I should tell you that when I was asked to be here, I thought to myself that well, it's TED. And these TEDsters are -- you know, as innocent as that name sounds -- these are the philanthropists and artists and scientists who sort of shape our world. And what could I possibly have to say that would be distinguished enough to justify my participation in something like that? And so I thought perhaps a really civilized-sounding British accent might help things a bit.
Duhet t'ju them se kur mu kerkua te vij ketu Fillova te mendoj, eshte TED dhe keta TED-istat, sic e dini, jane te pafajshem ashtu sic tingellon edhe emri i tyre kete jane filantropistet dhe artistet dhe shkenctaret te cilet rregullojne boten. Edhe cka mund te them une qe do te ishte speciale per te justifikuar pjesemarrjen time ne dicka si kjo? Edhe fillova te mendoj, thash, ndoshta nje aksent civilizues britanik mund te me ndihmoje pak
And then I thought no, no. I should just get up there and be myself and just talk the way I really talk because, after all, this is the great unveiling. And so I thought I'd come up here and unveil my real voice to you. Although many of you already know that I do speak the Queen's English because I am from Queens, New York. (Laughter) But the theme of this session, of course, is invention. And while I don't have any patents that I'm aware of, you will be meeting a few of my inventions today. I suppose it's fair to say that I am interested in the invention of self or selves. We're all born into certain circumstances with particular physical traits, unique developmental experiences, geographical and historical contexts. But then what? To what extent do we self-construct, do we self-invent? How do we self-identify and how mutable is that identity? Like, what if one could be anyone at any time? Well my characters, like the ones in my shows, allow me to play with the spaces between those questions. And so I've brought a couple of them with me. And well, they're very excited. What I should tell you -- what I should tell you is that they've each prepared their own little TED talks. So feel free to think of this as Sarah University. (Laughter)
Por pastaj mendova, jo, jo. Une vetem duhet te dal aty dhe te jem vetja edhe vetem te flas ne menyren se si flas me te vertete sepse, fundi i fundit, ky eshte nje zbulim i mire. Dhe keshtu Une mendova te vij ketu dhe te zbuloj zerin tim te vertete. Edhepse shume prej jush tanime e dini qe une flas anglishten e Queen sepse une jam nga Queens, New York. ( Te qeshura) Por tema e ketij sesioni, sigurisht , qe eshte shpikja. Dhe perderisa une nuk kam asnje privilegj qe jam i vetdijshem, ju do te njiheni me disa prej shpikjeve te mija sot. Dhe supozoj qe eshte e drejte te them qe une jam e interesuar ne zbulimin e vetes. Ne te gjithe kemi lindur ne kushte te caktuara me tipare te veçanta fizike, eksperienca te zhvilluara unike, kontekste gjeografike dhe historike. Po cka pastaj? Deri ne cfare niveli ne vet-krijojme, vet- zbulojme? Si vet-identifikohemi dhe sa i ndryshueshem eshte ai identitet? Po nese dikush mund te jete cdokush ne cdo kohe? Personazhet e mija, si ne shfaqjet e mia, me lejojne te luaj me zbraztirat ne mes ketyre pyetjeve. Dhe i kam sjelle disa prej tyre me mua. Ato jane shume te ngazellyera. Cka duhet t'ju them juve-- cka duhet t'ju them juve eshte se secila prej tyre ka pergatitur fjalimin per TED. Pra mendoni per kete si Universiteti i Sarah ( Te qeshura)
Okay. Okay. Oh, well. Oh, wonderful. Good evening everybody. Thank you so very much for having me here today. Ah, thank you very much. My name is Lorraine Levine. Oh my! There's so many of you. Hi sweetheart. Okay. (Laughter) Anyway, I am here because of a young girl, Sarah Jones. She's a very nice, young black girl. Well you know, she calls herself black -- she's really more like a caramel color if you look at her. But anyway. (Laughter) She has me here because she puts me in her show, what she calls her one-woman show. And you know what that means, of course. That means she takes the credit and then makes us come out here and do all the work. But I don't mind.
Ne rregull. Ne rregul. Oh, mire Oh, mrekulli Mirembrema te gjitheve. Faleminderit shume qe me keni ftuar sot. Ah, faleminderit shume. Une quhem Loraine Levine. Oh! Jeni shume. Pershendetje zemer. Ne rregull. (Te qeshura) Une jam ketu per shkak te nje vajze te re, Sarah Jones. Ajo eshte nje vajze e mire, e re , zezake. Ajo e quan veten te zeze, ajo me shume eshte ngjyre karrameli nese e shikoni ate. Por sido qe te jete. (Te qeshura) ajo me ftoi ketu sepse me ka futur shfaqjen e saj, cka ajo e quan spektakel te nje gruaje. Dhe ju e dini se cka do te thote kjo, sigurisht Kjo do te thote ajo merr levdatat dhe pastaj na detyron ne te vime ketu dhe te bejme te gjithe punen. Por une nuk e kam problem.
