as college doors start to swish and swing open, slurping young people back in for fall classes, i feelcompelled to put my hand up and say, “wait, you forgot something.”
大學校園已經慢慢敞開大門，迎接那些即將在秋季入學的年輕人們，我必須舉起手說：“等等，你們忘了什麼事。”
i have something i want to tell them before they head back upthe university’s hill to walk new halls, meet new faces and make new decisionsthat could change their lives. what i wish i had known.
在他們抬頭挺胸進入大學校園，認識新朋友，做出影響一生的決定之前，有些事我想要告訴他們。一些我希望知道的事。
precious young person, before you leave, can you turn offyour phone and let me share something valuable with you? i know you think i amtoo old to understand you, but i promise, some days i feel closer to your agethan i do my own. i haven’t forgotten.
年輕人，在你們離開之前，能否關掉手機，讓我與你們分享一些重要的事情?我知道你們認為我太老，不能理解你們，但我保證，年輕時候的事情我甚至記得比現在發生的事情還清楚。我從沒忘記。
what i see in front of me is a life that is valuable andworth more than you can possibly know today. i hope to save you a lot of time,pain and regret.
在我面前展開的生活如此珍貴，你們難以想像。我希望幫你們節約時間，減少痛苦和悔恨。
the 20 things i wish someone told me at 20:
我希望在20歲時有人告訴我的20件事：
1. hold tight to your real friends and don’tforget the closeness that you feel now.
珍惜你真正的朋友，別忘記你們現在的親密感覺。
it is real, and over time, life will try to tease thoseconnections away. they will mean everything.
它是真實的，隨著時間的流逝，生活會漸漸把這種感覺帶走。他們意味著一切。
2. although you’re smart … your brainisn’t done maturing. listen to your parents more than you want. really.
雖然你很聰明……但你的大腦還不成熟。聽你父母的建議，真的要聽話。
your brain doesn’t fully connect all of the dots until you’reabout 23. trust me. trust them.
不到23歲，你的大腦還沒法把所有的信息點都結合起來理智分析。相信我。相信他們。
3. keep the joy of being ‘in the moment.’
享受當下。
you will have to focus on the future so much as you get older– being mindful to the moment becomes a lost gift.
隨著你的成長，你將不得不關注未來——那時關注當下就會變成一份已經失去了的禮物。
4. you will miss your youthful body one day– love it and take care of it.
你有一天會失去年輕的身體——珍惜它，愛護它。
there will come a day when you become nostalgic for all ofthose body parts that you don’t like now. take care of them, exercise and enjoythe freedom of your abilities.
有一天，你會想念那些你現在不喜歡的身體部分。照顧好它們，常常鍛鍊，享受行動能力。
5. if someone has cut you down, that isabout them, not you.
如果有人反駁你，那是他們的事，不是你。
unkind words are often used to cut a strong person down tomake the insecure one feel better. don’t let them stick.
惡意的言語常常把一個強壯的人打倒，使那些缺乏安全感的人自我感覺不錯。別讓他們得逞。
6. apologize: mean it & make it better.
道歉：真誠地道歉，並且讓事情變得更好。
say “i’m sorry,” drop your ego and fix things humbly, without excuses.
說“對不起”，放下你的驕傲，虛心地改正錯誤，不要找藉口。
7. education is that important.
教育是非常重要的。
with 100% certainty, you will be proud of your degrees …and you will regret it if you don’t complete them.
我百分之百的肯定，你會為你的學位感到驕傲……如果你沒有完成學業，你會後悔的。
8. you can say no to sexual contact.
你可以對性行為說不。
you own your body. walking away is tough in the moment, butyour spirit will thank you. and, trust me, in later years, those decisions willfill you and your partner with pride.
你擁有你自己的身體。走開會是個艱難的時刻，但你的靈魂會感謝你的。還有，相信我，過幾年之後，那些決定使你和你的伴侶感到自豪。
9. whatever you post is permanent.
