Rich dad, poor dad(富爸爸 穷爸爸)

Rich dad, poor dad (富爸爸 穷爸爸)

For the next several weeks, Mike and I ran around our neighborhood, knocking on doors and asking our neighbors if they would save their toothpaste tubes for us. With puzzled looks, most adults consented with a smile. Some asked us what we were doing. To which we replied, "We can't tell you. It's a business secret."
My mom grew distressed as the weeks wore on. We had selected a site next to her washing machine as the place we would stockpile our raw materials. In a brown cardboard box that one time held catsup bottles, our little pile of used toothpaste tubes began to grow.

One day my dad drove up with a friend to see two 9-year-old boys . in the driveway with a production line operating at full speed. There was fine white powder everywhere. On a long table were small milk cartons from school, and our family's hibachi grill was glowing with red hot coals at maximum heat.
Rich dad, poor dad(富爸爸 穷爸爸)

在接下来的几星期里，迈克和我跑遍了邻近各家，敲开他们的门问他们是否愿意把用过的牙膏皮攒下来给我们。迷惑不解的大人们微笑着答应了，有的问我们要它做什么，对此我们回答道：“这是商业秘密”。
　　几星期过去了，我妈变得心烦起来，因为我们选了一个靠近她洗衣机的地方放置我们的原料。在一个曾用来盛番茄酱的大罐子里，积攒在那儿的用过的牙膏皮正在慢慢变多。

　　爸爸带着一个朋友驱车而至，来看两个9岁男孩在公路边合力操弄一条生产线。空气中飞扬着的是细细的白色粉末，在一个长桌上是一些从学校拿来的废牛奶纸盒以及家里的烧烤架，烧烤架已经被发红的炭烤到了极热，发着白光。

Rich dad, poor dad (富爸爸 穷爸爸)

Dad walked up cautiously, having to park the car at the base of the driveway, since the production line blocked the carport. As he and his friend got closer, they saw a steel pot sitting on top of the coals, with the toothpaste tubes being melted down. In those days, toothpaste did not come in plastic tubes. The tubes were made of lead. So once the paint was burned off, the tubes were dropped in the small steel pot, melted until they became liquid, and with my mom's pot holders we were pouring the lead through a small hole in the top of the milk cartons.
The milk cartons were filled with plaster-of-Paris. The white powder everywhere was the plaster before we mixed it with water. The milk cartons were the outer containers for plaster-of-Paris molds.

My dad and his friend watched as we carefully poured the molten lead through a small hole in the top of the plaster-of-Paris cube.

"What are you boys doing?" he asked with a cautious smile.

"We're doing what you told me to do. We're going to be rich," I said.

"Yup," said Mike, grinning and nodding his head. "We're partners."
Rich dad, poor dad(富爸爸 穷爸爸)

爸爸小心地走过来，由于生产线挡住了车位他不得不把车停在路边。当他和他朋友走近时，他们看见一个钢壶架在炭上，里面的废牙膏皮正在熔化。在那个时候，牙膏皮还不是塑料做的，而是铅制的。所以一旦牙膏皮上的涂料被烧掉后，被放在钢壶中的铅皮就会烧熔，直到变成液体。当铅皮到达熔点时，我们就用妈妈的抓锅布垫着，将溶液从牛奶盒顶的小孔中小心地注入到牛奶盒中。  
　　牛奶盒里装满了熟石膏，满地的白色粉末是我们将灰和水混和时弄的，由于我一时匆忙，打翻了小包，所以弄得到处是白灰，好似下了场雪。牛奶盒就是石灰模的外部容器。

　　爸爸和他的朋友注视着我们小心翼翼地把熔铅注入到灰管顶部的小孔中。

　　“你们在干什么？”他带着谨慎的微笑问道。

　　“我们正在按你告诉我的话做，我们就要变成富人了！”我说。

　　“是的，”迈克咧嘴笑着点头说道：“我们是合伙人。”

Rich dad, poor dad (富爸爸 穷爸爸)

"And what is in those plaster molds?" dad asked.
"Watch," I said. "This should be a good batch."

With a small hammer, I tapped at the seal that divided the cube in half. Cautiously, I pulled up the top half of the plaster mold and a lead nickel fell out."

"Oh, my God!" my dad said. "You're casting nickels out of lead."

"That's right," Mike said. "We doing as you told us to do. We're making money."

