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1、Mandelas GardenNelson Mandela1. In early 1977, the authorities announced the end of manual labor and arrangedsome type of work for us to do in the courtyard, so we could spend our days in our section. The end of manual labor was liberating. I could now spend the day reading, writing letters, discuss
2、ing issues with my comrades, or preparing legal documents. The free time also allowed me to pursue what became two of myfavorite hobbies on Robben Island: gardening and tennis.2. To survive in prison, one must develop ways to take satisfaction in ones dailylife. One can feel fulfilled by washing one
3、s clothes so that they are particularly clean, by sweeping a hallway so that it is empty of dust, by organizing ones cell to save as much space as possible. Just as one takes pride in important tasksoutside of prison, one can find the same pride in doing small things inside prison.3. Almost from the
4、 beginning of my sentence on Robben Island, I asked theauthorities for permission to start a garden in the courtyard. For years, theyrefused without offering a reason. But eventually they gave in, and we were able to cut out a small garden on a narrow patch of earth against the far wall.4. The soil
5、in the courtyard was dry and rocky. The courtyard had beenconstructed over a garbage dump, and in order to start my garden, I had toremove a great many rocks to allow the plants room to grow. At the time, some of my comrades joked that I was a miner at heart, for I spent my days in a wasteland and m
6、y free time digging in the courtyard.5. The authorities supplied me with seeds. I at first planted tomatoes, chilies, andonionshardy plants that did not require rich earth or constant care. The early harvests were poor, but they soon improved. The authorities did not regret giving permission, for on
7、ce the garden began to flourish, I often provided the warders with some of my best tomatoes and onions.6. While I have always enjoyed gardening, it was not until I was behind bars that Iwas able to tend my own garden. My first experience in the garden was at Fort Hare where, as part of the universit
8、ys manual labor requirement, I worked in one of my professors gardens and enjoyed the contact with the soil as an alternative to my intellectual labors. Once I was in Johannesburg studying and then working, I had neither the time nor the space to start a garden.7. I began to order books on gardening
9、. I studied different gardening techniquesand types of fertilizers. I did not have many of the materials that the booksdiscussed, but I learned through trial and error. For a time, I attempted to grow peanuts, and used different soils and fertilizers, but finally I gave up. It was one of my few fail
10、ures.8. A garden was one of the few things in prison that one could control. To plant aseed, watch it grow, to tend it and then harvest it, offered a simple but enduring satisfaction. The sense of being the owner of the small patch of earth offered a small taste of freedom.9. In some ways, I saw the
11、 garden as a metaphor for certain aspects of my life.Leaders must also look after their gardens; they, too, plant seeds, and then watch, cultivate, and harvest the results. Like gardeners, leaders must take responsibility for what they cultivate; they must mind their work, try to drive back enemies,
12、save what can be saved, and eliminate what cannot succeed.10. I wrote Winnie two letters about a particularly beautiful tomato plant, how Imade it grow from a tender seedling to a strong plant that produced deep red fruit. But then, either through some mistake or lack of care, the plant began to wit
13、her and decline, and nothing I did would bring it back to health. When it finally died, I removed the roots from the soil, washed them, and buried them in a corner of the garden.11. I told her this small story at great length. I do not know what she read into thatletter, but when I wrote it I had a
14、mixture of feelings: I did not want ourrelationship to go the way of that plant, and yet I felt that I had been unable to nourish many of the most important relationships in my life. Sometimes there is nothing one can do to save something that must die.曼德拉的菜园1 1977年初，当局宣布解除集体劳动，给我们安排了一些院内的工作，因此我们可以在
15、自己的这片区域里打发时间了。结束了体力劳动就像解放了一样。现在我每天可以读书、谢辛和我的狱友讨论问题，或者准备法律文件。时间上的自由还得以让我继续从事在罗本岛上培养起来的两大爱好：园艺和网球。2 为了在狱中生存，你必须使自己在日常生活中得到满足。你可以通过把衣服洗的特别干净，把门前过道打扫得一尘不染，或把自己的牢房整理出尽可能大的空间这些方法使自己感到充实。同一个在监狱外的人为自己完成重要任务而感到骄傲一样，监狱的人也可以完成未完成一件小事而同样感到自豪。3 几乎刚在罗本岛被判刑时起，我就向当局提出申请，我在院子里开垦一块菜园。多年来，他们没有给出任何原因，却一直拒绝我的请求。但最终他们让步了
16、，这样我们能够在远处墙根下一块狭长的地面上划出小片面积的地方做菜园。4 院子里的土壤很干，而且石头很多。这个院子在建起来之前是个垃圾场，因此为了开辟这个园子，我的清除掉大量的石头，给植物留出生长的空间。当时，一些狱友开玩笑说我骨子里是个矿工，整天呆在一片荒地里，把自己的空闲时间都花费在挖院子里的地了。5 狱方给我提供了种子。开始时，我种了番茄、辣椒和洋葱都是些不需要肥沃的土壤或经常照料的生命力很强的植物。早期的收成不好，但很快状况就有了改善。狱方不会后悔允许我开辟菜园种菜的，因为菜园的蔬菜长的好起来后，我就经常给看守们一些最好的番茄和洋葱。6 虽然我一直喜爱园艺，但直到入狱后我才得到一片属于自己的菜园。在园艺方面的第一次经历是在海尔堡，那是大学时作为体力劳动要求的一部分，我在一位教授家的院子里干活，在那里我享受着脑力劳动之余和土地之间的接触。但自从我到约翰内斯堡学习并工作以后，就在没有时间和没有地方种