你曬出的所有內容都是永久的。
envision that picture, video or comment being pushedacross the desk to you as you interview for your first job.
想想當你面試第一份工作時，照片、視頻和評論都被從桌子對面遞過來。
10. trust the calling on your heart.
跟隨心的召喚。
don’t quiet the voice inside your spirit. do the work to getwhere you are called to go … even if it is not where someone else thinks youshould be going.
別壓制你內心的聲音。跟著心指引的方向走……即使如果那不是別人認為你該去的地方。
11. spirituality/religion will be what savesyou when the world goes out.
當世界都瘋掉時，精神或宗教將會拯救你。
always keep a personal spiritual relationship with god – thiswill guide you, strengthen you & bring you peace. pray. meditate. listen. every day.
永遠與上帝保持精神上的交流——它會指引你，使你強大，帶給你平靜。祈禱、冥想、聆聽，每一天。
12. travel.
旅行。
seize any (safe) opportunity to journey to a new place,immerse in a new culture, or experience new landscape. your mind will open inimmeasurable ways.
抓住每個(安全的)機會去新的地方旅行，沉浸在新的文化當中。你的眼界會變得異常開闊。
13. don’t poison yourself. don’t smoke.don’t take drugs. don’t drink soda.
別毒害自己。不要吸菸。不要吸毒。不要喝碳酸飲料。
toxins affect your outward beauty. treat your body aspurely as possible. it will show.
毒素會影響你的外在美，對待你自己的身體越純淨越好，它會表現出來的。
14. consider the other side of the story.
考慮到事情的另一面。
listen to someone that you don’t agree with – ask them wherethey came from and why they feel the way they do, without judgment. be open.
聽聽你反對的人的意見——問問他們從哪裡來，為什麼這樣想，不要評論。敞開心扉。
15. talk yourself out of the need to compareyourself.
別和自己比較。
strive to be the best you, not a copy of the person next toyou. know your strengths. don’t belittle your weaknesses.
努力做最好的自己，而不是一個身邊人的副本。了解自己的優勢，不要輕看自己的缺點。
16. talk to your educators. ask for help. beknown and be memorable.
跟你的導師談話，去尋求幫助，讓他們了解你，記住你。
by being known, teachers will be more invested in you andyour success. you might also gain a mentor.
老師們如果了解你，就會更關注你和你的成功。你也許還會得到一位人生導師。
17. love your parents. love yourgrandparents.
愛你的父母，愛你的祖父母。
look them in the eye and listen to their stories. you neverknow when it is going to be too late.
看著他們的眼睛，傾聽他們的故事。你永遠不知道什麼時候是最後一次。
18. people will treat you the way that youallow them to.
你如何對待別人，別人就如何對待你。
you have half the power to determine how every relationship goesas a whole. be empowered to keep positive people close and negative people atbay. you do have a choice.
你只有一半的能力決定人際關係如何發展。和積極的人來往，遠離消極的人。你可以選擇。
19. pay attention to how people treat theirparents … and their waiters.
注意別人是怎樣對他們的父母的……和服務人員。
the way a potential partner treats his/her parents is a good predictor of how they will be in a marriage. the waythey treat a waiter (or any service person) shows you their character.
另一半如何對待父母可以看出他們在婚姻中會是什麼樣子，他們如何對待服務生會讓你看到他們的性格。
20. listen to your still, small voice.
傾聽你內心的平靜和微弱的聲音。
god gave you a spirit that speaks to you from that spot deepin your core. you can feel it give you a stinging “bzzzz” whenyou should not be somewhere, and a feel-good “lalalala!” when you arein a very good place. trust those gut feelings.
上帝給了你一個會在你心底某處和你說話的精靈。當你不該出現在某處時，你會聽到它發出“呲……”的聲音，如果你在一個好的地方，會聽到“啦啦啦……”。相信那些直覺。