My dad's friend turned and burst into laughter. My dad smiled and shook his head. Along with a fire and a box of spent toothpaste tubes, in front of him were two little boys covered with white dust and smiling from ear to ear.

He asked us to put everything down and sit with him on the front step of our house. With a smile, he gently explained what the word "counterfeiting" meant.

Our dreams were dashed. "You mean this is illegal?" asked Mike in a quivering voice.

"Let them go," my dad's friend said. "They might be developing a natural talent."

My dad glared at him.

"Yes, it is illegal," my dad said gently. "But you boys have shown great creativity and original thought. Keep going. I'm really proud of you!"
Rich dad, poor dad(富爸爸 穷爸爸)

“这些灰模子里面是什么东西？”老爸有些好奇地问。  
　　“看，”我说，“这是已经铸好的一炉”。我用一个小锤子敲开了密封物并把管子分成两半，我小心地抽掉灰模的上半部，一个铅制的五分硬币便掉了下来。  

　　“噢，天啊，”老爸叫了起来，用手摸着额头：“你们在用铅造硬币！”

　　“对啊，”迈克说，“我们按你说的，在自己挣钱呐。”

　　爸爸的朋友转过身去爆发出一阵大笑，爸爸则微笑着摇着头。在一堆火和一堆废牙膏皮旁，他面前的两个白灰满面的小男孩正在开心地笑着。

　　爸爸要我们放下手里的东西和他坐到屋外的台阶上，然后他微笑着和蔼地向我们解释了“伪造”一词的含义。

　　我们的梦想破灭了！“你的意思是说这么做是违法的？”迈克用颤抖的声音问。

　　“别怪他们，”我爸爸的朋友说，“他们也许会成为天才呢。”

　　我爸爸瞪了他一眼。

　　“对，这是违法的。”爸爸温和地说，“但是，孩子们，别灰心，我为你们刚才表现出来的巨大的创造性和独立思考精神而感到骄傲。”

Rich dad, poor dad (富爸爸 穷爸爸)

Disappointed, Mike and I sat in silence for about twenty minutes before we began cleaning up our mess. The business was over on opening day. Sweeping the powder up, I looked at Mike and said, "I guess Jimmy and his friends are right. We are poor."
My father was just leaving as I said that. "Boys," he said. "You're only poor if you give up. The most important thing is that you did something. Most people only talk and dream of getting rich. You've done something. I'm very proud of the two of you. I will say it again.

Keep going. Don't quit."

Mike and I stood there in silence. They were nice words, but we still did not know what to do.

"So how come you're not rich, dad?" I asked.

"Because I chose to be a schoolteacher. Schoolteachers really don't think about being rich. We just like to teach. I wish I could help you, but I really don't know how to make money."
Rich dad, poor dad(富爸爸 穷爸爸)

失望之中，迈克和我在沉默中坐了20分钟才开始收拾残局。
　　我们的生意在刚开始的第一天就结束了。把粉扫拢时，我望着迈克沮丧地说：“我想基米和他的朋友们是对的，我们只能当穷人了。”

　　爸爸正要离开时听到了这话，“孩子，”他转过身来说，“如果你们放弃了你们才真的只能当穷人了。一件事情的成败并不重要，重要的是你们曾经尝试过。要知道大多数人只是谈论和梦想发财，而你们已经付出了行动。我再说一遍，我为你们骄傲，孩子们，别灰心，别放弃。”

　　迈克和我沉默地站在那儿，话挺对，但我们仍不知应该干些什么。

　　“那你为什么不富有呢，爸爸？”我问。

　　“因为我选择了当中学老师。中学老师要专心教书，不该去想怎么发财。我希望我能帮你们，但我真的不知道如何才能赚大钱。

Rich dad, poor dad (富爸爸 穷爸爸)

Mike and I turned and continued our clean up.
"I know," said my dad. "If you boys want to learn how to be rich, don't ask me. Talk to your dad, Mike."

"My dad?" asked Mike with a scrunched up face.

"Yeah, your dad," repeated my dad with a smile. "Your dad and I have the same banker, and he raves about your father. He's told me several times that your father is brilliant when it comes to making money."He seems to be building an empire, and I suspect in a few years he will be a very rich man."

With that, Mike and I got excited again. With new vigor, we began cleaning up the mess caused by our now defunct first business. As we were cleaning, we made plans on how and when to talk to Mike's dad. The problem was that Mike's dad worked long hours and often did not come home until late. His father owned warehouses, a construction company, a chain of stores, and three restaurants. It was the restaurants that kept him out late.

