中國寓言故事雙語版 第138期:鐵棒成針

Grinding an Iron Rod into a Needle

鐵棒成針

Li Bai was a great poet in the Tang Dynasty of China.

李白是中國唐朝的一位偉大詩人。

It is said that in his childhood, he was very fond of playing and afraid of difficulties, and made slow progress in his studies.

傳說，他小時候很貪玩，怕困難，讀書進步很慢。

One day, on his way home after school, he walked by a creek and saw an old woman grinding a very, very thick iron rod.

有一天，李白放學回家，路過一條小河邊，看見一位老婆i磨一根很粗很粗的鐵棒。

Being curious, he went to the old woman and asked:“Old grandma, why are you grinding this iron rod?”

他覺得很奇怪，就走到老婆婆跟前問道：“老婆婆，您磨這根鐵棒幹什麼?”

The old woman replied: “To make a needle.”

老婆婆說:“磨成針。”

At this moment, Li Bai felt more curious and asked again:

這時候，李白更覺得奇怪了，又問:

“How can you grind such a thick iron rod into a needle?”

“這麼粗的鐵棒，您怎麼能磨成針呢?”

“Yes, I can. I certainly can,”the old woman said. “If one works with constant effort, one can grind an iron rod into a needle.”

“能，一定能!”老婆婆說，“只要功夫深，鐵棒就能磨成針。”

Hearing the old woman’s words, Li Bai was enlightened.

李白聽了老婆婆的話，心裏忽然明白了。

Since then, Li Bai studied hard and made rapid progress. Eventually he became a famous poet.

從此，李白刻苦讀書，進步很快。後來，他終於成了一位有名的詩人。