If the Dream is Big Enough the Facts Don’t Count 心中有目标 风雨不折腰

　　I remember the first day I saw her playing basketball. I watched she managed to shoot jump shots just over their heads and into the net. The boys always tried to stop her but no one could.

　　我记得第一天看到她打篮球的情景。看着她总是尽力地跳起投篮，球恰好越过那些孩子头顶飞入篮筐。那些男孩总是拼命地阻止她，但没有人可以做得到。

　　I began to notice her at other times, basketball in hand, playing alone. She would practice dribbling and shooting over and over again, sometimes until dark. One day I asked her why she practiced so much. She looked directly in my eyes and without a moment of hesitation she said, "I want to go to college. The only way I can go is if I get a scholarship. I like basketball. I decided that if I were good enough, I would get a scholarship. I am going to play college basketball. I want to be the best. My Daddy told me if the dream is big enough, the facts don't count." Then she smiled and ran towards the court to recap the routine I had seen over and over again.

　　平时我开始注意到她，她总手持篮，一个人练习。她一遍遍地练习运球和投篮，有时直到天黑。有一天我问她为什么这么刻苦地练习。她直视着我的眼睛，不加思索地说:“我想上大学。只有获得奖学金我才能上大学。我喜欢打篮球， 我想只要我打得好，我就能获得奖学金。我要到大学去打篮球。我想成为最棒的球员。爸爸告诉我说，心中有目标，风雨不折腰。”说完她笑了笑，跑向篮球场，又开始我之前见过的一遍又一遍的练习。

　　I watched her through those junior high years and into high school. Every week, she led her varsity team to victory.

　　我看着她这些年从初中升到高中。每个星期，她带领的学校篮球代表队都能够获胜。

　　One day in her senior year, I saw her sitting on the grass, head cradled in her arms. Quietly I asked what was wrong. "Oh, nothing," came to a soft reply. "I am just too short." The coach told her that at 5'5" she would probably never get to play for a top ranked team -- much less offered a scholarship -- so she should stop dreaming about college.

　　高中那会儿的某一天，我看见她坐在草地上，头埋在臂弯里。我轻轻地问出什么事了。“哦，没什么，”她轻声回答， “只是我太矮了。”原来篮球教练告诉她，以五英尺五英寸的身材，她几乎是没有机会到一流的球队去打球的——更不用说会获得奖学金了——所以她应该放弃想上大学的梦想。

　　She was heartbroken but She told me that her father said those coaches were wrong. They just did not understand the power of a dream. He told her that if she really wanted to play for a good college, if she truly wanted a scholarship, that nothing could stop her except one thing -- her own attitude. And if the dream is big enough, the facts don’t count.

　　她很伤心，但她告诉我，她爸爸说那些教练错了。他们根本不懂得梦想的力量。他告诉她，如果真的想到一个好的大学去打篮球，如果她真的想获得奖学金，任何东西也不能阻止她，除非她自己不愿意。要记住“心中有目标，风雨不折腰。”

　　The next year, as she and her team went to the Northern California Championship game, she was seen by a college recruiter. She was indeed offered a scholarship, a full ride, to a Division I, NCAA women's basketball team. She was going to get the college education that she had dreamed of and worked toward for all those years.

　　第二年，当她和她的球队去参加北加利福尼亚州冠军赛时，她被一位大学的招生人员看中了。她真的获得了奖学金，一个全面资助的奖学金，并且进入美国全国大学体育协会其中一队女子甲组篮球队。她将接受她曾梦想并为之奋斗多年的大学教育。

　　It's true: If the dream is big enough, the facts don't count.

　　心中有目标，风雨不折腰。这的确没错。

　　词汇注释

　　dribble vi. 运球

　　hesitation n. 犹豫

　　recap vt. 扼要重述

　　varsity adj. 校队的

　　coach n. 教练，指导

　　recruiter n. 招募者