Mike caught the bus home after we had finished cleaning up. He was going to talk to his dad when he got home that night and ask him if he would teach us how to become rich. Mike promised to call as soon as he had talked to his dad, even if it was late.

The phone rang at 8:30 p.m.

"OK," I said. "Next Saturday." And put the phone down. Mike's dad had agreed to meet with Mike and me.

At 7:30 Saturday morning, I caught the bus to the poor side of town.
Rich dad, poor dad(富爸爸 穷爸爸)

迈克和我又回去继续清理现场。
　　爸接着说：“如果你们希望了解如何致富，不要问我，去和你爸谈谈，迈克。”

　　“我爸？”迈克皱着眉头。

　　“对，你爸爸。”爸爸微笑着说，“你爸爸和我都认识的一个银行经理，他对你爸爸非常崇拜。他有好几次对我提过说你爸爸在赚钱方面是个天才。” 他似乎正在建立一个属于自己的帝国。我相信几年之内他就会成为一个非常富有的人。”

　　听到这番话，我和迈克又兴奋起来了。带着新的希望，我们迅速清理了首次失败的生意所造成的混乱。我们还一边清理一边制定了一个与迈克爸爸谈话的计划，例如该怎样谈，何时谈。问题在于迈克的爸爸工作时间很长，并且经常很晚才回家。他爸爸有一个货仓，一个建筑公司，一些店铺和三个餐馆。正是这些餐馆使他在外面要果到很晚。

　　清理完毕后迈克塔上了回家的公共汽车，他会在他爸爸晚上回家后和他谈谈，并问他是否愿意教我们如何赚钱。迈克答应和他爸爸谈完后无论多晚都给我回电话。

　　晚上8：30电话响了。

　　“下周六，太好了！”迈克的爸爸同意与我们会面。

Rich dad, poor dad (富爸爸 穷爸爸)

At 7:30 Saturday morning, I caught the bus to the poor side of town.
Michael and I met with his dad that morning at 8 o'clock. He was already busy and had been at work for more than an hour. His construction supervisor was just leaving in his pickup truck as I walked up to his simple, small and tidy home. Mike met me at the door.

"Dad's on the phone, and he said to wait on the back porch," Mike said as he opened the door.

The old wooden floor creaked as I stepped across the threshold of this aging house. There was a cheap mat just inside the door. The mat was there to hide the years of wear from countless footsteps that the floor had supported. Although clean, it needed to be replaced.

I felt claustrophobic as I entered the narrow living room, which was filled with old musty overstuffed furniture that today would be collector's items. Sitting on the couch were two women, a little older than my mom. Across from the women sat a man in workman's clothes. They smiled as Mike and I walked past them, heading for the kitchen, which lead to the porch that overlooked the back yard. I smiled back shyly.
Rich dad, poor dad(富爸爸 穷爸爸)

迈克和我在那天上午8点和他爸爸会面了。他仍然很忙而且会面前已经工作了1个多小时了。他的建筑监理人刚坐着他的卡车离开，我就进了他那窄小而简朴整洁的家，迈克站在门口迎接我。
　　“我爸正在打电话，他让我们在走廊后面等着。”迈克边说边开门。

　　当我举步跨过这座老房子的门槛时，旧木地板发出“嘎嘎” 的响声。门内地板上有个廉价的垫子，这个垫子的磨损程度记录了经年累月无数次踏上这个地板的脚步，虽然很干净，但还是该换了。

　　当我进入到狭小的卧室时感到有些害怕，这间卧室里塞满了陈旧发霉而厚重的家具，它们早该成为收藏者的藏品了。在沙发上坐着两个女人，她们的岁数比我妈大一些，她们的后面还坐着一个穿工作服的男人。他穿着卡其布的衬衫和外套，衣服烫得很平整，但没有浆过，他手上拿着磨得发光的工作簿。他大概比我爸爸大10岁的样子，我想大概45岁吧。

　　当我和迈克走过他们身边时他们冲我们微笑着，我们朝厨房走去，穿过橱房可以到后院。

　　我也有点腼腆地冲他们笑笑。

Rich dad, poor dad (富爸爸 穷爸爸)

"Who are those people?" I asked.
"Oh, they work for my dad. The older man runs his warehouses, and the women are the managers of the restaurants. And you saw the construction supervisor, who is working on a road project about 50 miles from here. His other supervisor, who is building a track of houses, had already left before you got here."

