For many of us in small business, the ox was a good symbol of 2009. It took a lot of hard work just to survive.

对于我们这些从事小型商业的人来说，牛是2009年的好象征，为了生存必须勤奋工作。

youdao

A lot of hard work lies ahead for us.

摆在我们面前的是大量艰苦的工作。

youdao

It is only another name for trying to be good, and the story may help us, for though we do want to be good, it's hard work and we forget, and don't do our best.

梅格沉思着说，”这其实就是追求善美，只是说法不同而已，而这个故事可以启发我们，因为尽管我们都有追求善美之心，但因为做起来困难，我们便又忘掉了，不去尽力而为。

youdao

It's hard work for us because we could be thrown in at the deep end at any time.

BBC: Keeping the chin up

"The atmosphere changed, we started getting memos down from the top as to how to run the business it just changed in a way that made it hard for us to work, " Jones says.

NPR: Booker T. and the MG's

"These stories which hit honest, decent, salt-of-the-earth folk like the Pattons and those who work for them, hit us all hard, " he said.

BBC: Building site