I am likened to a grain of wheat with one difference. The wheat cannot choose whether it be fed to swine, ground for bread, or planted to multiply. I have a choice and I will not let my life be fed to swine nor will I let it be ground under the rocks of failure and despair to be broken open and devoured by the will of others.
To grow and multiply it is necessary to plant the wheat grain in the darkness of the earth and my failures, my despairs, my ignorance, and my inabilities are the darkness in which I have been planted in order to ripen. Now, like the wheat grain which will sprout and blossom only if it is nurtured with rain and sun and warm winds, I too must nurture my body and mind to fulfill my dreams.
Today I will multiply my value a hundredfold.
The height of my goals will not hold me in awe though I may stumble often before they are reached. If I stumble I will rise and may falls will not concern me for all men must stumble often to reach the hearth. Only a worm is free from the worry of stumbling. I am not a worm. I am not an onion plant. I am not a sheep. I am a man. Let others build a cave with their clay. I will build a castle with mine.
I will commit not the terrible crime of aiming too low. I will do the work that a failure will not do. I will always let my reach exceed my grasp. I will always raise my goals as soon as they are attained. I will always strive to make the next hour better than this one. I will always announce my goals to the world. Yet, never will I proclaim my accomplishments. Let the world, instead, approach me with praise and may I have the wisdom to receive it in humility.
Today I will multiply my value a hundredfold.
One grain of wheat when multiplied a hundredfold will produce a hundred stalks. Multiply these a hundredfold, ten times, and they will feed all the cities of the earth. Am I not more than a grain of wheat?
今天，我要加倍提升自己的价值。如果桑叶、黏土、柏树、羊毛经过人的创造，可以成百上千倍地提高自身的价值，那么，由黏土构成的我们为什么不能呢？
我把自己的命运比做一颗麦粒，要面临三种不同的道路。麦粒可能被装进麻袋，丢进牲畜棚，等着喂猪；也可能被磨成面粉，做成面包；还可能撒在土壤里，让它生长，直到金黄的麦穗不断衍生，结出上千颗麦粒。
我和麦粒唯一的区别在于：麦粒没有选择的权利，任凭被喂猪或被磨碎做成面包，或是被种下，生长繁衍。我却有选择的自由。我绝不会让我的生命成为喂猪的饲料，也不会让它在失败与绝望的岩石下煎熬，任人调遣。
为了让麦粒生长、结实，将其种植在黑暗的泥土中是必需的，我的失败、绝望、无知、无能便是那黑暗的泥土，我必须牢牢扎根于泥土中，等待成熟。现在，就像麦粒在阳光雨露与和风的哺育下发芽、开花一样，我也要锻炼自己的身心，去实现梦想。
今天，我要加倍提升自己的价值。
高远的目标不会让我有丝毫畏惧，即使在达到目标的过程中可能屡受挫折。摔倒了，再爬起来，这不会让我有丝毫迟疑，因为每个人在抵达目标之前都须历尽艰辛。只有小爬虫不必担心摔倒。而我不是小爬虫，不是洋葱，不是绵羊。我是一个堂堂正正的人。随便别人用他们的黏土造穴吧，我要用自己的双手建造一座城堡。
我绝不犯严重的错误——放低目标。失败者不敢做的事才是我发挥的舞台。我不止步于我的能力范围，目标达到后紧接着就是一个更高的目标。我要竭尽全力地使下一刻比此刻更好。我要常常向世人宣布我的目标，可我绝不炫耀我的成绩。让世人来称赞我吧，但愿我能明智而谦恭地接受它们。
今天，我要加倍提升自己的价值。
一颗麦粒繁衍之后，可以变成成千上万的麦子，将这些麦苗继续繁衍百倍，如此十次，便能供养世界上所有的城市。难道我不比一颗麦粒强吗？
multiply ['mltiplai] v. 乘；增加；繁殖
The only way on earth to multiply happiness is to divide it.
世界上唯一成倍地增加幸福的办法是与人分享。
dump [dmp] v. 倾倒；倾卸
There are special places where you can dump things you don't
want.
有一些指定的地方，你可以把不需要的东西倒在那里。
stall [st:l] n. 货摊；畜栏；托词
A pile of straw in a stall is a bed, properly regarded.
如果正确看待的话，窝棚里的稻草堆就是一张床。
devour [di'vau] v. 毁灭；吞食；凝视
We watched the flames devour the entire building.
我们看着火苗吞噬了整座大楼。
现在，就像麦粒在阳光雨露与和风的哺育下发芽、开花一样，我也要锻炼自己的身心，去实现梦想。
高远的目标不会让我有丝毫畏惧，即使在达到目标的过程中可能屡受挫折。
我不止步于我的能力范围，目标达到后紧接着就是一个更高的目标。
and my inabilities are the darkness in which I have been planted in order to ripen.
in order to：为了；以便；想要
I will always raise my goals as soon as they are attained.
as soon as：一……就……
人生没有错误，只有教训
There Are No Mistakes, Only Lessons
佚名 / Anonymous
Human growth is a process of experimentation, trial, and error, ultimately leading to wisdom. Each time you choose to trust yourself and take action, you can never quite be certain how the situation will turn out. Sometimes you are victorious, and some-times you become disillusioned. The failed experiments, however, are no less valuable than the experiments that ultimately prove successful; in fact, you usually learn more from your perceived "failures" than you do from your perceived "successes".
If you have made what you perceive to be a mistake, or failed to live up to your own expectations, you will most likely put up a barrier between your essence and the part of you that is the alleged wrong-doer. However, perceiving past actions as mistakes implies guilt and blame, and it is not possible to learn anything meaningful while you are engaged in blaming. Therefore, forgiveness is required when you are harshly judging yourself.
Forgiveness is the act of erasing an emotional debt. There are four kinds of forgiveness:
The first is beginner forgiveness for yourself.
The second kind of forgiveness is beginner forgiveness for another.
The third kind of forgiveness is advanced forgiveness of yourself. This is for serious transgressions, the ones you carry with deep shame. When you do something that violates your own values and ethics, you create a chasm between your standards and your actual behavior. In such a case, you need to work very hard at forgiving yourself for these deeds so that you call close this chasm and realign with the best part of yourself. This does not mean that you should rush to forgive yourself or not feel regret or remorse; but wallowing in these feelings for a protracted period of time is not healthy, and punishing yourself excessively will only creates a bigger gap between you and your ethics.
The last and perhaps most difficult one is the advanced forgiveness of another. At some time of our life, you may have been severely wronged or hurt by another person to such a degree that forgiveness seems impossible. However, harboring resentment and revenge fantasies only keeps you trapped in victimhood. Under such a circumstance, you should force yourself to see the bigger picture, by so doing, you will be able to shift the focus away from the anger and resentment. It is only through forgiveness that you can erase wrongdoing and clean the memory. When you can finally release the situation, you may come to see it as a necessary part of your growth.