"Does this go on all the time?" I asked.

"Not always, but quite often," said Mike, smiling as he pulled up a chair to sit down next to me.

"I asked him if he would teach us to make money," Mike said.

"Oh, and what did he say to that?" I asked with cautious curiosity.

"Well, he had a funny look on his face at first, and then he said he would make us an offer."

"Oh," I said, rocking my chair back against the wall; I sat there perched on two rear legs of the chair.

Mike did the same thing.

Suddenly, Mike's dad burst through the rickety screen door and onto the porch. Mike and I jumped to our feet, not out of respect but because we were startled.

"Ready boys?" Mike's dad asked as he pulled up a chair to sit down with us.

We nodded our heads as we pulled our chairs away from the wall to sit in front of him.
Rich dad, poor dad(富爸爸 穷爸爸)

“他们是什么人？”我问迈克。
　　“噢，他们是给我爸干活的。那个老点的男人负责管理货仓，那两个女人是餐馆经理。

　　刚才在门口你也看到建筑监理人了；他在离这儿50英里远的一个公路项目中工作。还有一些监理正在负责房屋建设的项目，不过他们在你到这里之前就已经走了。“

　　“每天都是这样的吗？”我问。 “并不总是，但经常是这样的。”迈克说着拉了一张椅子坐在我身边。

　　“我问过他愿不愿意教我们挣钱。”迈克说。

　　“哦，那他怎么说？”我急切地问。

　　“嗯，开始时他脸上有一种取笑的表情，然后他说会给我们一个建议。”

　　“噢！”我说着，用两个椅子后腿撑着，把椅子靠着墙翘起来。

　　迈克也学着我这么做。

　　“会是什么建议呢？”我又问。

　　“不知道，但很快就会清楚了。”迈克说。

　　突然，迈克的爸爸推开那扇摇摇晃晃的门走进了门廊，迈克和我跳了起来，不是出于尊敬而是因为吓了一跳。

　　“准备好了吗，孩子们？”迈克的爸爸问道，随手拖了把椅子坐到我们旁边。

　　我们点着头，把椅子移到他面前坐下。

Rich dad, poor dad (富爸爸 穷爸爸)

We nodded our heads as we pulled our chairs away from the wall to sit in front of him.
He was a big man, about 6 feet tall and 200 pounds.

"Mike says you want to learn to make money? Is that correct, Robert?"

I nodded my head quickly, but with a little intimidation. He had a lot of power behind his words and smile.

"OK, here's my offer. I'll teach you, but I won't do it classroom-style. You work for me, I'll teach you. You don't work for me, I won't teach you. I can teach you faster if you work, and I'm wasting my time if you just want to sit and listen, like you do in school. That's my offer. Take it or leave it."

"Ah... may I ask a question first?" I asked.

"No. Take it or leave it. I've got too much work to do to waste my time. If you can't make up you mind decisively, then you'll never learn to make money anyway.

"Take it," I said. `

"Take it," said Mike.

"Good," said Mike's dad. "Mrs. Martin will be by in ten minutes. After I'm through with her, you ride with her to my superette and you can begin working. I'll pay you 10 cents an hour and you will work for three hours every Saturday."
Rich dad, poor dad(富爸爸 穷爸爸)

我们点着头，把椅子移到他面前坐下。  
　　他也是个大块头的男人，大约有6英尺高，200磅重。

　　“迈克说你们想学赚钱，对吗，罗伯特？”

　　我快速地点点头，心里有点儿忐忑，在他的微笑和话语后面似乎隐藏着一股很强的力量。

　　“好，这就是我的建议：由我来教你们赚钱，但我不会像在教室里教学生那样教你们，你们得为我工作，否则我就不教。因为通过工作我可以更快地教会你们，如果你们只想坐着听讲，就像在学校里那样的话，那我就是在浪费时间了。怎么样？小伙子们，这就是我的建议，你们可以接受也可以拒绝”。

　　“嗯……我可以先问个问题吗？”我问。

　　“不能，你只能告诉我是接受还是拒绝。因为我有太多的事要做，不能浪费时间。如果你不能下定决心，就永远也学不会如何赚钱。

　　“接受。”我说。

　　“接受。”迈克也说。

　　“好！”迈克的爸爸说道，“马丁夫人会在几分钟内到达。等我和她办完事后，你们跟她去我的杂货店，你们可以在那儿开始工作了。我每小时付给你们10美分，你们每周六来工作3个小时。”

Rich dad, poor dad (富爸爸 穷爸爸)

"But I have a softball game today," I said.
Mike's dad lowered his voice to a stern tone. "Take it or leave it," he

"I'll take it," I replied, choosing to work and learn instead of playing softball.

