It was a day in late December.
那是十二月末的一天

The Christmas tree had been taken down.
圣诞树已经从街头搬走

The lights and decorations had been boxed up
彩灯和装饰物收回了盒子

and put in the closet
放回橱柜里

until next year.
等着明年再取出来

And I was feeling a little blue.
我感到有些沉郁

I sure wasn’t looking forward to the long, cold, dark Winter to come.
对于即将到来的漫长，严寒，黑暗的冬天，我没有多少向往

I had always been a light lover on the inside.
在我的内心，我一直喜欢光明

I tried to take comfort
我试着安慰自己

in knowing that
因为我知道

a few more minutes of daylight was being added each day,
每一天，日照的时长都会比昨天多一点

but I still felt tired
但我仍感到疲乏

and run down.
似乎已经被掏空了

I was both surprised and delighted then
没想到一件事情让我感到既惊喜又振奋

when I looked out my window
那时，我从窗口看出去

and saw that a Spring like day had suddenly arrived.
发现一个像春天一样暖和的日子刚刚到来了

The temperatures quickly soared into the sixties
温度很快升到了华氏60°

and the sun was shining down on the earth
阳光普照大地

with a loving light.
温暖人心

I could hear the neighborhood children outside playing in the warm air.
天气暖和了，我能听到邻居家的孩子在外面玩耍

I smiled when I saw them
看到他们时，我报以微笑

and my inner child longed to be out there
我内心的小孩也渴望着出门去

riding bikes
去骑自行车

and playing games as well.
去玩游戏

I leashed my dogs
我给几条狗栓了狗绳

for their afternoon walk
准备下午带他们去散步

hoping to enjoy some of the sunshine myself.
希望自己也能享受一些阳光

As I was about to head out the door, however,
可是，当我正准备出门的时候

I decided to do something a little different.
我决定做一点不一样的事情

I reached down
我蹲下身

and pulled my shoes and socks off.
把自己的鞋子和袜子脱了下来

I hadn’t been barefoot outside since the Summer.
夏天结束以后，我就没有光着脚出门过了

I slowly stepped out
我慢慢的迈步出门

on the cool, damp grass.
踩在冰凉，湿漉漉的草地上

It felt so alive under my feet.
它们在我脚下，是那样鲜活

I laughed as I walked along.
我一边走一边笑

I remembered something I once read too
想起自己曾读到过的一句话:

“Walk as if you were kissing the earth with your feet.”
在大地上行走，如同你在用脚掌亲吻大地

And with each step I did so.
每踩出一步，我心中都是这样想

My walk felt sacred and holy.
我感到自己的步子有种圣洁而神圣的意味

I felt a oneness with the world
我感到自己与世界合为一体

and the love of nature all around me.
感到大自然的爱萦绕在自己周身

With love in my heart
我心中充满了爱

I thanked nature for the gift of this day
我感谢大自然将今天这个礼物送给众人

and no longer dreaded the Winter to come.
再也不畏惧冬天的到来

All of us are walking through this life.
我们每个人都在穿越自己的人生之路

But it is up to each of us how we do so.
但应该怎么走，却是由各人做主

Are you going to stumble and stomp
你会磕磕绊绊，步履沉重

and complain with each step you take?
每迈出一步就抱怨一句吗

Or
抑或

are you going to kiss the earth with your feet
你选择用脚掌亲吻大地

and nature with your heart?
用心灵亲吻大自然？

The choice is yours.
选择权在你自己手中