matilda絮語

有這樣一個傳說，說的是有那麼一隻鳥，牠一生只唱一次，
那歌聲比世上所有一切生靈的歌聲更加優美動聽。
從離開燕巢的那一刻起，牠就在尋找荊棘，
牠要飛進枝刺叢生的荊棘叢裡，在那荒蠻的枝條間放聲歌唱，
任鋒利的棘刺扎進牠的胸膛，劃破牠柔美的肌膚，牠還在唱著，
鮮紅的血流遍了牠的整個身體，直到奄奄一息，牠還唱著。
這是一曲無比美好的歌，曲終而命竭。
整個世界都在靜靜的諦聽著，上帝也在蒼穹中微笑
因為最為美好的東西只能用深痛巨創來換取……

Long Ago, there was a bird who sang just once in its life.
From the moment it left its nest, it searched for a thorn tree.
and it never rested until it found one.
Then it began to sing more sweetly 
than any other creature on the face of the earth.
And singing, it impaled its breast on the longest, sharpest thorn.
But as it was dying, it rose above its own agony
to out-sing the lark and the nightingale.
The thorn bird pays its life for that one song
and the whole world stills to listen
and God, in His heaven ~ smiles.
As its best was bought only at the cost of great pain.
Driven to the thorn, with no knowledge of the dying to come.
But when we press the thorn to our breast,
We know......
We understand......
And still......we do it.

By Colleen McCullough


我們每個人都是荊棘鳥，都在找自己的荊棘樹
找到了，可以用生命無悔的唱出一生中唯一一首天籟
為什麼
最美好的事物要用深痛巨創來換取？