By 9 a.m. on a beautiful Saturday morning, Mike and I were working for Mrs. Martin. She was a kind and patient woman. She always said that Mike and I reminded her of her two sons who were grown and gone. Although kind, she believed in hard work and she kept us working. She was a task master. We spent three hours taking canned goods off the shelves and, with a feather duster, brushing each can to get the dust off, and then re-stacking them neatly. It was excruciatingly boring work.

For three weeks, Mike and I reported to Mrs. Martin and worked our three hours. By noon, our work was over, and she dropped three little dimes in each of our hands. Now, even at the age of 9 in the mid-1950s, 30 cents was not too exciting. Comic books cost 10 cents back then, so I usually spent my money on comic books and went home.
Rich dad, poor dad(富爸爸 穷爸爸)

“但我今天有一场棒球比赛！”我说。
　　迈克的爸爸降低声调严厉地说：“接受或者拒绝。”

　　“我接受。”我赶忙回答，我决定去工作和学习而不去打棒球了。

　　以后从一个美好的星期六早上9点起，迈克和我正式开始给马丁夫人干活了。马丁夫人是一个慈祥而有耐心的女人，她总是说迈克和我使她想起她的两个儿子，她的两个儿子长大后就离开了她。马丁夫人虽然很慈祥，却强调应该努力工作，她让我们不停地干活。她是一个很好的监工，3个小时里，我们不停地把罐装食品从架子上拿下来，用羽毛掸弹去每个罐头上的灰尘，然后重新把它们码放好。这工作真的很乏味。

　　 　此后的三个星期中，每周六迈克和我向马丁夫人报到并在她那儿工作3个小时。中午以前，我们的工作就结束了，她就在我们每人的手中放下三个小钢蹦儿。即使是在50年代中期，对于9岁的男孩来说，30美分也并不十分令人激动，因为就算买一本小人书也得花上10美分呢。

Rich dad, poor dad (富爸爸 穷爸爸)

By Wednesday of the fourth week, I was ready to quit. I had agreed to work only because I wanted to learn to make money from Mike's dad, and now I was a slave for 10 cents an hour. On top of that, I had not seen Mike's dad since that first Saturday.
"I'm quitting," I told Mike at lunchtime. The school lunch was miserable. School was boring, and now I did not even have my Saturdays to look forward to. But it was the 30 cents that really got to me.

This time Mike smiled.

"Dad said this would happen. He said to meet with him when you were ready to quit."

"What?" I said indignantly. "He's been waiting for me to get fed up?"

"Sort of," Mike said. "Dad's kind of different. He teaches differently from your dad. Your mom and dad lecture a lot. My dad is quiet and a man of few words. You just wait till this Saturday. I'll tell him .you're ready."

"You mean I've been set up?"

"No, not really, but maybe. Dad will explain on Saturday."
Rich dad, poor dad(富爸爸 穷爸爸)

第四个星期的星期三，我准备退出了。我答应工作是因为我想从迈克爸爸那里学会赚钱，而现在我却成了每小时10美分的奴隶。更糟糕的是，自从第一个星期六后我就一直没见到过我们的赚钱老师――迈克的爸爸。
　　“我要退出。”吃午饭的时候我对迈克说。学校的午饭糟透了，上课也没劲，而且我现在几乎一点也不盼着过星期六了。因为对我而言，现在的星期六换来的仅仅是每周的30美分。

　　迈克得意地笑了。

　　“你笑什么？”我沮丧而气恼地问。

　　“我爸说早料到了，他说如果你不想干了就让我带你去见他。”

　　“什么？”我感到受了愚弄，气愤地问，“他早就在等我去找他？”

　　“是的，我爸是个不一般的人，他跟你爸的教育方法不一样。

　　你爸你妈说得多，我爸说得少，不过他早就猜到了你会这么说的。你要等到这个周六，我会告诉他你已经准备好了。“”你是说我被设计了？“

　　“还不肯定，但有可能。我爸会在周六说明的。”