輕舟一葉
小楫輕舟，夢入芙蓉浦。
剛收到的來自菲律賓的 Resty 的信
很早以前讀到過這樣一段話，很有感觸：
One hundred years from now, it will not matter what kind of car I drove, what kind of house I lived in, how much money I had in my bank account nor what my clothes looked like. But the world may be a little better because I was important in the life of a child. (excerpt from the poem "Within My Power" by Forest Witcraft)
（中譯文）一百年後的今天，我開什麽樣的車，住什麽樣的房子，多少錢在我的銀行帳戶，我的衣服看上去如何，都無關緊要。但是因為我在一個孩子的生命中起了重要的作用，世界也許變好了一點。（摘自維塔卡拉夫特的詩歌“在我能力以內”）
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最近幾年Resty都是用英文給我們寫信，給他回信主要由兩個孩子寫。可是這最後一封信，意義重大，輕舟讓“一家之主”傑明代表全家回信。傑明忙裏偷閑地寫了信，很激勵人的信，輕舟翻譯分享如下：
Dear Resty （親愛的Resty):
Congratulations! We are so happy that you have graduated from Compassion International’s program. We pray that your parents and sister are also well. We hope that you will remember Compassion sponsorship for the rest of your life and will worship God because of the sponsorship.
祝賀你! 我們很高興你已經從國際致善協會項目中畢業。我們祈禱你的父母和妹妹都好。我們希望你日後會記得致善協會的幫助，並因此敬拜神。
As you transition into the work world and grow in your job, we hope that you will remember that “to whom much is given much will be required” (Luke 12:48b). Because you have been given healthcare, food, clothing and education in Jesus name, please don’t forget to help others. Compassion International began with South Korean war orphans in 1952 and the Koreans that were sponsored when Korea was so poor were very thankful for being sponsored. They studied hard and became business leaders, missionaries, doctors and other professions.
當你過渡到社會環境中，在工作裏成長，我們希望你能記得“因為多給誰，就向誰多取；多托誰，就向誰多要。”(路加福音12:48b)。你因著耶穌的名而獲得醫療保健、食物、衣服和教育，請別忘記去幫助別人。國際致善協會最早源自1952年的韓國，當時韓國窮困，戰爭孤兒因接受讚助而感激，他們努力學習，成為商界領袖、傳教士、醫生和其他專業人士。
Many of them were so grateful at the opportunity they’d been given that they ended up being sponsors themselves. These Koreans were so generous and hard working that God blessed them with such success that Compassion withdrew from the country of South Korea about 1988. It would be wonderful if the Philippines or other countries could follow that example.
很多人因為感激這樣的機會，也成為讚助別人的人。這些韓國人慷慨的精神和努力工作，神賜福給他們，最終致善協會1988年從南韓成功撤出。如果菲律賓或其他國家也布此後塵，將有多麽美好。
We hope that you will glorify God with your life by being a blessing to your parents, family and Iriga community. But there’s more to care about that just your parents and family. “For God so loved the world that he gave His only begotten Son that whomsoever believeth in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life” (John 3:16) and many other Bible verses demonstrates that God loves all ethnic groups.
我們希望你能夠在生活中祝福你的父母、家庭和以瑞咖社區，以此榮耀神。但還可以超越你的父母和家人去關愛他人。“神愛世人,甚至將他的獨生子賜給他們,叫一切信的人在選中他的,不至滅亡,反得永生”(約翰福音3:16)和許多其它聖經經文都表明上帝愛所有的民族。
Please take the opportunity you’ve been given to be a blessing to the nations so as many as are open will praise God for eternity. Please give all the glory to God for your sponsorship and don’t give it to us. What we’ve done as sponsors is our reasonable service and nothing more than you or your parents might have done if you were in our situation.
請借此機會，願你獲得祝福的同時，也成為施福之人，讓更多的人能夠永恒地讚美神。請將你接受讚助的所有榮耀歸給上帝，不要給我們。我們所做的是情理中的幫助，你或你的父母在我們的處境下可能做到的。
We love you and are praying for you that God will bless you and your family as you follow Him.
我們愛你，為你祈禱，願你跟隨神，祂將保佑你和你的家人。
In Christ’s love （基督裏的愛），
傑明、輕舟，霏，安
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有趣的是，“最後的信”剛寄出的第二天，我們收到了Resty去年年底從大學寄出的信。他告訴我們他的大學學業進展很好，他參加不少校園體育活動，他大學畢業後想做一名警官，因為"I want to help innocent people against deception, and help the weak against oppression and intimidation."(我想幫助無辜的人不受欺騙，扶助軟弱的人反對壓迫和脅迫。） 信裏還告訴我們他最喜歡的科目是刑事學(criminology）。
Resty是我們通過Compassion International （國際致善協會）讚助了12年的孩子，12年以來，Resty與我們幾乎每兩三個月通一次信，告訴我們他的家庭情況，學習和生活。傑明和輕舟還在2009年亞洲之行，專門到他的家鄉看望Resty和他的家人。感動的經曆。。。我在遊記中有記述，這兒不再重複。
想著兩年後，Resty將從大學畢業，成為警官，有了工作，自給自足的同時，還能祝福幫助他的家人和社區，是很美好的事情。這也是國際致善協會的宗旨：“授人魚不如授人以漁”，通過讚助孩子教育和醫療，並讓孩子參加所在社區的基督教會主日學活動，了解神的大愛。身量，學識，靈性並重地成長，成熟，孩子長大以後找到工作，可以幫助家人和社區，對改善貧困社區的境況，起良性循環的功效。。。感謝上帝給我們機會，能夠參與Resty的成長，我們是真正有福之人！
燈下寫文，再次為Resty的學習，將來的工作和生活、他日後的人生路獻上禱告！
（圖）：剛收到的Resty的信的第二頁，頁尾有著名的菲律賓 Mayon 火山圖文介紹
