As a young man, Al was a skilled artist, a potter. He had a wife and two fine sons. One night, his oldest son developed a severe stomachache. Thinking it was only some common intestinal disorder, neither Al nor his wife took the condition very seriously. But the malady was actually acute appendicitis, and the boy died suddenly that night.

年轻时，Al 就已经是一个陶艺艺术家了。他有了妻室和两个健壮的儿子。但是一天夜里，他大儿子肚子疼得厉害，他想这也只不过是正常的小毛病，就没太在意，他妻子也是。然而那却是急性阑尾炎，那可怜的孩子那天夜里就这么死了。

Knowing the death could have been prevented if he had only realized the seriousness of the situation, Al's emotional health deteriorated under the enormous burden of his guilt. To make matters worse his wife left him a short time later, leaving him alone with his six-year-old younger son. The hurt and pain of the two situations were more than Al could handle, and he turned to alcohol to help him cope. In time Al became an alcoholic.

一想到孩子的死本来可以避免的如果他那时意识到情况的严重性，Al内心无比愧疚，情绪也一天比一天糟糕。更糟的是，不久他的妻子抛弃他和他们6岁的小儿子，离开了他。丧子之痛妻离之苦让Al无法喘息，他开始酗酒来麻痹自己，最后他就成了一个名副其实的酒鬼。

As the alcoholism progressed, Al began to lose everything he possessed — his home, his land, his art objects, everything. Eventually Al died alone in a San Francisco motel room.

就这样喝酒度日，Al慢慢地失去了他所拥有的一切——房子、土地、艺术作品等等，最后孤独地在旧金山的一个汽车旅馆里死去。

When I heard of Al's death, I reacted with the same disdain the world shows for one who ends his life with nothing material to show for it. "What a complete failure!" I thought. "What a totally wasted life"

当我听说Al的死讯时，我的反映和别人一样，鄙视他没有留下什么财产。“多失败啊！”我思索着，“完全没有意义的一生。”

As time went by, I began to re-evaluate my earlier harsh judgment. You see, I knew Al's now adult son, Ernie. He is one of the kindest, most caring, most loving men I have ever known. I watched Ernie with his children and saw the free flow of love between them. I knew that kindness and caring had to come from somewhere.

随着时间的流逝，我开始重新审视早期对Al刻薄的评价。你们知道，我认识Al已成年的儿子，Ernie。他是我认识的最善良、懂得关心人、最有爱心的男人了。每每看着他和他的孩子们我都能感觉到他们之间爱的流动。我意识到这种亲切一定有所渊源。

I hadn't heard Ernie talk much about his father. It is so hard to defend an alcoholic. One day I worked up my courage to ask him. "I'm really puzzled by something," I said. "I know your father was basically the only one to raise you. What on earth did he do that you became such a special person?"

Ernie很少提及他的父亲，毕竟他就是想为父亲辩驳也很难。一天，我鼓起勇气问了他：“有些事情让我很疑惑。”，我说道，“我知道事实上可以说是你父亲一个人抚养你成人，但是他是怎样把你培养成这么特别的一个人呢？”

Ernie sat quietly and reflected for a few moments. Then he said, "From my earliest memories as a child until I left home at 18, Al came into my room every night, gave me a kiss and said, 'I love you, son.'"

Ernie坐在那里沉思了一会，说道：“从我最早的回忆也就是18岁那时起，Al每天晚上都会吻我一下然后对我说‘我爱你，儿子。’。”

Tears came to my eyes as I realized what a fool I had been to judge Al as a failure. He had not left any material possessions behind. But he had been a kind loving father, and he left behind one of the finest, most giving men I have ever known.

听道这些，我抑制不住自己，眼泪涌出来了，我认识到自己是多么的愚蠢，居然认为Al是个失败的人。是，他确实没留下什么遗产，但是他曾经是一个很有爱心的父亲，是我认识的最好的、最有爱心的人。