品味人生篇11：Building your house 建造自己的房子

An elderly carpenter was ready to retire.He told his employer¹-contractor² of his plans to leave the house-building business to live a more leisurel life with his wife and enjoy his extended³ family.He would miss the paycheck each week ,but he wanted to retire.They could get by.
有个老木匠准备退休，他告诉老板，说要离开建造行业，回家与妻子儿女享受天伦之乐。虽然老板给他的工资很高，可是，他更想享受退休生活。生活总能维持下去。

The contractor was sorry to see his good worker go and asked if he could build just one more house as a personal favor.The carpenter said yes,but over time it was easy to see that his heart was not materials.It was an unfortunate way to end a dedicated⁴ career.
老板很不舍得他的好工人离开，问他是否能帮忙再建一座房子。老木匠答应了。但是大家后来都看得出来，他的心已不在工作上，他使用的是次料，做工也很粗糙。这真是一种令人遗憾的结束自己全心全意所从事的事业的方式。

When the carpenter finished his work ,his employer came to inspect the house.Then he handed the front-door key to the carpenter and said,"This is your house...my gift to you."
The carpenter was shocked!
房子建好的时候，老板前来视察，然后把大门的钥匙递给他，说道：“这是你的房子……是我送给你的礼物。”老木匠惊呆了！

What a shame!If he had only known he was building his own house,he would have done it all so differently.
真是丢脸啊！如果他早知道是在给自己建房子，他一定不会这么应付了事的。

So it is with us .We build our lives, a day at a time,often putting less than our best into the building.Then, with a shock;we realize we have to live in the house we have built.If we could do it over,we would do it much differently.
我们又何尝不是这样。我们漫不经心地“建造”自己的生活，不是积极行动，而是消极应付，凡事不肯精益求精，在关键时刻不能尽最大努力。等我们惊觉自己的处境，早已深困在自己建造的“房子”里了。如果能够重新来过，我们一定不会这么做。

But, you cannot go back.You are the carpenter,and everyday you hammer a nail,place a board ,or erect⁵ a wall,Someone once said,"Life is a do-it-yourself project."Your attitude and the choices you made today,help build the "house"you will live in tomorrow.Therefore,build wisely!
但是，你永远也无法回到过去。你就是那个木匠，在建造“生活”这所房子，每天敲进去一颗钉，加上去一块板，或者砌起一面墙。有人曾经说过：“生活就是一项DIY的工程”。你今天的态度与选择决定了你明天会住在什么样的“房子”里。因此，用你的智慧去建造你的"房子"吧！

1 employer   

n.雇用方，雇主

参考例句：

• My employer deducted ten pounds from my wages this week.我的雇主从我本周的工钱中扣除了十英镑。
• His monthly salary is paid into the bank by his employer.他的月薪由雇主替他存入银行。

2 contractor   

n.订约人，承包人，收缩肌

参考例句：

• The Tokyo contractor was asked to kick $ 6000 back as commission.那个东京的承包商被要求退还6000美元作为佣金。
• The style of house the contractor builds depends partly on the lay of the land.承包商所建房屋的式样，有几分要看地势而定。

3 extended   

adj.延伸的；伸展的；延长的；扩大的v.延伸(extend的过去式和过去分词)；伸展；延长

参考例句：

• an extended lunch hour 延长了的午餐时间
• France has greatly extended its influence in world affairs. 在世界事务中，法国的影响已大大地扩大了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 dedicated   

adj.一心一意的；献身的；热诚的

参考例句：

• He dedicated his life to the cause of education.他献身于教育事业。
• His whole energies are dedicated to improve the design.他的全部精力都放在改进这项设计上了。

5 erect   

n./v.树立，建立，使竖立；adj.直立的，垂直的

参考例句：

• She held her head erect and her back straight.她昂着头，把背挺得笔直。
• Soldiers are trained to stand erect.士兵们训练站得笔直。