Frankly, I'm kvelling just to be here with all the luminaries you have attending something like this, you know. Really, it's amazing. Not only, of course, the scientists and all the wonderful giants of the industries but the celebrities. There are so many celebrities running around here. I saw -- Glenn Close I saw earlier. I love her. And she was getting a yogurt in the Google cafe. Isn't that adorable? (Laughter) So many others you see, they're just wonderful. It's lovely to know they're concerned, you know. And -- oh, I saw Goldie Hawn. Oh, Goldie Hawn. I love her, too; she's wonderful. Yeah. You know, she's only half Jewish. Did you know that about her? Yeah. But even so, a wonderful talent. (Laughter) And I -- you know, when I saw her, such a wonderful feeling. Yeah, she's lovely. But anyway, I should have started by saying just how lucky I feel. It's such an eye-opening experience to be here. You're all so responsible for this world that we live in today. You know, I couldn't have dreamed of such a thing as a young girl. And you've all made these advancements happen in such a short time -- you're all so young. You know, your parents must be very proud.
Sinqerisht, une gezohem te jem ketu. me te gjithe te nderuarit si ju, qe merrni pjese ketu, Me te vertet, eshte e mrekullushme. Jo vetem, shkencetaret dhe te gjithe gjigantet e mrekullushem te industrise por edhe njerezit e famshem. Ka shume njerez te famshem qe sillen ketej rrotull. E pashe-- Glenn Close e pashe pak me pare. Ajo me pelqen. Ajo po blinte nje kos ne kafe Google. A nuk eshte e adhurushme. ( Te qeshura) Shume te tjere qe shihni, ata jane thjesht te mrekullushem. Eshte kendshem te dish se ata shqetsohen. Dhe -- oh, une pashe Goldie Hawn. Oh, Goldie Hawn. Po ashtu me pelqen; eshte e mrekullushme. E dini, ajo eshte gjysme cifute. A e keni ditur kete per te? Po. Por megjithate, nje talent i mrekullushem. Dhe kur e pash, ishte nje ndjenje e mrekullushme. Po, ajo eshte e kendshme. Por sidoqofte. Duhet te kisha filluar duke thene se sa me fat po ndihem. Eshte nje eksperience e jashtezakonshme qe jam ketu. Te gjithe ju jeni te pergjegjshem per kete bote qe ne e jetojme sot. Ju e dini, une si nje vajze e re nuk do te mund te enderroja per nje gje te tille. Dhe te gjithe ju keni bere keto perparime te ndodhin ne nje kohe aq te shkurter. Ju te gjithe jeni te rinj. E dini, prinderit tuaj duhet te jene shume krenare.
But I -- I also appreciate the diversity that you have here. I noticed it's very multicultural. You know, when you're standing up here, you can see all the different people. It's like a rainbow. It's okay to say rainbow. Yeah. I just -- I can't keep up with whether you can say, you know, the different things. What are you allowed to say or not say? I just -- I don't want to offend anybody. You know. But anyway, you know, I just think that to be here with all of you accomplished young people -- literally, some of you, the architects building our brighter future. You know, it's heartening to me. Even though, quite frankly, some of your presentations are horrifying, absolutely horrifying. It's true. It's true. You know, between the environmental degradation and the crashing of the world markets you're talking about. And of course, we know it's all because of the -- all the ... Well, I don't know how else to say it to you, so I'll just say it my way: the ganeyvish schticklich coming from the governments and the, you know, the bankers and the Wall Street. You know it. Anyway. (Laughter)
Por une-- Une gjithashtu vleresoj diversitetin qe keni ketu. E verejta, eshte shume multikultural. Shikoni, kur qendroni ketu lart, ju mund te shihni gjithe njerezit e ndryshem. Eshte si nje ylber. A mund te them ylber. Po Nuk po mundem t'i mbaj mend te gjitha cka mund te thuash e cka jo Cka ju lejohet te thuhet e cka te mos thuhet? Une thjesht-- nuk dua te ofendoj askend. Por sidoqofte, e dini, Une mendoj se te jem ketu me te gjithe ju njerez te rinj te permbushur, ne kuptim e plote te fjales, disa prej jush, arkitektet e ardhmja jone e ndritshme. Ju e dini, eshte inkurajuese per mua. Edhe pse, sinqerisht, disa prej prezantimeve tuaja jane tmerruese. absolutisht tmerruese. Eshte e vertete. Eshte e vertete. E dini, midis degradimit te ambjentit dhe deshtimit te tregtise boterore qe ju po flisni. Dhe sigurisht, ne e dime se e gjitha eshte per shkak te -- e gjitha.... Mire, Une nuk e di se si t'ua them juve ndryshe, pra une do ta them ne menyren time. ganeyvish tetikeyt qe vine nga qeveria dhe nga, e dini, nga bankieret dhe Wall Street. Ju e dini. Sidoqofte. (Te qeshura)
