“And why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of these.” – Matthew 6:28-29
戴德生自小便展现出对花、鸟、蝴蝶的热爱,而这份热爱也伴随了他一生。他一度最喜欢的消遣活动,就是和妹妹戴贺美一起,到家附近的树林里去,亲身研究大自然,并把各种标本带回家。在他艰苦的职业生涯中,这种对美好之物的热爱化为了一种持续的精神慰籍。他所写的家信中时有提及中国的动植物。当被紧迫的职责所累时,他也常常借着照料几种特定的花卉绿植来疏解压力。
(资料来源:Marshall Broomhall,Hudson TAYLOR - The Man who believed God, p.21.)