What gardening taught me about life | tobacco brown

譯者: Helen Chang 審譯者: S Sung

At age four, I found a garden,

我四歲的時候找到一個花園，

living underneath the kitchen floor.

它就位在廚房地板的下方。

It was hiding behind leftover patches of linoleum

它藏在補補貼貼的油地氈底下，

on the worn-out floor my mother was having removed.

我母親正雇人換掉那已壞的地板。

The workman was busy when the garden caught my attention.

工人正忙的時候， 我注意到這個花園。

My eyes became glued to the patterns of embroidered roses

我的視線離不開那刺繡玫瑰圖案，

blooming across my childhood landscape.

綻放在我童年的風景中。

I saw them and felt a sense of joy and adventure.

我看見它們，感受到喜悅和冒險感。

This excitement felt like a feeling to go forward

這種興奮的感覺就像

into something I knew nothing about.

是要前去探索我未知的事物。

My passion and connection to garden started at that exact moment.

我對花園的熱忱和連結始於那一刻。

When spring arrived, I ran so fast through the house,

春天到來時，我快跑穿過房子，

speeding ahead of my mother's voice.

跑得比我母親的聲音更快。

I pulled on my red corduroy jumper and my grey plaid wool hat

我穿上紅色的燈芯絨褲工作服， 戴上灰色的彩格羊毛帽，

before my mother could get her jacket on.

我母親還來不及穿上她的外套。

I catapulted out of the front screen door

我衝出前方的紗門，

and threw myself on a fresh carpet of grass.

跳到新鮮的青草地毯上。

Excited, I bounced to my feet and flipped three more cartwheels

我好興奮，蹦蹦跳跳， 又橫翻了三個筋斗，

before landing by her side.

才落到她身邊。

Mother dear was in the garden

母親在花園裡，

busy breaking up the soil,

忙著翻土，

and I sat beside her,

我坐在她身邊，

playing with mud pies in the flower bed.

在花圃裡玩著泥巴派。

When her work was done,

當她的工作完成時，

she rewarded me with an ice-cold glass of bittersweet lemonade

她給一杯又苦又甜的 冰涼檸檬汁當獎賞，

and then lined my shoes with sprigs of mint

接著在我鞋裡鋪上小枝薄荷，

to cool off my feet.

讓我的腳更涼快。

My mother cooked with the colors and textures of her garden.

我母親用她花園中的 顏色和紋理來做菜。

She baked yams and squash

她烘烤山芋和節瓜，

and heirloom tomatoes and carrots.

還有祖傳的蕃茄和蘿蔔。

She fed love to a generation of people

她用紫色豌豆和綠色蔬菜

with purple hull peas and greens.

將愛餵給一整個世代的人。

It seems that during my childhood,

似乎在我的童年裡，

the blooms from my mother's gardens have healed all the way from her halo

母親花園花朵的治癒力量，

從她的光暈一路延伸到 我們的腳後根。

to the roots on the soles of our feet.

In our last conversation before her death,

於她過世前我們最後的對談，

she encouraged me to go anywhere in the world

她鼓勵我去世界上任何一個

that would make me happy.

會讓我感到快樂的地方。

Since then, I have planted her gardens

在那之後，我就一直透過藝術裝置

through art installations throughout the world,

在世界各地種植她的花園，

in countries of the people that I meet.

在我遇到之人的國家中。

Now they are lining parks and courtyards,

現在，它們出現在公園和庭院裡，

painted on walls and even in blighted lots off the street.

畫在牆上，甚至在街旁的破爛地段。

If you were in Berlin, Germany,

如果你去過德國柏林，

you would have seen my garden at Stilwerk Design Center,

你可能在史迪維克設計中心 看過我的花園，

where rosemary and lavender, hydrangea and lemon balm

那裡的迷迭香、薰衣草、 繡球花和檸檬香脂

trailed up the glass elevators to all six floors.

沿著玻璃電梯直到六層樓高。

In 2009, I planted "Philosophers Garden,"

我於 2009 年種下《哲學家花園》，

a garden mural,

一幅花園壁畫，

blooming at the historic Frederick Douglass High School

在歷史悠久的道格拉斯高中盛開，

in Memphis, Tennessee.