The point is, I'm happy somebody has practical ideas to get us out of this mess. So I salute each of you and your stellar achievements. Thank you for all that you do. And congratulations on being such big makhers that you've become TED meisters. So, happy continued success. Congratulations. Mazel tov. (Applause)
Çështja është, jam e lumtur qe dikush ka ide praktike per te na nxjerre nga kjo bela. Pra une pershendes secilin prej jush dhe arritjet tuaja yjore. Faleminderit per te gjitha qe keni bere. dhe urime qe jeni "krijues ndryshimesh" dhe jeni bere TED-ista. Pra, paci sukses te lumtur të vazhdueshem. Pergezime. (Duartrokitje)
Hi. Hi. Thank you everybody. Sorry, this is such a wonderful opportunity and everything, to be here right now. My name is Noraida. And I'm just -- I'm so thrilled to be part of like your TED conference that you're doing and everything like that. I am Dominican-American. Actually, you could say I grew up in the capital of Dominican Republic, otherwise known as Washington Heights in New York City. But I don't know if there's any other Dominican people here, but I know that Juan Enriquez, he was here yesterday. And I think he's Mexican, so that's -- honestly, that's close enough for me right now. So -- (Laughter)
Tungjatjeta. Faleminderit te gjitheve. Me falni, kjo eshte nje mundesi e mrekullushme, te jem tani ketu. Une quhem Noriada. Dhe une jam thjesht--- Jam shume e kenaqur qe jam pjese e konferences TED qe po beni dhe cdo gje tjeter si kjo. Une jam Amerikane Domenikane. Aktualisht, mund te thoni une u rrita ne kryeqytetin e Republikes Domenikane, perndryshe e njohur si Washington Heights ne qytetin e New York. Por une nuk e di nese ka te tjere njerez Domeikan ketu, por e di se Juan Enriquez, ai ishe ketu dje. Dhe mendoj qe ai eshte Meksikan, pra kjo eshte-- sinqerisht, eshte mjaft afer me mua, tani. Pra-- ( Te qeshura)
I just -- I'm sorry. I'm just trying not to be nervous because this is a very wonderful experience for me and everything. And I just -- you know I'm not used to doing the public speaking. And whenever I get nervous I start to talk really fast. Nobody can understand nothing I'm saying, which is very frustrating for me, as you can imagine. I usually have to just like try to calm down and take a deep breath. But then on top of that, you know, Sarah Jones told me we only have 18 minutes. So then I'm like, should I be nervous, you know, because maybe it's better. And I'm just trying not to panic and freak out. So I like, take a deep breath.
Me vjen keq. Une thjesht po mundohem te mos behem nervoze sepse kjo eshte nje eksperience e mrekullushme per mua dhe gjithcka. Dhe une thjesht-- shikoni une nuk jam mesuar te flas ne publik. Dhe kurdo qe behem nervoze une filloj te flas shume shpejt. Askush nuk kupton ate qe une jam duke thene, gje qe eshte shume irrituese per mua, sic mund ta imagjinoni. Une zakonisht duhet thjesht te qetesohem dhe te marr fryme thelle. Por pervec kesaj, Sarah Jones me tha ne kemi vete 18 minuta. Keshtuqe une them, a duhet te behem nervoz, sepse ndoshta eshte me mie. Dhe une po mundohem te mos bej panik dhe te mos trullosem.Keshtu marr fryme thelle.
Okay. Sorry. So anyway, what I was trying to say is that I really love TED. Like, I love everything about this. It's amazing. Like, it's -- I can't get over this right now. And, like, people would not believe, seriously, where I'm from, that this even exists. You know, like even, I mean I love like the name, the -- TED. I mean I know it's a real person and everything, but I'm just saying that like, you know, I think it's very cool how it's also an acronym, you know, which is like, you know, is like very high concept and everything like that. I like that.
