It was a sweltering Spring day.

那是春季的一个闷热的日子

The temperatures felt more like July than May.

气温让人感觉仿佛是在七月，而不是五月

A thunderstorm had passed over earlier

早些时候下过一阵暴雨

but now the clouds were clearing

可现在天上的乌云都散开了

and the sun had returned.

太阳又露出头来

Steam was coming off the wet sidewalk

水汽从潮湿的人行道上蒸发起来

as I parked my car next to the meter

我把车停在一个计费器旁边

and tossed a quarter into it.

往机器里面投了一个硬币

I headed into the local thrift store to buy my son a shirt.

接着我走进当地的一家折扣商店，想给我儿子买一件衬衣

The air conditioning in there was a welcome relief from the heat outside.

空调的冷气对我表示了欢迎，终于逃脱了室外的热气，我感到一阵松快

After I made my purchase

买完东西

I walked back out into the heat.

我走出商店，又回到太阳的炙烤之下

I got in my car but had to wait to pull out

我上了车，却还不能上路

because of all the cars lined up at the red stop light.

因为那时正好红灯亮了，所有的车都在排队等候

I looked out of my car window

我从车窗向外望去

and saw something on the pavement .

在人行道上看到了什么东西

A single butterfly was frantically fluttering its wings

那是一只小蝴蝶，孤孤单单的，正发疯似的闪动着翅膀

but not getting off the ground.

却无法从地面上飞起来

It was right in front of a truck’s tire too.

更可怕的是，在它面前就是一辆卡车的巨大车轮

Without thinking I got out of my car,

我毫不犹豫的走下车

held my hand up so the truck driver wouldn’t move forward,

一手挡在卡车前面，这样司机就不会再前进了

and bent down to look at the butterfly.

接着我弯下腰去查看那只蝴蝶

One of its legs was stuck in what looked like spilt soda.

我发现它的一条腿陷进了水洼里，看上去有点像洒出来的苏打水

I reached down

我伸出手去

and gently as I could cupped the butterfly in my hands.

尽可能温柔的将蝴蝶捧在手中

I lifted its leg up

我托起它的腿

and suddenly it was free.

忽然间，它自由了

I opened my hands

我张开双手

and up it flew towards the shining sun.

它朝灼亮的太阳飞去

My own eyes shined brighter

而我的目光似乎比太阳更加灼亮

and my own heart felt lighter as I watched it.

我看着它飞走，心里感到轻快了不少

Now a lot of people might wonder

也许有许多人会感到不解

why I would step out into traffic like that

为什么我会特意下车挤进车流

to rescue a single butterfly.

就为了去救一只小小的蝴蝶

All I can say is that my heart was guiding me at that moment.

我只能说，那一刻，我的内心正在谴责自己为什么还不去救它

And when I was done I felt more like my true self than I had all day.

当我救了那只蝴蝶以后，我感到自己比任何似乎更像我自己

The truth is the closer you are to the Earth,

事实上，你越是附身贴近大地

the closer you come to Happiness.

你就越靠近幸福

The more love that you share on this Earth,

你在大地上播撒的爱意越多

the more love you take with you to Eternity .

你也会收获越多的爱，它们是你永远的宝藏

Fill your days with grace, goodness, and love then.

让你的每一天充满感恩，充满善意，充满关爱吧。

And your heart will feel as light as a butterfly.

你的心会如蝴蝶般翩翩飞起。