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HomeModern Chinese EssaysBai Yansong - Home: A Changing Concept ~白岩松《家在途中​》 with English Translations
Modern Chinese Essays

Bai Yansong – Home: A Changing Concept ~白岩松《家在途中​》 with English Translations

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家在途中
Home: A Changing Concept
白岩松
Bai Yansong
对于我来说，家的概念随着年龄的变化而不断变化。
To me, the concept of home changes continually along with my age.
在童年的时候，家是一声声呼唤。
In my childhood, home was a string of calls.
那时的我似乎比今日的孩子拥有更多的自由。
It seems that I was entitled to more freedom than today’s children.
放学后不会先在父母前露面，而是与住的相邻的同学聚在一起，
I didn’t have to show up in front of my parents right after school, instead I would go to play with my classmates who lived in the neighborhood.
天马行空，玩的天昏地暗，直到炊烟散去，听见父母“喂，回家了，吃饭了”的呼唤才回家，
We frolicked like mad until dinner was ready and our parents called “Come back! Come home for supper!”
这样的声音伴着我慢慢长大，日复一日，
Days passed by as I grew up in the company of those calls.
至今仍在我的耳旁回响。
Even now the ringing voices are still echoing in my ears.
一转眼，童年过去了，
In a wink, my childhood was gone.
当胡须慢慢从嘴角长出，家又成了一个想逃的地方。
When a thin layer of hair began to grow around the corners of my mouth, home became a place I tried to escape from.
书看多了，世界也变大了，
As I read more and more, my world opened up, presenting a broader picture before me.
一张床小了，父母的叮咛也显得多余了，
The bed I used to sleep in became too small, and words of care from my parents began to sound superfluous.
盼望着什么时候我能拥有自己的天空？
How I wished I could have a space of my own someday!
后来，穿上了绿色的军装，
Later I was enlisted into the army and put on the green uniform.
来到了部队，家又变成了一封封信笺，
During my service days, home was the series of letters I received one after another.
每次收到信后，是最想家的时候。
My most homesick moments were when I read those letters from my family.
走上了工作岗位之后，开始“受伤”，开始在人海中翻腾，开始知道，有些疼痛无法对人说，甚至知心的朋友。
When I got a job, I began to get “hurt”, to rise and fall in a sea of people, and to understand that you can’t share all your pains with other people, even with your best friends.
于是，重新开始想家。
So again, another wave of homesickness came over me.
当受了“重伤”时，幻想着飞到远方的家中，
When I was badly hurt, I imagined myself flying home on wings.
在推开家门的一瞬，让自己泪流满面。
Pushing open the door, I let tears flow down my face.
此刻，世界很大，而我所需要的，只是家中那种熟悉的味道，那窗前一成不变的风景……
At that moment I felt that as large as the world was, what I needed was only the familiar smell of home and the unchanged view outside the window of my old house…
远离母亲，在外省生存，工作之余便有无数个周末无处打发，
Struggling for mere existence in a place far from my mother, I was often at a loss what to do after work and on the weekend.
手中的电话本很厚，从头翻到尾，却没有一个号码是为我此时准备的。
Picking up a thick telephone book, I leafed through it from cover to cover but found not a single number I could call.
这个时候，家又变成了自己要和另外一个人建立的那一个新的小家。
At this time home appeared in my mind as a cozy nest I yearned to build with another person.
从相识、相恋到相拥，
From dating to engagement, we finally fell into each other’s arms and decided to step into marriage.
一个平凡的日子里，我拥有了一个平凡的小家。
Thus on an ordinary day we formed an ordinary family.
此时，家的概念又变了，
Then the concept of home changed again:
它是深夜回家时那盏为你点起的灯，是傍晚你看看书我看看电视偶尔交谈几句的那种宁静，是一桌胃口不好时也吃得下的饭菜，
it became the light left on for you when you return late at night; the peacefulness in which you occasionally exchange words, one reading a book, the other watching TV;
是得意忘形时可以呼朋唤友可以张口粗话的地方。
and a place where you can entertain friends and use foul langue when you feel elated.
不久前，我成了父亲，
Not long ago I became a father.
我和一个新的生命在家中相逢，一种奇妙的感受充斥着我的心，
When I greeted into my family the birth of a new life, an odd sensation welled up in my heart.
小生命开始让我“玩物丧志”，
The little creature obsessed me so much that though I tried to get rid of it I only found myself all the more indulging myself with it.
想挣脱却又那么愿意沉溺其中，一种用幸福来缚住你的力量。
That is a kind of force that binds you with a sense of happiness.
家的概念在不停地变换着，生命在这种变换中匆匆地走着。
The concept of home kept changing as my life hurried along.
众多的概念中，家有时也意味着一种悲伤。
Among the many definitions I gave to it, there is one which relates to grief.
比如当年父亲的辞世，便让我知道，世界对你的伤害加在一起有时也不如家中的变故给你的伤害大。
I remember, for instance, how my father’s early death led me to understand all the injuries inflicted by the world added together are sometimes less devastating than a single misfortune in your family.
然而在家中，你也会感受到一种坚强，
However, you may also feel a kind of strength in your family.
比如父亲过世后，柔弱的母亲开始变得坚强，
After my father’s death, my mother, who used to be quiet and gentle, became strong and indomitable.
她带着我们哥俩，一步一步地从变故中走出，
She led my brother and me out of our misery and we got back on our feet again.
之后，家又重新“站立”了起来，又变得祥和，变得不再阴云密布。
Tranquility came back to my home, where happiness reigned as before.
在这个过程中，家又像是一种生命力顽强的植物：野火烧不尽，春风吹又生。
In retrospect, I can compare home to an unyielding plant: it may be burnt down by wildfire, but it will sprout again when the spring breeze blows.
生命起步虽久，前路却还遥远。
Although I already have much life experience behind me, I know there is still a long way ahead and my concept of home will go on evolving.
家的概念还会变换，然而我已经知道，家是奔波的意义，
But already I have come to see that home is where we can find the true meaning of all the hectic rush of life.
只是这家有时是自己的，有时是芸芸众生的。
What makes the concept different is that sometimes it refers to an individual’s home and sometimes to the home of many, many people.
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