An eight-year-old child heard her parents talking about her little brother. All she knew was that he was very sick and they had no money left.

When she heard her daddy say to her tearful mother, “Only a miracle can save him now”, the little girl went to her bedroom and pulled her piggy bank from its hiding place in the closet. She poured all the change out on the floor and counted it carefully.

“And what do you want?” asked the pharmacist. “It’s for my little brother,” the girl answered back. “He’s really, really sick and I want to buy a miracle.”

“I beg your pardon?” said the pharmacist.

“His name is Andrew and he has something bad growing inside his head and my daddy says only a miracle can save him. So how much does a miracle cost?”

“We don’t sell miracles here, child. I’m sorry,” the pharmacist said, smiling sadly at the little girl.

“Listen, I have the money to pay for it. If it isn’t enough, I can try and get some more. Just tell me how much it costs.”

In the shop was a well-dressed customer. He stooped down and asked the little girl, “What kind of a miracle does your brother need?”

“I don’t know,” she replied with her eyes welling up. “He’s really sick and mommy says he needs an operation. But my daddy can’t pay for it, so I have brought my savings”.

“How much do you have?” asked the man. “One dollar and eleven cents, but I can try and get some more,” she answered very quietly.

“Well, what a coincidence,” smiled the man. “A dollar and eleven cents—the exact price of a miracle for your little brother.”

He took her money in one hand and held her hand with the other. He said, “Take me to where you live. I want to see your brother and meet your parents. Let’s see if I have the kind of miracle you need.”

That well-dressed man was Dr Carlton Armstrong, a surgeon, specializing in neuro-surgery. The operation was completed without charge and it wasn’t long before Andrew was home again and doing well.

“That surgery,” her mom whispered, “was a real miracle. I wonder how much it would have cost?”

The little girl smiled. She knew exactly how much the miracle cost...one dollar and eleven cents...plus the faith of a little child.

Perseverance can make miracles happen!

【参考译文】

一个8岁的小孩在听她父母谈论她的弟弟。她只知道她的弟弟病得很严重，家里没剩多少钱了。

她听到爸爸对哭泣的妈妈说，“现在只有奇迹才能救他了。”小女孩回到房间，把她藏在橱柜里的小猪存钱罐拿出来。她把钱全部倒在地板上，认真地数着。

然后，小女孩从后门悄悄溜出去，走过6个路口，来到当地的药店。她拿出四分之一的钱，放在玻璃柜台上。

“想要什么?“药剂师问。”“我给我弟弟买，”女孩回答道。“他病得很严重，我想买一个奇迹。”

“你说?”药剂师问道。

“他叫安得努，他脑袋里长了一些很坏的东西，我爸爸说只有奇迹才能救他。请问，奇迹多少钱一个?”

“我们这里不卖奇迹，孩子，对不起。”药剂师悲伤地对小女孩笑着。

“我这里有钱，可以买。如果不够，我可以想办法去多弄点钱，请告诉我，一个奇迹要多少钱。”

药店里有个穿着得体的顾客。他弯下腰问小女孩，“你的弟弟需要一个什么样的奇迹呢?”

“我不知道，”女孩回答道，眼里含着泪水。“他真的病得很严重，妈妈说他需要动手术。但是爸爸说我们支付不起，所以我把我的钱都带来了。”

“你有多少钱?”男人问道。“1美元11分，但是我可以去多弄点。”女孩轻轻地回答。

“好巧，”男人微笑着说道，“1美元11分，刚好就是你弟弟需要的奇迹的价格。”

他一手拽着小女孩的钱，一手牵着女孩的手，说，“带我去你住的地方，我想看看你弟弟，见见你的父母。也许我有你要的奇迹。”

那个穿着得体的男人是卡尔顿·阿蒙斯特恩，外科医生，专攻脑科神经。这次手术免费，并且安得努很快就康复回家了。

“那个手术，”女孩母亲轻声地说，“真是个奇迹，不知道这个奇迹值多少钱?”

小女孩微笑着。她知道这个奇迹的价格……1美元11分……再加上一个小孩真诚的信仰。

坚持能让奇迹发生。

【人生启迪】

小女孩，因为纯真，因为坚持，为她的弟弟赢得了一个奇迹。在看到这个故事之前，你是否相信一美元十一分就能够买得到一个奇迹?请相信我们的生活里真的有奇迹，只要你去相信、去努力。