Ne rregull. Me fani. Pra sidoqofte, cka po tentoja t'ju thoja eshte se une me te vertete e dua TED. Sikurse, me pelqen cdo gje rreth kesaj, Eshte mahnitese. Sic , eshte-- Une nuk mund ta tejkaloj tani per tani. Njerezit nuk do ta besonin, seriozisht, andej nga jam une, kjo gje as qe ekziston. E dini, madje sikur, mendoj me pelqen emri , TED. Mendoj e di qe eshte person i vertet dhe gjithcka, por une thjesht jam duke thene qe sikur, e dini, une mendoj qe eshte shume i lezecem se si gjithashtu eshte nje akronim, i cili eshte sikur, eshte si koncept shume i larte dhe gjithcka tjeter. Me pelqen kjo.
And actually, I can relate to the whole like acronym thing and everything. Because, actually, I'm a sophomore at college right now. At my school -- actually I was part of co-founding an organization, which is like a leadership thing, you know, like you guys, you would really like it and everything. And the organization is called DA BOMB, A\and DA BOMB -- not like what you guys can build and everything -- it's like, DA BOMB, it means like Dominican -- it's an acronym -- Dominican-American Benevolent Organization for Mothers and Babies. So, I know, see, like the name is like a little bit long, but with the war on terror and everything, the Dean of Student Activities has asked us to stop saying DA BOMB and use the whole thing so nobody would get the wrong idea, whatever. So, basically like DA BOMB -- what Dominican-American Benevolent Organization for Mothers and Babies does is, basically, we try to advocate for students who show a lot of academic promise and who also happen to be mothers like me. I am a working mother, and I also go to school full-time. And, you know, it's like -- it's so important to have like role models out there. I mean, I know sometimes our lifestyles are very different, whatever.
Dhe ne fakt, une mund te bej lidhjen me punen e akronimise dhe cdo gje. Sepse, aktualisht, jam studente e vitit te dyte ne kolegj tani. Ne shkollen time-- aktualisht mora pjese ne krijimin e nje organizate, qe eshte si nje grup drejtues, ju me te vertete do te ju pelqente. Dhe organizata quhet DA BOMB, Dhe DA BOMB-- jo sikur cka ju djema mund te ndertoni-- Eshte si, DA BOMB, do te thote Domenikan-- eshte nje akronim-- Organizata Dashamirese Domenicane Amerikane per Nenat dhe Femjet. Pra, e di, qe emri eshte paksa i gjate, por me tmerrin e luftes dhe gjithcka, Dekani i Aktivitetve te Studenteve na ka kerkuar neve te mos themi DA BOMB dhe te perdorim emrin ne teresi keshtuqe askush nuk do te kete ide te gabuar, sidoqofte. Keshtu, ne parim si DA BOMB-- cfare ben Organizata Dashamirese Domenicane Amerikane per Nenat dhe Femjet. ne parim, ne tentojme te perkrahim studentet te cilet shfaqin premtime te shumta akademike dhe te cilat gjithashtu gjasojne te jene nena si une. Une jam nje nene qe punoj, dhe po ashtu shkoj ne shkolle me orar te plote. Dhe, e dini, eshte shume e rendesishme te kemi modele te hapura. Po mendoj, e di qe nganjehere stilet e jetes tone jane shume te ndryshme, sidoqofte.