位於田納西州的曼非斯市。

This school’s garden fed an entire community

這所學校的花園 為整個社區提供食物，

and was honored by Eleanor Roosevelt during the Great Depression.

並在大蕭條時期受到 羅斯福總統夫人的推崇。

Again, in 2011, I planted at Court Square Park --

再次，於 2011 年， 我在法院廣場公園種植，

six entry gardens

那花園有六個入口

with 80 varieties of deliciously fragrant floribunda

和八十種美味的芳香花卉，

and hybrid tea roses.

和雜交茶玫瑰。

Gardening has taught me that planting and growing a garden

園藝教會我，植栽和種花

is the same process as creating our lives.

與創造我們生活的過程一樣。

This process of creation begins in the spring,

這個創造過程始於春天，

when you break up the soil and start anew.

你翻土，重新開始。

Then it's time to clear out the dead leaves,

然後清除冬天的枯葉、

debris and roots of the winter.

廢物和根。

The gardener must then make sure

然後，園丁必須確保

that a good disposition and the proper nutrients

良好的配置

和正確、適當混合的土壤營養成分。

are correctly mixed in the soil.

Then it's important to aerate the topsoil

然後重要的是給表土通氣，

and leave it loosely packed on the surface.

並將其鬆散地覆蓋在地表上。

You won't get those beautiful blooms in life

你得不到那些美麗的花朵，

until you first do the work just right.

除非你先正確地準備好土壤。

When our gardens are balanced with care,

當我們的花園被平衡地照顧好，

we can harvest the beauty of living a life of grace.

我們就能收穫美麗，優雅地過日子。

In the forests,

在森林中，

when trees realize through their roots that another tree is sick,

當樹木經由根意識到 另一棵樹正生著病時，

they will send a portion of their nutrients to that tree

它們會將自己一部分的營養物質

輸送給生病的樹，以幫助它癒合。

to help them to heal.

They never think about what will happen to them

它們從不考慮自己會怎樣，

or feel vulnerable when they do.

也不因這樣做而覺得自己容易受傷。

When a tree is dying,

將死之樹

it releases all of its nutrients to other trees that need it the most.

會將所有營養的物質 釋放給其他最需要的樹木。

Below the surface, we are all connected by our roots

地表之下，我們都以根相連，

and sharing nutrients with each other.

彼此分享營養。

It's only when we come together that we can honestly grow.

只有在一起，我們才能真正成長。

It's the same for humans in the garden of hardship.

在困難中的人也是如此。

In this garden,

在這花園裡，

when the caterpillar transforms into a chrysalis,

當毛蟲變成蛹時

this involves some struggle.

需要奮鬥。

But it's a challenge with a purpose.

但這是個有目的的挑戰。

Without this painful fight

沒有痛苦的奮鬥，

to break free from the confines of the cocoon,

擺脫繭的限制，

the newly formed butterfly can't strengthen its wings.

新形成的蝴蝶無法強化翅膀。

Without the battle, the butterfly dies without ever taking flight.

不奮鬥，蝴蝶沒飛就死了。

My life's work

我一生的工作

is to illustrate how to integrate human connectivity into the garden.

是展示如何將人類連接融入花園。

Gardens are full of magical wisdom for this transformation.

花園充滿了這種轉變的神奇智慧。

Mother Nature is creative energy waiting to be born.

大自然是等待出生的創造能量。

Gardens are a mirror

花園是一面鏡子，

that cast their own reflection into our waking lives.

將自己的反思投射到 我們清醒的生活中。

So nurture your talents and strengths

因此，在欣賞你所獲得的一切的同時，

while you appreciate all you've been given.

培養你的才能和優勢。

Remain humble to healing.

對癒合保持謙遜，

And maintain compassion for others.

並保有對他人的同理心。

Cultivate your garden for giving

培養你佈施的花園，

and plant those seeds for the future.

為未來播種。

The garden is the world living deep inside of you.

花園是活在你內心深處的世界。

Thank you.

謝謝。

(Applause)

（掌聲）

(Cheers)

（歡呼聲）

(Applause)

（掌聲）