So I was trained to become a gymnast for two years in Hunan, China in the 1970s. When I was in the first grade, the government wanted to transfer me to a school for athletes, all expenses paid. But my tiger mother said, "No." My parents wanted me to become an engineer like them. After surviving the Cultural Revolution, they firmly believed there's only one sure way to happiness: a safe and well-paid job. It is not important if I like the job or not.
Waxa la ii taba-barey in aan noqdo tababare jimicsi mudo labo sano ah gudaha Hunan, china 1970kii. markaan fasalka koowaad ahaa, dowdala ayaa waxey rabtey in ay igu wareejiso dugsi loogu talagalay ciyaaraha fudud, oo dhamaan qarashaatka lagaa bixinaayo. laakin hooyadeydii geesiyada aheeed ayaa dhahdey,"maya." waalidiinteyda waxey rabeen in aan noqdo injineer ayaga oo kala ah. kadib markii laga soo badbaadey kacaanka dhaqameed, waxey si adag u aaminsanaayeen in keliya ay jirto hal wado si loo helo farxad: amaan iyo shaqo lacag fiican leh. muhiim ma ahan hadii aan jeclahay shaqada ama hadaan jecleenba
But my dream was to become a Chinese opera singer. That is me playing my imaginary piano. An opera singer must start training young to learn acrobatics, so I tried everything I could to go to opera school. I even wrote to the school principal and the host of a radio show. But no adults liked the idea. No adults believed I was serious. Only my friends supported me, but they were kids, just as powerless as I was. So at age 15, I knew I was too old to be trained. My dream would never come true. I was afraid that for the rest of my life some second-class happiness would be the best I could hope for.
laakiin aniga riyadeyda waxey aheed in aan noqdo heesaay chineese ah. taasi waa aniga oo ciyaaraya piano khiyaali ah. heesayad fanka waa in ay tababar bilowdaa aydoo yer si ay u barato jimnaastik, sidaa darteed waxaan isku dayay waxkasta si aan u aado dugsiga fanka. Waxaan xitaa u qoray in maamulaha dugsiga iyo kuwa martida u ah barnaamijyada raadiyaha. laakiin dadka waaweyn ma ka helin fikrada. dadka waaweyn ma aaminsaneen in ay dhab iga tahay. Saaxiibaday oo keliya ayaa igu taageeray, laakiin iyagu waxay ahaayeen carruur, sida aniga camal awood la'aan aan u ahay. markaan soo gaarey da'da 15jir. waxaan ogaadey in aan weynaadey oo la i tababari karo. riyadeydu marna ma rumoowi doonto. waxaan ka baqaayey in inta ka dhiman nolosheyda in farxad labaad un ay noqon doonto waxa ugu fiican aan rajeynaayo.
But that's so unfair. So I was determined to find another calling. Nobody around to teach me? Fine. I turned to books.
laakiin taasi cadaalad ma ahin. sidaas darteed waxaan goostey in aan raadiyo wado kele. ma jiro qof ii dhow oo wax i baraayo? hagaag, waxaan u jeestey buugaagta.
I satisfied my hunger for parental advice from this book by a family of writers and musicians.["Correspondence in the Family of Fou Lei"]
waxaan raali ka ahaa baahida aan u qabo talooyinka waalidka laga bilaabo buugaan oo qoys qorayaal iyo muusikisyahano ah.["Correspondence in the Family of Fou Lei"]
I found my role model of an independent woman when Confucian tradition requires obedience.["Jane Eyre"]
waxaan heley in ay ku dayasho mudan tahay haweeneyda madax banaan marka caadooyinka jahwareersan ay u baahan yihiin dulqaad.["jane eyre"]
And I learned to be efficient from this book.["Cheaper by the Dozen"]
iyo sida qof firfircoon loo noqdo waxaan kasoo bartey buugan.["Cheaper by the Dozen"]
And I was inspired to study abroad after reading these.
waxaan jecleestey in aan dibada wax kusoo bartey markaan intaan akhriyey.
