My imagination flows through God's eyes. I trust Him. I have full assurance in my heart that even without arms and legs, I can build a wonderful life. In the same way, you should feel that nothing is out of your reach. Have faith that if you do everything you possibly can to achieve your dreams, your efforts will be rewarded.
事成之前，有时我们的信心会受到考验，2009年我到南美的哥伦比亚演讲时，就有这样的体悟。那次我被安排要在十天内到九个城市演讲，因为要在短时间内长途奔波，主办单位租了一架小飞机，载我们往返于不同城市。飞机上坐了八个人，包括两名都叫米格尔、都不大会讲英文的驾驶员。某次飞行途中，机上的人突然听到电脑惊恐地发出“拉升，拉升!”的自动警示声，但用的是英文!
Sometimes our trust is tested before our hard work pays off. I was reminded of this in 2009 while on a speaking tour of Colombia, in South America. I was booked to speak in nine cities in ten days. With so many miles to cover in such a limited amount of time, the tour booker chartered a small airplane to take us from town to town. There were eight of us on the flights, including our two pilots, both of whom were named Miguel and neither of whom spoke much English. During one of the flights, everyone in the passenger cabin was startled to hear the plane's computer call out an automated warning: "Pull up, pull up!" The alert was in English!
电脑继续记录我们急速下降的过程，愈来愈紧急地播报不断降低的高度：“600英尺”、“500英尺”、“400英尺”，中间还一直插播要驾驶员“拉升、拉升”的命令。
The computer voice tracked our rapid descent with increasing urgency, giving our plane's decreasing altitude. "Six hundred feet!" "Five hundred feet!" "Four hundred feet!" The reports were interspersed with continuing commands to the pilots to "Pull up! Pull up!"
当场虽然没有人吓呆，但客舱里还是弥漫着些许紧张的气氛。我问我的看护，我们是不是应该把电脑发出的警示翻译成西班牙文，讲给米格尔一号跟米格尔二号听。
No one freaked out, but the mood in the passenger cabin was more than a little tense. I asked my caregiver if he thought we needed to be translating the onboard computer warnings from English to Spanish for Captains Miguel One and Two.
“你以为他们真的不知道我们正在下降吗?”他问。
"Do you think they really don't know we're descending?" he asked.
我也不知道该怎么以为，但既然其他人都不觉得这是个问题，我就随众吧，并且努力别让自己吓昏。幸好，我们很快就安全着陆了。之后，一位翻译跟驾驶员提到我们的惊恐时刻，他们听了大笑起来。
I didn't know what to think, but since no one else seemed to feel it was a problem, I followed their lead and tried not to freak out. Much to my relief, we soon landed safely. Later when one of our translators mentioned our moment of panic to our pilots, they had a great laugh.
“我们知道电脑在说什么，但降落时不会去理它。”米格尔二号通过翻译说道，“你应该对你的驾驶员更有信心一点，力克!”
"We knew what the computer was saying, but we always ignore it when we're landing," Miguel Two said through the translator. "You should have more faith in your pilots, Nick!"
好吧，我承认，有一刻我对米格尔们的信心是有点动摇了，但大部分时间，我因为相信上帝会照料我的人生，而觉得平稳安定。我给你点线索，好让你知道我的信心有多强：我在柜子里放了一双鞋子，我真的相信有一天我能穿上鞋走路。这件事或许会发生，或许不会，但我相信可能性是存在的。如果你能想象一个更美好的未来，你就能相信它;而假如你可以相信它，就能实现。
Okay, I'll admit, for a minute there I questioned my trust in the flying Miguels. But most of the time I rest assured that God is looking out for me and my life. I'll give you a clue about the strength of my trust: I have a pair of shoes in my closet! I truly believe it is possible that someday I will be able to wear them and walk in them. It may happen. It may not. But I believe the possibility is there. If you can imagine a better future, you can believe it. And if you believe it, you can achieve it.
想象无限!
Unlimited vision.
在我10岁那段沮丧期，其实生理上并没有吃太多苦头。我是没有手也没有脚，但我拥有能让我过着今天这种报偿丰富且圆满的人生所需的一切——只差一样。那时的我只相信眼睛看得到的，因此把注意力放在我的限制，而不是我的可能性上。
When I went through my period of depression as a ten-year-old, I wasn't suffering from anything physically. I had no arms and no legs, but I had all I needed to live the rewarding and fulfilling life I have today—with one exception. Back then I was relying only on what I could see. I was focused on my limitations rather than on my possibilities.
人都有所局限。我永远不可能成为NBA球星，但没关系，因为我可以鼓舞人们做他自己生命中的明星啊。你不应该看着你所缺失的过日子，相反，你应该去过“只要有梦想，什么都做得到”的人生。即使遭遇挫败或悲剧，通常也会有意料之外、全然不可能的好处等在那里。或许不是马上发生，所以有时你也会怀疑挫败或悲剧中怎么可能会有好事。但是，你要相信一切最终会有好结果——即使悲剧也能变成胜利。
We all have limitations. I'll never be an NBA star, but that's okay because I can inspire people to be the stars of their own lives. You should never live according to what you lack. Instead, live as though you can do anything you dream of doing. Even when you suffer a setback or a tragedy, there is often an unexpected, totally improbable, and absolutely impossible benefit to be realized. It may not happen right away. You may at times wonder what good could possibly come of it. But trust that it all happens for the good—even tragedies can turn into triumphs.
