美語情景對話 第1018期:Life in Another Land 另一片土地的生活

Adelina: We are sitting here together in Spain but you are far away from your home country. Are you often abroad?

阿德琳娜：現在我們都在西班牙，不過這裏離你的祖國很遠。你經常出國嗎？

Chris: I'm actually all the time abroad, I'm living abroad.

克里斯：可以說我一直在外國，我在國外生活。

Adelina: Oh, so you live in Spain for how long?

阿德琳娜：哦，那你在西班牙生活多長時間了？

Chris: Yes, now I'm living in Spain. As I said before, I'm 31 and when I was 18 I finished school and I didn't know exactly which direction to go, what to study, so my mom said as well, "Go to Spain, be there for two/three months, do a summer season and when you're back you will know what to do."

克里斯：我現在在西班牙生活。我之前說過，我今年31歲，我18歲完成學業後，不知道應該往哪個方向走，不知道應該學些什麼，所以我媽媽跟我說：“去西班牙吧，去那裏生活兩三個月，去那裏找份暑期工作，等你回來時你就知道要做什麼了”。

Adelina: And what happened?

阿德琳娜：然後發生了什麼？

Chris: Well, I guess the typical story. No, I liked the country and I liked the job that I was doing, I wasn't that bad at it so they offered me an extension and in the end I did the whole season.

克里斯：我認爲之後發生的是就是那種典型的故事。我喜歡西班牙，我喜歡我當時做的那份工作，我的表現還可以，所以他們延長了我的工作期限，我那段時間都在做那份工作。

Adelina: Oh, nice. But what this experience make you feel if you go back in time, tell us like a resume about how you feel.

阿德琳娜：哦，真好。那這份經歷對你來說意味着什麼，回顧過去這段時間，你有什麼想法？

Chris: Well, it's the whole learning experience, I mean I was a teen, I mean, I was an adult but still, you come from your mom who does everything for you, does your washing, your everyday life and all of a sudden you have to do that yourself. But on the one hand you like it, but on the other hand the responsibilities all come to you and you might not be all that prepared for it. But then I was in Spain, decided to finish the season. Then they offered me a replacement on another island to do winter season as well so in the end I stayed and stayed and stayed and had to learn myself, to do everything myself, cooking, washing, paperwork, actually everything.

克里斯：嗯，這是學習經驗，我當時是青年人，雖然我已經成年，不過當時我媽媽還在我打理一切，她幫我洗衣服，照顧我每天的生活，可是突然之間我必須要自己做這些事。一方面我很喜歡這種狀態，另一方面我要開始承擔責任，可是也許我還沒有做好準備。我在西班牙決定完成工作。然後他們給我提供了另一座島上的冬季工作，然後我就留了下來，我要學習自己做所有的事情，比如做飯、洗衣服，還有一些方案工作，所有事都要自己處理。

Adelina: Well, that's nice. No, that means become an adult.

阿德琳娜：這很好。這說明你成爲大人了。

Chris: Yes, it's true but maybe that's not the time that you want to become an adult. I mean, when you're 18 it's the time maybe to enjoy life, to do things you wouldn't do as an adult, but I came to that age quite early and took all the responsibilities so maybe, I'm not going to say I miss that step but I was responsible on an early age, let's say.

克里斯：對，沒錯，不過也許那並不是你想成爲大人的時間。當時我只有18歲，那正是享受生活的時間，去做那些大人不會去做的事情，可是我成爲大人的時間太早了，我要承擔起所有的責任，我並不是說我錯過了那些，我只是說我在年輕的年紀就要開始負責了。

Adelina: Oh, okay. Well, I don't know, how will you see your life if you will have stayed in Belgium instead?

阿德琳娜：好。你認爲如果你留在比利時你的生活會怎樣？

Chris: It probably would have been totally different. I mean, I can't see myself now living in Belgium. I do go once or twice a year to see family and friends but life is different there. I mean, all my friends of my age, they're married, they have their children and going back is still neat and you go out and have a drink but that's it, maybe you see them once or twice a month because they all have their lives so I feel that now my life is going to be here, it'll probably be here for the future.

克里斯：我可能會過完全不同的生活。我沒法想象我在比利時的生活。我每年會回比利時一兩次，去看望家人和朋友，不過那裏的生活完全不同。和我差不多大的朋友都結婚有孩子了，我回去的時候感覺還是挺好的，我會和朋友們出去喝酒，可能一個月見他們一兩次，因爲他們都有自己的生活，我感覺我的生活在西班牙，未來我也會在這裏生活。

Adelina: Well, that's not bad either, right?

阿德琳娜：不過也不糟，對吧？

Chris: No, no, it's not too bad. So, that's why I'm saying, I mean, if you ask me for a learning experience, this was all complete learning experience from now the last 13 years from when I was 18 and of course there are ups and downs, you fall, you get up. But the good thing is you make your own decisions so whatever happens it's because of you. You fall because it's your fault and you get up because it's your merit. So in the end it's good that you experience this for yourself.

克里斯：不，不是太糟。所以我纔會說，如果你問我學習心得，我會說這13年都是我的學習經驗，從我18歲開始到現在的這13年，這段時間有起有落，有失敗，有成功。好的方面是，你是自己做決定，所以無論發生什麼，那都是你的選擇。你失敗是因爲你犯了錯，你成功是因爲你表現好。說到底，經歷了這麼多是件好事。

Adelina: So with luck, good luck.

阿德琳娜：祝你好運。

Chris: Thank you.

克里斯：謝謝。

譯文屬僅供學習交流使用，未經許可請勿轉載

重點講解：
1. far away from 遠；遙遠地；
例句：The family lived far away from downtown.
那家人住在離市中心很遠的地方。
2. all of a sudden 突然地；出乎意料地；
例句：All of a sudden a piercing scream broke the silence.
突然，刺耳的尖叫聲打破了寂靜。
3. on the one the other hand 一方面…另一方面…；
例句：On the one hand, you shouldn't be shy; on the other hand, you mustn't forget your manners.
一方面你不應當拘束，另一方面也不要放肆無禮。
4. ups and downs 興衰；浮沉；起落；悲歡；
例句：Every relationship has a lot of ups and downs.
每一段感情都有許多起伏。