There was a man who had four sons. He wanted his sons to learn not to judge things too quickly. So he sent them each on a quest， in turn， to go and look at an apple tree that was a great distance away.

The first son went in winter， the second in spring， the third in summer， and the youngest son in fall. When they had all gone and come back， he called them together to describe what they had seen.

The first son said that the tree was ugly， bent， and twisted. The second son said no—it was covered with green buds and full of promise. The third son disagreed， he said it was laden with blossoms that smelled so sweet and looked so beautiful， and it was the most graceful thing he had ever seen. The last son disagreed with all of them; he said it was ripe and drooping with fruit， full of life and fulfilment.

The man then explained to his sons that they were all right， because they had each seen but one season in the trees life. He told them that you cannot judge a tree， or a person， by only one season， and that the essence of who they are—and the pleasure， joy， and love that come from that life can only be measured at the end， when all the seasons are up. If you give up when its winter， you will miss the promise of your spring， the beauty of your summer， fulfilment of your fall. Dont judge a life by one difficult season. Dont let the pain of one season destroy the joy of all the rest.

有一個男人，他有四个儿子。他想要教儿子们一件事，即，对事物不要太快下结论。于是，他给每个儿子都分配了一项任务，让他们轮流去照看一棵苹果树。这棵树长在很远的地方。

第一个儿子是冬天去的，第二个儿子是春天去的，第三个儿子是夏天去的，最小的儿子是秋天去的。当他们四人都去过回来后，他将他们叫到一起，让他们描述一下自己见到的东西。

第一个儿子说，那棵树丑陋、佝偻、扭曲。第二个儿子说，不，那棵树长满了绿芽，生机盎然。第三个儿子不同意他们的说法，他说，树上开满了花朵，那些花闻起来十分香甜，看上去也非常美丽，这是他见过的最美好的事物。第四个儿子也不同意他们说的，他说这棵树丰收了，果实累累，充满了生命力，十分充盈。

男人这时对儿子们解释道，他们说的都对，因为他们每人都只看到了树的一生中一个季节的模样。他告诉他们，你们不要以一棵树或一个人在一个季节里的模样评价他，他们内在的本质，他们内心的欢乐、欣喜和爱都是源自完整的生活，只能到最后才能丈量出来。当你历经四季的时候，如果你在冬天就放弃了，你就会错过春天给予你的希望，夏天将见证的美丽，以及秋天的收获。不要仅凭一个困难时节里的处境去评价一个生命。不要让一个季节里的苦痛毁了其他季节里的欢乐。

Vocabulary

judge v. 判断;断定

blossom n. 花朵，花簇

ripe adj. 成熟的

destroy v. 毁灭;破坏