But like even at my job -- like, I just got promoted. Right now it's very exciting actually for me because I'm the Junior Assistant to the Associate Director under the Senior Vice President for Business Development -- that's my new title. So, but I think whether you own your own company or you're just starting out like me, like something like this is so vital for people to just continue expanding their minds and learning. And if everybody, like all people really had access to that, it would be a very different world out there, as I know you know. So, I think all people, we need that, but especially, I look at people like me, you know like, I mean, Latinos -- we're about to be the majority, in like two weeks. So, we deserve just as much to be part of the exchange of ideas as everybody else. So, I'm very happy that you're, you know, doing this kind of thing, making the talks available online. That's very good. I love that. And I just -- I love you guys. I love TED. And if you don't mind, privately now, in the future, I'm going to think of TED as an acronym for Technology, Entertainment and Dominicans. Thank you very much. (Laughter) (Applause)
Por madje si te puna ime--, Une sapo u promovova. Per momentin eshte shume ngazellyese per mua sepse une jam Asistente e Re e Drejtorit nen Zevendesit se Presidentit per Zhvillim te Biznesit. Ky eshte titulli im i ri. Keshtu, por une mendoj nese ke kompanine tende ose ke filluar keshtu si une, sikur dicka si kjo eshte shume jetesore per njerezit qe te vazhdojne te zgjerojne mendjet e tyre dhe mesojne. Dhe nese te gjithe, sikur te gjithe njerezit te kishin qasje ne te, bota do te ishte ndryshe, sic mendoj qe e dini. Pra, une mendoj te gjithe njerezit, na duhet por vecanerisht, njerezit si une, e dini si, Po mendoj, Latinet, ne jemi duke u bere mazhorance, ne perafersiht dy jave. Keshtu, ne meritojme po aq te jemi pjese e shkembimit te ideve si gjithe te tjeret. Keshtuqe, une jam shume e gezuar per keto gjera, mundesimi i fjalimeve online. Kjo eshte shume mire. Me pelqen. Dhe une thjesht-- Ju dua te gjitheve. E dua TED. Dhe nese s'keni kundershtim, personalisht, ne te ardhmen, do te mendoj rreth TED si nje akronimi per Teknologji, Argetim dhe Domenikanet. Faleminderit shume. (Te qeshura) ( Duartrokitje)
So, that was Noraida, and just like Lorraine and everybody else you're meeting today, these are folks who are based on real people from my real life: friends, neighbors, family members. I come from a multicultural family. In fact, the older lady you just met: very, very loosely based on a great aunt on my mother's side. It's a long story, believe me. But on top of my family background, my parents also sent me to the United Nations school, where I encountered a plethora of new characters, including Alexandre, my French teacher, okay.
Pra, ajo ishte Noraida, dhe sikurse Loraine dhe gjithe te tjerat qe po takoni sot, keta jane njerez te cilet bazohen ne njerez te vertete nga jeta ime. Shoqe, komshije, anetare te familjes. Une vij nga nje familje multikulturore. Ne fakt, gruaja e vjeter qe posa e takuat, eshte bazuar shume, shume mbi nje teze nga ana e nenes. Eshte histori e gjate, me besoni. Por pervecse familjes time, prinderit e mi po ashtu me derguan ne shkollen e Kombeve te Bashkuara, ku u takova me nje bollek personazhesh te reja duke perfshire Alexandre, mesuesen time te frengjishtes.
Well, you know, it was beginner French, that I am taking with her, you know. And it was Madame Bousson, you know, she was very [French]. It was like, you know, she was there in the class, you know, she was kind of typically French. You know, she was very chic, but she was very filled with ennui, you know. And she would be there, you know, kind of talking with the class, you know, talking about the, you know, the existential futility of life, you know. And we were only 11 years old, so it was not appropriate. (Laughter)
E pra, e dini, isha fillestare ne frengjisht. Dhe ishte Madame Bousson, ajo ishte shume (Franceze). Ishte sikur, ishte aty ne klase, ajo ishte disi si franceze tipike Ajo ishte shume shik, por ishte shume e mbushur me merzi. Dhe ajo ishte aty, e dini, disi duke folur me klasen, duke folur per, per kotesine e jetes ekszistenciale. Dhe ne ishim vetem 11 vjec, pra nuk ishte e pershtatshme.
But [German]. Yes, I took German for three years, [German], and it was quite the experience because I was the only black girl in the class, even in the UN school. Although, you know, it was wonderful. The teacher, Herr Schtopf, he never discriminated. Never. He always, always treated each of us, you know, equally unbearably during the class.
Por ( German). Po, une mesova gjermanisht per 3 vjet, ( Gjermanisht) dhe ishte nje eksperience sepse une isha e vetmja vajze e zeze ne klase, bile edhe ne shkollen e KB. Ndonese, ishte e mrekullueshme. Mesuesi, Z. Schtopf, ai kurre s'ka diskriminuar. Kurre. Ai gjithmone, gjithmone na ka trajtuar secilin prej nesh, bararizisht ne menyre te padurueshme gjate mesimit.
So, there were the teachers and then there were my friends, classmates from everywhere, many of whom are still dear friends to this day. And they've inspired many characters as well. For example, a friend of mine.
Keshtuqe,ishin mesuesit dhe pastaj ishin shoqeria ime, shoqeria e klases nga gjithe bota. Shume prej tyre akoma jane shoke te dashur edhe keto dite. Ata kane inspiruar shume karaktere po ashtu. Per shembull, nje shoqja ime.
