The Blessing in Adversity
?迈克尔·E.安吉尔 / Michael E. Angier
When I was about five years old, I lived with my family in Enterprise, Alabama for a few months while my father attended an advanced aviation course at nearby Fort Rucker.
What makes Enterprise, Alabama especially memorable is a strange monument they have in the middle of town. You can’t miss it. In fact, you have to drive around it because it sits right in the middle of the road. The monument is a statue to the boll weevil.
It’s probably the only monument in the world erected in honor of an insect. It certainly wasn’t done because of its aesthetic value. The boll weevil is a particularly ugly-looking creature. Surprisingly, it was erected because of the devastation the boll weevil caused to the cotton crops of the surrounding area!
Why did they honor this pest? Well, had it not been for the boll weevil, the local economy would have continued its unhealthy dependence on its one crop, one-product economy. Until then, everything depended entirely on cotton. When the boll weevil came, the farmers and all the other businesses that were reliant on the cotton farmers were forced to recognize the need to diversify.
In the long run, they saw that the boll weevil had, in fact, done them a favor by destroying their crops. No longer were their eggs all in one cotton basket. They started raising pigs, peanuts and other cash crops, and the entire area was better off for it.
I think it is to those southern farmers’ great credit that they were able to see this adversity for what it really was a great blessing. Remember, it’s not what happens to us, but our response to what happens to us that makes the difference in the quality of our lives. I believe that everything that happens can be a lesson. Next time things don’t seem to be going the way you want, ask yourself what the positive aspect is. What’s the benefit in the adversity? You’ll have greater enjoyment and learn more in the process.
大约五岁时，我和家人在亚拉巴马恩特普赖斯住了几个月。在此期间，我父亲正在附近的洛克堡参加一个高级航空课程培训。
在亚拉巴马恩特普赖斯，最值得留恋的就是位于镇中心的一座奇怪的纪念碑。它正好坐落在马路中央，是人们的必经之处，无论怎么走都要绕着它兜一圈。这座纪念碑是专门用来纪念棉铃象鼻虫的。
在世界上你也许不会找到第二座纪念昆虫的雕塑。当然不是因为它的美学价值，棉铃象鼻虫是一种长相丑陋的昆虫。让人颇感意外的是，竖立棉铃象鼻虫雕像的原因居然是它对周围地区棉花作物的破坏。
他们为什么要纪念这种昆虫呢？倘若不是棉铃象鼻虫，该地不健康的经济恐怕还要继续依赖单一的作物、单一的产品。在此之前，棉花是当地人唯一的依靠。当棉铃象鼻虫到来时，农民和所有依赖棉农的工商业都不得不认识到多种经营的必要性。
从长远角度看，棉铃象鼻虫破坏农作物实际上反而给他们提供了一个机遇。他们再也不把所有的鸡蛋投入棉花这一个篮子里。他们转向养猪、种植花生和其他经济作物，整个地区的经济由此繁荣起来。
我想那些南部农民是很令人钦佩的，因为他们能够将这个灾难视作极大的福祉。记住，并不是我们身边发生的事，而是我们对事情的态度决定了我们生活的质量。我相信，每一件事都是一种经验财富。下一次遇到不能如愿的事情时，就问问自己：这件事情积极的一面是什么？逆境将给予我们什么样的益处？你能在这个过程中获得更多的快乐，学到更多的东西。
1. What_____Enterprise, Alabama especially memorable is a strange monument______have in the middle of town. You can’t_______it. In fact, you have to drive_____it because it sits right in the middle of the road. The monument is a statue to the______weevil.
2. _______did they honor this pest? Well, had it not_______for the boll weevil, the_______economy would have continued its unhealthy dependence_______its one crop, one-product economy.
3. What’s the benefit_______the adversity? You’ll have greater enjoyment and_______more in the process.
1. 当棉铃象鼻虫到来时，农民和所有依赖棉农的工商业都不得不认识到多种经营的必要性。
2. 他们再也不把所有的鸡蛋投入棉花这一个篮子里。
3. 记住，并不是我们身边发生的事，而是我们对事情的态度决定了我们生活的质量。
1. When the boll weevil came, the farmers and all the other businesses that were reliant on the cotton farmers were forced to recognize the need to diversify.
be reliant on：依靠；离不开
2. In the long run, they saw that the boll weevil had, in fact, done them a favor by destroying their crops.
in the long run：从长远看；终究