Saturday, May 20, 2006

The Mexican Fisherman (メキシコの漁師)

This is an interesting and inspirational story, one that will perhaps make one think about what is important in life.
面白くて感動を与える物語だ。一生の中に何が大切な事を考えさせるかもしれない。


The Mexican Fisherman / メキシコの漁師

A boat docked in a tiny Mexican village. An American tourist complimented the Mexican fisherman on the quality of his fish and asked how long it took him to catch them.
漁船は小さいメキシコの村に着岸すた。魚はすごいなので、アメリカから旅行者に褒められた。「その魚、どのぐらいかかる?」と聞いた。

"Not very long," answered the Mexican.
メキシコ人は「あまりかからなかった」と言った。

"But then, why didn't you stay out longer and catch more?" asked the American.
「じゃあ、どうしてもう少し時間かかると、もと魚を捕る?」と聞いた。

The Mexican explained that his small catch was sufficient to meet his needs and those of his family.
私と家族のためにその魚は十分だ。

The American asked, "But what do you do with the rest of your time?"
アメリカ人は「でも暇だ。暇な時何をする?」と聞いた?

"I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, and take a siesta with my wife. In the evenings, I go into the village to see my friends, have a few drinks, play the guitar, and sing a few songs...I have a full life."
「遅く起きたり、少し魚を捕ったり、子供と遊んだり、家内と休んだり、する。夕方に村に友達を会いに行って、飲んだり、ギターを引いたり、歌を歌ったり、する。大往生を遂げる」

The American interrupted, "I have an MBA from Harvard and I can help you!
アメリカ人は口を出した。「 ハーバードの経営学修士がある。手伝えるよ」

"You should start by fishing longer every day. You can then sell the extra fish you catch. With the extra revenue, you can buy a bigger boat. With the extra money the larger boat will bring, you can buy a second one and a third one and so on until you have an entire fleet of trawlers. You can then leave this little village and move to Mexico City, Los Angeles, or even New York City! From there you can direct your huge enterprise."
「毎日長い時間魚を捕ったほうがいいよ。余分な魚を売る。お金があるので、大きい漁船を買える。大きい漁船なら、もっと金を稼ぐ。その後2隻目を買えて、3隻目を買えて、艦隊になる。その小さい村からニューヨークシティやロサンゼルスやメキシコ市へ引っ越す。そこから大きい会社を営む。」

"How long would that take?" asked the Mexican.
メキシコ人は「どのぐらいかかる?」と聞いた。

"Twenty, perhaps twenty-five years," replied the American.
「20年間だ。多分25年間だ。」と言った。

"And after that?"
「その後は?」

"Afterwards? That's when it gets really interesting," answered the American, laughing. "When your business gets really big, you can start selling stocks and make millions!"
アメリカ人は「その後、ね。その時に面白くになる」と言った。「仕事は大きくなったら、新規株式公開すると、お金持ちになる。」

"Millions? Really? And after that?"
「お金持ち?本当に?その後は?」

"After that you'll be able to retire, live in a tiny village near the coast, sleep late, play with your children, catch a few fish, take a siesta, and spend your evenings drinking with your friends!"
「その後、退職できる。小さい臨海の村に住んでいて、遅く起きたり、子供と遊んだり、少し魚を捕ったり、休んだり、夕方に友達と飲んだり、する。」

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2 Comments:

At 8:28 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hello Peter.
My name is Akira. Handle Name is "KSBworks".
It's nice to meet you.
I'm here by way of MIXI, and found this interesting story.
It imply a very very important suggestion in human's life.
What's important to live really a happy life? What is a true wealth?
I remember that I wrote an essay similar to this story 5 or 6 years ago. But it's in Japanese.

とても面白かったです!
昔、僕が書いた「マニラで二期作」というエッセイを思い出しました。
日本語ですが良かったら読んでみてください。通じるものがあると思います。
http://members.jcom.home.ne.jp/ksbworks/Essay991.htm#manila2kisaku

 
At 7:46 PM, Blogger harperkaoru said...

Hi, I saw your post in Mixi and thought I'd check your Mexican story out. So American, it was a laugh!

 

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