Well, I just wanted to quickly say good evening. My name is Praveen Manvi and thank you very much for this opportunity. Of course, TED, the reputation precedes itself all over the world. But, you know, I am originally from India, and I wanted to start by telling you that once Sarah Jones told me that we will be having the opportunity to come here to TED in California, originally, I was very pleased and, frankly, relieved because, you know, I am a human rights advocate. And usually my work, it takes me to Washington D.C. And there, I must attend these meetings, mingling with some tiresome politicians, trying to make me feel comfortable by telling how often they are eating the curry in Georgetown. (Laughter) So, you can just imagine -- right. So, but I'm thrilled to be joining all of you here. I wish we had more time together, but that's for another time. Okay? Great. (Applause)
Une deshiroj t'ju them mirembrema shpejt e shpejt. Une quhem Praveen Manvi dhe ju faleminderoj shume per kete mundesi. Sigurisht, TED, reputacionin qe percjell ne vetevete ne mbare boten. Por, jam me origjine nga India, dhe deshiroj te filloj duke ju treguar se njehere Sarah Jones me tregoi se ne do te kemi mundesine te vime ketu ne TED ne Kaliforni, fillimisht, une isha shume e kenaqur dhe, sinqerisht, e cliruar sepse, une jam nje avokat per te drejtat e njeriut. Dhe zakonisht puna ime, me sjell ne Washington D.C. Dhe atje , une duhet te marr pjese ne mbledhje, e te shoqerohem me politikane te merzitshem, qe tentojne te me bejne te ndihem mire duke me treguar sa shpesh ata hane ushqim indian ne Georgetownn. Pra, thjesht mund ta imagjinoni-- apo jo. Prandaj, jam e ngazllyer qe po ju takoj ju te gjithe ketu. Do te doja te kishim me shume kohe se bashku, por kjo eshte per nje here tjeter. Ne rregull? Mrekulli. (Duartrokitje)
And, sadly, I don't think we'll have time for you to meet everybody I brought, but -- I'm trying to behave myself, it's my first time here. But I do want to introduce you to a couple of folks you may recognize, if you saw "Bridge and Tunnel."
Dhe, sa keq, nuk mendoj se do te kemi kohe per ju te takoni te gjithe ata qe i kam marr me vete,por-- Po mundohem te sillem mire. Eshte hera e pare ketu. Por dua t'ju prezantoj disa njerez qe ju mund t'i njihni, nese keni pare " Bridge and Tunnel."(ure dhe tunel)
Uh, well, thank you. Good evening. My name is Pauline Ning, and first I want to tell you that I'm -- of course I am a member of the Chinese community in New York. But when Sarah Jones asked me to please come to TED, I said, well, you know, first, I don't know that, you know -- before two years ago, you would not find me in front of an audience of people, much less like this because I did not like to give speeches because I feel that, as an immigrant, I do not have good English skills for speaking. But then, I decided, just like Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, I try anyway. (Laughter) My daughter -- my daughter wrote that, she told me, "Always start your speech with humor."
Uh, mire, faleminderit. Mirembrema. Une quhem Pauline Ning, dhe se pari deshiroj t'ju tregoj se une jam-- sigurisht une jam anetare e komunitetit Kinez ne New York. Por kur Sarah Jones me kerkoi te vija ne TED, Une thashe, mire, se pari, nuk e di, ju e dini- para dy vjeteve, nuk mund te me shikonit para nje audience njerezish, shume me pak se kjo sepse nuk me pelqente te mbaja fjalime sepse ndjej se, si nje imigrant, une nuk kam aftesi te mire te te folurit Anglisht. Por pastaj, vendosa, pikerisht si Guvernatori Arnold Schwartzengger, Po provoj dosido. (Te qeshura) Vajza ime-- vajza ime e shkroi ate, ajo me tha , " Gjithmone fillo fjalimin me humor."
But my background -- I want to tell you story only briefly. My husband and I, we brought our son and daughter here in 1980s to have the freedom we cannot have in China at that time. And we tried to teach our kids to be proud of their tradition, but it's very hard. You know, as immigrant, I would speak Chinese to them, and they would always answer me back in English. They love rock music, pop culture, American culture. But when they got older, when the time comes for them to start think about getting married, that's when we expect them to realize, a little bit more, their own culture. But that's where we had some problems. My son, he says he is not ready to get married. And he has a sweetheart, but she is American woman, not Chinese. It's not that it's bad, but I told him, "What's wrong with a Chinese woman?" But I think he will change his mind soon.