["Complete Works of Sanmao" (aka Echo Chan)] ["Lessons From History" by Nan Huaijin]
"Complete Works of Sanmao" (aka Echo Chan)] ["Lessons From History" by Nan Huaijin] (buugaag magac'yadooda)
I came to the U.S. in 1995, so which books did I read here first? Books banned in China, of course. "The Good Earth" is about Chinese peasant life. That's just not convenient for propaganda. Got it. The Bible is interesting, but strange. (Laughter) That's a topic for a different day. But the fifth commandment gave me an epiphany: "You shall honor your father and mother." "Honor," I said. "That's so different, and better, than obey." So it becomes my tool to climb out of this Confucian guilt trap and to restart my relationship with my parents.
waxaan imaadey America. 1995kii, marka buugagate akhris ku bilaabaa marka hore? buugaagta china laga maamnuucay, dabcan. buuga "the good earth" oo ku saabsan nolosha beeraleyda china. Taasi waa uun maku haboona dacaayad. ma fahantey. Kitaabka Qudduuska waa mid xiisa leh, laakiin wa cajiib. (Qosol) Taasi waa mawduuc maalin oo kala duwan. Laakiin amarkii shanaad waxa uu i siiyey garsho: "waa in aad hooyadaa iyo aabahaa aad ixtiraamtaa." "ixtiraam," aan dhahay. "taasi aad ayey u kala duwan tahy, iyo kasii fiican,in aad adeecdid." marka waxey noqoneysaa wadadii aan uga bixi lahaa dabintaan hadgudubka ah oo jahwareerka leh iyo in aan dib u bilaabo xariirkeyga aan la leeyahay waalidiinteyda.
Encountering a new culture also started my habit of comparative reading. It offers many insights. For example, I found this map out of place at first because this is what Chinese students grew up with. It had never occurred to me, China doesn't have to be at the center of the world. A map actually carries somebody's view. Comparative reading actually is nothing new. It's a standard practice in the academic world. There are even research fields such as comparative religion and comparative literature.
la kulmidda dhaqan cusub ayan sidoo kele waxaan bilaabey caadadeyda is barbadhiga akhriska. Waxay bixisaa aragtiyo badan. tusaale ahaan, waxaan markii hore aan meel ka heley khariidhadaan waayo tani waa waxa ay ardeyda chineeseka kusoo koraan. waligeed iguma soo dhicin, china ma ahan in ay noqoto xarunta aduunka. dhab ahaantii khariidada waxey xambarsan tahay arigtida qof. isbarbardhiga akhriska ah ma ahan wax cusub. Waa dhaqanka caadiga ah ee tacliinta dunida. Waxaa jira xitaa goobo cilmi-baarista sida isbarbardhiga diimaha iyo isbarbardhiga suugaanta
Compare and contrast gives scholars a more complete understanding of a topic. So I thought, well, if comparative reading works for research, why not do it in daily life too? So I started reading books in pairs. So they can be about people -- ["Benjamin Franklin" by Walter Isaacson]["John Adams" by David McCullough] -- who are involved in the same event, or friends with shared experiences. ["Personal History" by Katharine Graham]["The Snowball: Warren Buffett and the Business of Life," by Alice Schroeder] I also compare the same stories in different genres -- (Laughter) [Holy Bible: King James Version]["Lamb" by Chrisopher Moore] -- or similar stories from different cultures, as Joseph Campbell did in his wonderful book.["The Power of Myth" by Joseph Campbell] For example, both the Christ and the Buddha went through three temptations. For the Christ, the temptations are economic, political and spiritual. For the Buddha, they are all psychological: lust, fear and social duty -- interesting.
