
我奶奶買新車的時候，把她的1997年產福特金牛座轎車以一美元賣給了我。白色的金牛座雖然並不是我們那個街區最酷的一輛車，但它爲我效力了七年，也沒花多少維護費用。現如今在它服役14年、跑了10萬英里路之後，仍然可以帶我去任何我想去的地方。

2. My Education
I was fortunate enough to have great parents who decided at a young age to save money for my education. I graduated from Purdue University in 2009 with no student loans and $0 paid by me towards my tuition. They also paid my rent all four years. The only thing I had to do was graduate on time. I know that most people don’t get an amazing deal like this and for that I am grateful.
我的教育
我非常幸運有一對偉大的父母，他們在我很小的時候就開始爲我的教育存錢。到2009年我從普渡大學畢業的時候，從未自己付過一分學費，卻也沒有任何學生貸款。我的父母甚至還爲我支付了四年的房租，而我所要做的就是按時畢業而已。我知道很多人沒有像我這樣的好運，爲此我心懷感激。

3. My Computer
When I graduated from High School in 2005, my parents threw a graduation party for me. I netted about $2,000 in cash gifts and used it to buy a brand new 2008, the laptop was stolen when our house was robbed. Good thing my parents had home owners insurance. The laptop was covered for $1200 which I used to buy a new computer that I still use to this very day.
我的電腦
2005年我高中畢業的時候，父母爲我辦了一場畢業歡慶會。慶祝會上我收到了大概2000元的禮金，我用這筆錢買了一臺新的筆記本電腦。2008年我們家失竊的時候我的筆記本也被盜了。不過好消息是我的父母購買了家財險，我的筆記本得到了1200元的賠償。我又用這筆錢買了一臺新電腦，並且使用至今。4. My Job
After three years of studying Food Process Engineering at Purdue, I realized that a 9-5 job at one of the big food companies wasn’t the life for me. I spent the last year of college building websites for my own personal profit and in the process learned a lot about web development.
我的工作
在普渡大學學了三年的食品加工工程後，我意識到在一家大公司朝九晚五的工作並不是我想要的生活。於是大四那年我一直依靠建設網站賺錢，並且從中學到了很多有關網絡開發的東西。

After I graduated, I made one call to a cousin who owned a web development company. He gave me an opportunity to work on a project which eventually led to a full time gig.I put this on my list because my cousin had no reason to hire me. I had no degree and no professional experience, but he took a chance and gave me an opportunity.
畢業後，我給一位自己經營網絡開發公司的表哥打電話。他讓我參與了一個項目，而後我憑藉這個機會成爲全職僱員。我之所以認爲這個也是不勞而獲，因爲我覺得我表哥沒什麼理由選擇僱傭我。我既沒學位，也沒專業經驗，但他卻冒險給了我這樣一個機會

5. My Websites
I own and operate several blogs in my spare time. I build my sites on either WordPress or Drupal. Both of these website platforms are open source projects that are completely free to use.
我的網站
業餘時間，我經營了幾個自己的博客，有的是我在WordPress博客引擎上建的，有的是在 Drupal內容管理平臺上建的。這兩個網站平臺都是開源項目，完全免費使用。

In the web development world, it is so easy to take for granted all of the free information, scripts, programs, and platforms that are available. The cost to develop a blog platform similar to WordPress or Drupal would be in the thousands, not to mention all of the free modules and WordPress and Drupal communities have created a product that allows me to set up a new blog in minutes for free.
WordPress 和 Drupa社區提供了一種可以讓我在幾分鐘內免費創建博客的產品。在網絡開發的世界裏，人們很容易想當然地以爲所有可用的信息、腳本、程序、平臺就是免費的。事實上，開發出一個像WordPress和Drupal這樣的博客平臺就要花費數以千計，這還不算那些免費的模塊和附加程序。Summary
It was so easy for me to think of these 5 things because I truly feel like I did nothing to get them.
結論
我很容易的想出了這麼五點，因爲我真的覺得我啥都沒付出，就得到了他們。

After I became aware of the obvious things, I couldn’t help but think of all the not so obvious things I am given on a daily basis. Things like clean water, refrigeration, internet access, and air conditioning. I pay for all of these things, but I had nothing to do with the invention or discovery of these daily amenities. They simply happened and now I am here to benefit.
在我意識到這些顯而易見的所得之後，我不禁思考日常生活中那些不那麼顯而易見的不勞之獲，比如干淨的水、冷藏技術、網絡服務、空調。雖然我也付錢了，但是對於這些日常方便設施的發明或發現我卻什麼都沒做過。一切就那麼發生了，到我這就是享用了。

It doesn’t stop there though. After I became aware of the more subtle things I am given, I took the next inevitable step. I became thankful for my existence. I don’t know how I ended up in this world, but I wake up everyday grateful for the opportunity to experience life.
事情還不止於此。在我發現了更加細微的不勞所得之後，不可避免地，我想到更多。我開始感謝我的存在。雖然我不知道將怎樣結束自己的人生，但是每天醒來我都心懷感激，爲擁有這個經歷生活的機會。

Waking up every day with gratitude for being alive is like starting the day with a built-in advantage. It doesn’t matter what happens the rest of the day because it is all extra. This might sound like a recipe for complacency, but it’s actually the opposite. Being grateful for what I have not only drives me to want more, it creates a flow of abundance into my life that will provide for my deepest desires.
每天帶着感謝生命的心情醒來，好像這一天的一開始就與衆不同。接下來的這一天會發生什麼並不重要，因爲這一切都是額外得到的。這聽起來也許有點像是自我滿足，但事實恰恰相反。感恩的心不僅讓我有了更多的追求，而且它還孕育了一股充盈之流，滋養我最深的渴望。