Por mjedisi imi-- Dua t'ju tregoj nje histori shume shkurt. Une dhe burri im, i sollem djalin dhe vajzen tone ketu ne 1980 per te pasur lirine qe nuk mund ta kishim ne Kine ne ate kohe U munduam t'i mesojme femijet tane te jene krenare me traditen e tyre, por eshte shume veshtire. E dini, si emigrante, une do t'ju flisja Kinezce atyre, dhe ata gjithmone do te me pergjigjeshin ne Anglisht. Ata duan muziken rok, kulturen pop, kulturen amerikane. Por kur ata u rriten, kur erdhi koha per ta te mendonin rreth marteses, atehere ne prisnim prej tyre te kuptojne, pak me shume, rreth kultures se tyre. Por aty ne patem probleme. Djali im, thote se nuk eshte i gatshem te martohet. Ai ka nje te dashur, por ajo eshte amerikane, jo kineze. Nuk eshte keq, por i thash atij, '" Cfare s'eshte ne rregull me femrat Kineze?" Por une mendoj qe ai do te ndrroje mendje se shpejti.
So, then I decide instead, I will concentrate on my daughter. The daughter's marriage is very special to the mom. But first, she said she's not interested. She only wants to spend time with her friends. And then at college, it's like she never came home. And she doesn't want me to come and visit. So I said, "What's wrong in this picture?" So, I accused my daughter to have like a secret boyfriend. But she told me, "Mom, you don't have to worry about boys because I don't like them." (Laughter) And I said, "Yes, men can be difficult, but all women have to get used to that." She said, "No Mom. I mean, I don't like boys. I like girls. I am lesbian." So, I always teach my kids to respect American ideas, but I told my daughter that this is one exception -- (Laughter) -- that she is not gay, she is just confused by this American problem. But she told me, "Mom, it's not American." She said she is in love -- in love with a nice Chinese girl. (Laughter) So, these are the words I am waiting to hear, but from my son, not my daughter. (Laughter) But at first I did not know what to do. But then, over time, I have come to understand that this is who she is.
Keshtu, pastaj vendosa , do te koncentrohem tek vajza ime. Martesa e vajzes eshte shume speciale per nenen. Por ne fillim, ajo tha qe nuk kishte e interesuar. Ajo vetem deshiron te kaloje kohe me shoqerine e saj. Rrinte ne kolegj, e nuk vinte kurre ne shtepi. Dhe nuk deshironte qe une ta vizitoja. Keshtu qe thash, " Cka nuk eshte ne rregull?" Pra, akuzova vajzen time qe ka nje te dashur sekret. Por ajo me tha, " Nene, nuk duhet te merakosesh rreth meshkujve sepse nuk me pelqejn ata." (Te qeshura) Dhe i thashe, " Po, meshkujt mund te jene te veshtire, por ne gjitha femrat duhet te mesohemi me kete." Ajo tha, '" Jo Nene, nuk me pelqejne djemte. Me pelqejne femrat. Une jam lesbike." Pra, une gjithmone i mesoj femijet e mi te respektojne idete amerikane, por i thash vajzes time se kjo eshte nje perjashtim-- (Te qeshura) qe ajo nuk eshte homoseksuale, ajo vecse eshte konfuze nga ky problem amerikan. Por ajo me tha., " Nene, nuk eshte amerikane.' Ajo tha qe ka rene ne dashuri , ne dashuri me nje vajze kineze. (Te qeshura) Keshtu, keto jane fjalet qe une po prisja te degjoja, por nga djali, jo nga vajza ime. (Te qeshura) Ne fillim nuk dija c'te beja. Por pastaj, me kohe, une arrita ta kuptoj se kjo eshte cka ajo eshte.
So, even though sometimes it's still hard, I will share with you that it helps me to realize society is more tolerant, usually because of places like this, because of ideas like this, and people like you, with an open mind. So I think maybe TED, you impact people's lives in the ways maybe even you don't realize. So, for my daughter's sake, I thank you for your ideas worth spreading. Thank you. Xie xie. (Applause)
Pra, edhe pse nganjehere eshte akoma e veshtire, Do ta ndaj me ju se me ndihmon te kuptoj shoqeria eshte me tolerante, zakonisht per shkak te vendeve te tilla, pershkak te ideve te tilla dhe njerezve sikur ju, me mendje te shendoshe. Pra mendoj ndoshta TED, ju ndikoni ne jeten e jerezve ne menyra qe ndoshta as qe do t'a kuptonit. Keshtu qe, per hir te vajzes time, Ju falenderoj per përhapjen e ideve me vlere. Faleminderit. Shin shen. (Duartrokitje)
Good evening. My name is Habbi Belahal. And I would like to first of all thank Sarah Jones for putting all of the pressure on the only Arab who she brought with her to be last today. I am originally from Jordan. And I teach comparative literature at Queens College. It is not Harvard. But I feel a bit like a fish out of water. But I am very proud of my students. And I see that a few of them did make it here to the conference. So you will get the extra credit I promised you. But, while I know that I may not look like the typical TED-izen, as you would say, I do like to make the point that we in global society, we are never as different as the appearances may suggest.
