THE WISE DOG聰明狗

有一天，一隻聰明狗碰到一群貓。

當牠接近那群貓的時候，牠察覺到牠們都很專注而且不理會牠，牠停了下來。

接著，那群之中有一隻大貓嚴肅的站了起來，看了看牠們以後，說：「弟兄們，要禱告；禱告過後，還要再禱告，絕不能有一點懷疑，然後確確實實地，上天就會掉下老鼠來。」

狗狗聽完了這段話，心裡暗自好笑，轉頭過去自言自語：「這些瞎眼的笨貓，難道這沒寫在書本裡，或從祖先口傳裡聽過，禱告、信心祈求所得到的賞賜是骨頭而不是老鼠。」

One day there passed by a company of cats a wise dog.

And as he came near and saw that they were very intent and heeded him not, he stopped.

Then there arose in the midst of the company a large, grave cat and looked upon them and said, “Brethren, pray ye; and when ye have prayed again and yet again, nothing doubting, verily then it shall rain mice.”

And when the dog heard this he laughed in his heart and turned from them saying, “O blind and foolish cats, has it not been written and have I not known and my fathers before me, that that which raineth for prayer and faith and supplication is not mice but bones.”

Kahlil Gibran紀伯倫

1918

From "The Madman"