Be Forgiving?


image of little monk
image of little monk

The image is from https://www.gwangming.com.tw/free-362.html.

The original text is in Chinese from https://www.gwangming.com.tw/free-362.html. I love the story, so I translate it to English to share with you here.

It happened at a resort in Phuket island, where I worked as an interpreter in English and Chinese.

One day, I was in the lobby when I suddenly saw a Japanese staff member comforting a frightened Australian child. The child was about four years old, and was crying and exhausted.

After asking why, I found out that the Japanese staff had carelessly left the kid alone on the tennis court after the children’s tennis class. As there were many children in the class that day, it had been all too easy to overlook one.

When the staff member realized that they were one child short, she ran out to the tennis court and brought back the child, who was crying in shock due to her experience.

Soon, her mother came back only to see her baby crying her eyes out.

Now, if you were the mother, what would you do? Would you scold the staff member or protest directly to her supervisor? Or would you become so angry that you would remove your kids from the club membership and never come back again?

The child’s mother could have done any of those things. She could have vented her emotions, and insisted on receiving compensation for the incident.

However, she did neither!

Instead, she did something that impressed me. I saw her crouch down to comfort her four-year-old. She told her calmly:

“It’s all right, the sister was very nervous and upset because she couldn’t find you. She didn’t mean for this to happen. Now you must kiss the sister’s cheek to comfort her, because she is still very upset.”

Then I saw the four-year-old child stand on her tiptoes and kiss the cheek of the worker squatting beside her. The child gently told her: “Don’t be afraid, it’s all right!”

The worker burst into tears; she was clearly very moved. She had not expected to encounter such a level of empathy from these clients.

Comments:

I salute this wise and respectful mother who goes to such lengths to teach her kid compassion. Not only did she console the terrified worker, but she also helped her daughter turn a bad experience into a lesson on forgiveness. This will leave her daughter with a better memory of this day rather than allowing her to dwell on her accidental abandonment. Forgiveness is often the key to moving on from a bad experience.

 

《柔和》的故事
这事发生在普吉岛的渡假村,那时我在那里担任中英文的翻译人员。

有一天,我在大厅里,突然看见一位满脸歉意的日本工作人员,安慰着一位大约四岁的西方小孩,饱受惊吓的小孩已经哭得精疲力尽了。

问明原因之后,我才知道,原来这位日本工作人员,因为那天小孩较多,一时疏忽,在儿童网球课结束后,少算了一位,将这位澳洲小孩留在网球场。

等到她发现人数不对时,才赶快跑到网球场,将这位小孩带回来,小孩因为一个人在偏远的网球场,饱受惊吓,哭得浠浬哗啦的。

现在澳洲妈妈出现了,看着自己的小孩哭得惨兮兮的。

如果你是这位妈妈,你会怎么做?

是痛骂那位工作人员一顿?

还是直接向主管抗议?

或是很生气的将小孩带离开,再也不参加『儿童俱乐部』了?

她的确可以这样做,发泄她的情绪,让她的孩子得到最好的补偿。

但都不是!

她做了一个行为让我印象深刻,

我亲眼看见这位妈妈,蹲下来安慰四岁的小孩,并且很理性的告诉他:

『已经没事了,那位日本姊姊因为找不到妳而非常的紧张难过,她不是故意的,现在你必须亲亲那位日本姊姊的脸颊,安慰她一下! 』

当下我只见那位四岁的小孩,垫起脚跟,亲亲蹲在他身旁的日本工作人员的脸颊,并且轻轻的告诉她:『不要害怕,已经没事了! 』

那位满脸歉意的日本工作人员当场哭了出来,

想必她是非常感动,没有预期到是这个结果吧!

我相信,就是要这样的教育,才能养出宽容、体贴的孩子吧!

体贴别人,也等于体贴了自己的心。

有句成语叫「理直气壮」,但也有句话叫「理直气和」,做人理直气壮容易,但是理直气和却是困难。

尤其现代少子化的时代里,每个子女都是父母掌心上的明珠,碰到这样的事件没闹上新闻算是客气的了,

又有多少父母能和文章中的妈妈一样,不但没有责怪对方,反而还让小孩子过去安慰对方?

 

Previous Honesty is priceless-诚信无价
Next Crab Law