isbarbardhiga waxey culimada siisaa faham dheeraad ah oo dhamaystiran oo ku saabsan mawduuc. marka waan fakirey,fiican,hadii isbarbardhiga akhriska u shaqeeya cilmi-baarista, maxey ugu shaqeeyn la'adahay nolol maalmeedka caadiga ah? markaan waxaan bilaabey in aan buugaagta u akhriyo labo_labo. waxey ku saansan karaan dad---- ["Benjamin Franklin" oo qoreyWalter Isaacson]["John Adams" oo qorey David McCullough] -- (magac buugaag) oo ku lug leh dhacdooyin usku mid ah, ama asxaab aragti wadaaga, ["Personal History" oo qorey Katharine Graham]["The Snowball: Warren Buffett and the Business of Life," oo qorey Alice Schroeder] waxaan kaloo isbarbar dhig ku sameeyey isla sheekooyinka oo kala duwan (qosol) [Holy Bible: King James Version]["Lamb" oo qorey Chrisopher Moore] -- ama sheekooyin isla mid ah oo kasoo kala jeeda dhaqamo kala duwan, sida Joseph Campbell ku yeley bugiisa cajiibka ah["The Power of Myth" oo qorey Joseph Campbell] Tusaale ahaan, Masiix iyo Buddha labadooda waxey mareen sadax halbeeg. masxiixa, halbeegyada wa dhaqaalaha,siyaasada iyo ruuxiga. buddha, kulligood wa wada cilmi nafsi: damac, cabsi iyo waajibaadka bulshada - xiiso leh.
So if you know a foreign language, it's also fun to read your favorite books in two languages. ["The Way of Chuang Tzu" Thomas Merton]["Tao: The Watercourse Way" Alan Watts] Instead of lost in translation, I found there is much to gain. For example, it's through translation that I realized "happiness" in Chinese literally means "fast joy." Huh! "Bride" in Chinese literally means "new mother." Uh-oh. (Laughter)
marka hadii aad taqaano luuqad ajnabi ah, waxa kaloo xiiso leh in aad buugaagta aad jeceshahay labo luuqadood. ["The Way of Chuang Tzu" Thomas Merton]["Tao: The Watercourse Way" Alan Watts] (buugaag) intaan tarjumaad ku lumi lahaa,waxaan ogaadey in ay jiraan wax badan oo faa'ido ah tusaale ahaan, waxaan tarjumaada ka ogaadey in-- "farxada" chineese'ku u yaqaaniin "farxad dhaqsi ah,"huh! "aroosad" ee Chinese macno ahaan waxaa loola jeedaa "hooyada cusub."uh-oh. (qosol)
Books have given me a magic portal to connect with people of the past and the present. I know I shall never feel lonely or powerless again. Having a dream shattered really is nothing compared to what many others have suffered. I have come to believe that coming true is not the only purpose of a dream. Its most important purpose is to get us in touch with where dreams come from, where passion comes from, where happiness comes from. Even a shattered dream can do that for you.
buugaagtu waxey i siiyeen wado sixran si aan ugula xariiro dadka ee la soo dhaafey ama kuwa la joogaba. Waan ogahay in aan marnaba mar dareemi doonaan cidlo ama awood darro. in aad qabto riyo burburtey dhab ahaantii wa wax aan jirin marka la barbar dhigo waxa dadka kele ka cowdaan. waan in aan rumeystaa in xaqiijinta in aysan aheen u jeedada keliya ee riyada ujeeadada ugu weyn waa in aan anagu isku xariirinaa meesha riyada ay ka tiaado, halka dareenka xooga leh uu ka yimaado,halka farxadu ay ka timaado. xitaa riyo daal leh waad sameyn kartaa marka loo fiiriyo adiga.
So because of books, I'm here today, happy, living again with a purpose and a clarity, most of the time. So may books be always with you.
marka buugaagtaas daraadood, oo aan maanta halkaan u joogo, faraxsan,mar labaadna la nool hadaf iyo cadeymo. wakhtiga intiisa badan. marka buugaagta had iyo jeer ha idin la jiraan.
Thank you.
waad mahadsantihiin.
(Applause)
(sacbis)
Thank you. (Applause)
waad mahadsantihiin.(sacbis)
Thank you. (Applause)
waad mahadsantihiin.(sacbis)