纪伯伦《致孩子

On Children

致孩子

Your children are not your children. They are the sons and daughters of Life's longing for itself. They come through you but not from you. And though they are with you yet they belong not to you.

你的孩子，并不是你的孩子。他们是生命对于自身渴望而诞生的孩子。他们借助你来到这个世界，却并非因你而来，他们陪伴你，却并不属于你。

You may give them your love but not your thoughts, for they have their own thoughts. You may house their bodies but not their souls, for their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow, which you cannot visit, not even in your dreams. You may strive to be like them, but seek not to make them like you. For life goes not backward nor tarries with yesterday.

你可以给予他们爱，却不能给予他们思想，因为他们有自己的思想。你可以庇护他们的身体，却不能庇护他们的灵魂，因为他们的灵魂属于明天，属于你在梦境中也无法达到的明天。你可以拼尽全力，变得像他们一样，却不要让他们变得和你一样，因为生命不会倒退，也不可能在过去停留。

You are the bows from which your children as living arrows are sent forth. The archer sees the mark upon the path of the infinite, and he bends you with His might that His arrows may go swift and far. Let your bending in the archer's hand be for gladness; For even as He loves the arrow that flies, so he loves also the bow that is stable.

你是弓，你的孩子是弦上即将发出的生命箭矢。弓箭手遥望未来之路上的箭靶，用尽力气将你拉开，使箭射得又快又远。你们怀着愉悦的心情，在弓箭手的手中弯曲吧，因为他爱一路飞翔的箭，也爱无比稳定的弓。