Mirembrema. Une quhem Habbi Belahal. Dhe se pari dua te falenderoj Sarah Jones qe vendosi te gjithe presionin ne te vetmin Arab te cilin e morri me vete te jete e fundit sot. Une jam me origjine nga Jordani. Dhe jap letersi krahasimtare ne kolegjin Queens. Nuk eshte Harvard. Por po ndihem paska si nje peshk jashte ujit. Por jam shume krenare per studentet e mi. Dhe e shoh qe disa prej tyre kane ardhur ne konference. Pra jo do te merrni kredite shtese qe ju kam premtuar. Por, perderisa e di qe mund te mos dukem si nje ardhacak tipik, sic do te thoshit ju, Une do doja te theksoja se ne ne shoqerine globale ne kurre nuk jemi aq te ndryshem sic mund te sugjeroje dukja e jashtme.
So, if you will indulge me, I will share quickly with you a bit of verse, which I memorized as a young girl at 16 years of age. So, back in the ancient times. [Arabic] And this roughly translates: "Please, let me hold your hand. I want to hold your hand. I want to hold your hand. And when I touch you, I feel happy inside. It's such a feeling that my love, I can't hide, I can't hide, I can't hide." Well, so okay, but please, please, but please. If it is sounding familiar, it is because I was at the same time in my life listening to the Beatles. On the radio [unclear], they were very popular.
Pra, nese do te me lejonit mua, une do te ndaj me ju nje varg te shkurter, te cilin e mesova si vajze 16 vjecare. Pra, te kthehemi ne kohen antike. ( Arabisht) Dhe kjo afersisht perkthehet: " Ju lutem, me lere te mbaj doren tende. Dua te mbaj doren tende Dua te mbaj doren tende. Dhe kur te prek ty, ndjehem e lumtur per mbrenda. Eshte nje ndjejne e tille qe dashuria ime, Nuk mund ta fsheh, nuk mund ta fsheh, nuk mund ta fsheh." Mire, pra ne rregull, por ju lutem, lutem, por ju lutem. Nese ju duket e njohur, eshte sepse une isha ne te njejten kohe te jetes time duke degjuar The Beatles. Ne radio, ata ishin shume te famshem.
So, all of that is to say that I like to believe that for every word intended as to render us deaf to one another, there is always a lyric connecting ears and hearts across the continents in rhyme. And I pray that this is the way that we will self-invent, in time. That's all, shukran. Thank you very much for the opportunity. Okay? Great. (Applause)
Pra, per te gjitha duhet te thuhet se me pelqen te besoj, që për çdo fjalë ka për qëllim të na bëjë të shurdhër për njëri-tjetrin, gjithmone ka nje tekst qe bashkon veshet dhe zemrat matane kontinenteve ne rime. Dhe une lutem se kjo eshte menyra qe ne do vet-zbulojme, ne kohe. Kjo ishte e gjitha. Faleminderit shume per mundesine. Ne rregull? Mrekulli. (Duartrokitje)
Thank you all very much. It was lovely. Thank you for having me. (Applause) Thank you very, very much. I love you. (Applause) Well, you have to let me say this. I just -- thank you. I want to thank Chris and Jacqueline, and just everyone for having me here. It's been a long time coming, and I feel like I'm home. And I know I've performed for some of your companies or some of you have seen me elsewhere, but this is honestly one of the best audiences I've ever experienced. The whole thing is amazing, and so don't you all go reinventing yourselves any time soon. (Applause)
Faleminderit shume te gjitheve. Ishte kendshem. Faleminderit qe me ftuat. ( Duartrokitje) Faleminderit shume. Ju dua. ( Duartrokitje) Mire, me lejoni te them kete. Une thjesht-- ju falemnderoj Une dua te falenderoj Chris and Jaqueline, dhe the gjthe qe me ftuat. Eshte bere nje kohe e gjate , dhe une ndjehem sikur jam ne shtepi, une kam performuar per disa nga kompanite tuaja ose disa prej jush me keni pare diku tjeter, por sinqerisht kjo eshte audienca me e mire qe kam pasur ndonjehere ne eksperiencen time. E gjitha kjo eshte e mrekullueshme, dhe mos shkoni te rizbuloni veten sa me shpejt. ( Duartrokitje)