Marie was a single mother of two children in a rural Missouri community. She worked full-time during the day and sold handcrafted leather gifts on weekends. She also dedicated much spare time to numerous charities and community projects.

Then one day Marie received some shocking news from her doctor. She had cancer, and it was spreading rapidly. She had barely enough resources to put a cent in the medical treatments she would need.

Soon, Marie witnessed what she had always known: although she was not financially wealthy, she already had the most valuable possessions on earth. Hundreds in her community and surrounding areas teamed up to help her and her family.

Many people she had touched in caring ways demonstrated appreciation for Marie’s life. Marie did not live to see the day when her bills were fully paid. However, she lived long enough to feel the love of those she had cheerfully served.

The spirits of love and gratitude multiply when they are shared. Happiness is the result of sharing love and gratitude. Giving selflessly was a value that Marie displayed all her life, and her spirit of giving lived after her in those who knew and loved her.

All her life, Marie had demonstrated the truth of this simple principle: happiness will not come from worldly possessions or fortune. Rather, it is an attitude that comes from appreciating what we already have. We can find the happiness we seek if we will first share it with others. Then—and only then—we will have the most valuable possessions on earth: love, happiness, and increasing gratitude.

【日积月累】

handcrafted adj. 手工制作的

resource n. 资源;办法;财力

multiply v. 乘，使相乘;使繁殖;使增加

【参考译文】

世界上最具价值的财产

玛丽是密苏里一个乡下社区两个孩子的单亲母亲。她每天上8个小时的班，周末还出去卖自己手制的皮革礼品，并且她还把很多业余时间投入到了数不清的慈善活动和社区项目里。

一天玛丽从医生那里听到了一条令人震惊的消息。她患上了癌症，而且癌细胞扩散得很快。她经济上非常紧张，哪怕一分钱都不被容许花在她需要接受的医药治疗上。

玛丽很快见证了她一直坚信的事：虽然她经济并不富有，但是她拥有世界上最具价值的财产。她所在社区和相邻社区的成百上千的人都齐力帮助她和她的家人。

她的爱心触动了很多人，他们纷纷表示敬佩。虽然玛丽没有坚持到医药费付清的那天。但是她已经感受到了那些她帮助过的人们对她的关爱。

当关爱和感激的精神被分享的时候，它们就翻倍地增长。幸福来源于分享爱和感激。玛丽一生都无私地贡献，她这种贡献精神在她离开后还活在认识她爱着她的人心里。

玛丽的一生都在践行一个简单的原则：幸福并不来自物质上的富有，相反，它来自一种对自己所拥有的一切怀有感恩之情的心态。如果我们愿意先与人分享幸福，我们就能找的自己追求的幸福。那时——也只有那时——我们就会得到世界上最宝贵的财产：爱、幸福和日益增加的感恩之情。

【人生启迪】

从来没有人用金钱衡量过爱心，因为爱心是无价的。不管你积累了多少财富，总有散尽的一天。而你付出的爱心就像一张无形的支票，在你最需要的时候，能兑换成金钱。无论你口袋的钱是多还是少，只要你不断地践行善举，你就是最富有的人。