漂洋过海的爱与孝

I still remember the way grandma said goodbye to me when I packed my bags and got ready to return to London after spending a summer holiday at home in Sichuan.
那年我在四川老家过完暑假，收拾行李准备回伦敦时，奶奶跟我告别的场景依然历历在目。

“Work hard, do well and don’t miss home,” she told me at the front door, trying hard to hold back her own tears.
奶奶站在门口，强忍着眼泪对我说：“好好工作，不必挂念家里。”

Then, she walked back into the house before I even got into dad’s car. I saw grandma’s frail and lonely figure slowly disappearing from sight. A sudden feeling of guilt overwhelmed me. I longed to call out to grandma, to see her one more time, but in that moment, I found myself helplessly silent.
而后，在我坐上爸爸的车前，她便转身回屋。我看着奶奶瘦小孤单身影渐渐消失在视线中。那一瞬间，我的内心突然充满内疚感。我多想叫住她，再看她一眼，但那一刻，我却无可奈何地沉默了。

What I wanted was not just to spend a few more minutes, or even days with grandma. Instead, I longed to make up to her for the times we could have spent together over the 16 years I have lived abroad. And that, I knew, is never possible.
我想要的不仅仅是和奶奶一起多待几分钟，或是多陪她几天。我想要的是弥补我旅居国外的16年光阴，那本该是我陪伴奶奶的时光。但是我知道，这永远也不可能。

Grandma was a guardian and an angel in my happy childhood. She knitted my first jumper, picked me up from kindergarten every day, and put me to bed with my favorite stories. On days when I felt full of energy, grandma was there to play hide and seek with me all day long. But whenever I got ill, she sat next to my bed, holding my hand long into the night.
在我快乐的童年时光里，奶奶是我的守护神，是天使。奶奶为我织了第一件套头衫，每天到幼儿园接我，读我最喜欢的故事哄我入睡。在我充满活力的时，奶奶整日陪我玩捉迷藏。而我生病的时候，她又紧紧握着我的手，陪在床前直到深夜。

She has always encouraged her grandchildren to study hard, chase after their dreams and not miss home. But with that, she was also saying goodbye to her grandchildren. One by one, all three of her grandchildren have left, for good universities, good jobs in big cities, and eventually a settled life in the West.
奶奶总是鼓励她的儿孙们好好读书，追寻自己的梦想，不要挂念家乡。但是这就意味着，她要和儿孙们分离。奶奶的三个儿孙接连离开了家乡，他们考上了名校，在大城市有了体面的工作，最终在西方定居。

She gave us all her energy, love and physical strength, and never sought anything in return.
奶奶在我们身上倾注了她所有的精力、爱和体力，却从不求回报。

Filial piety, otherwise known as xiao, is at the core of Chinese culture. Originating from Confucian philosophy, filial piety means love and respect for one’s elders and obeying their wishes. But there is something else too. To fulfill filial piety, you have to be there for them physically, and look after them in their old age.
孝是中华文化的核心。孝道起源于儒家思想，意在敬爱尊重长辈，听从长辈的话。但孝道的意义不止于此。儿孙要尽孝，须得切切实实地陪伴、照料年迈的长辈。

Working abroad, I have always lived with the guilt of not truly being filial. I was not there to take grandma to the hospital for treatment for her knee injury. I was not there to help her renovate her flat after it was badly flooded last year. And now, I hate to admit the unspeakable truth that every goodbye could be our last.
在国外工作的我一直因没能尽到孝心而愧疚。奶奶膝盖受伤时，我没能送她去医院治疗。去年家里遭遇洪水时，我没能帮奶奶翻新房子。而如今，每次和奶奶的分别都可能是最后一面，我不想承认这可怕的现实。

This year is China’s 40th anniversary of reform and opening-up. The reforms, which changed China from a planned economy to a market-driven one, have inspired many Chinese people to have a dream. The opening-up allowed them to venture abroad and pursue their dreams on a global stage.
今年是改革开放40周年。改革开放让中国从计划经济走上了市场经济，激励很多中国人拥抱梦想。改革开放政策让中国人走出国门，在世界舞台上追求梦想。

That, of course, comes at the cost of being away from our families and ancestral homes.
当然，随之付出的代价就是远离家人故土。

In our modern 21st century, global migration has long become a norm. Many of my Western friends say they feel very little connection to their birth country, after a few significant moves across regions.
在21世纪的现代，全球移民早已成为一种常态。我许多西方的朋友称，经过几次移居后，他们感觉自己与出生国的联系少之又少了。

But China’s case is a little different. Although young generations of Chinese people have embraced their new lives all around the world, the unparalleled strength of our family ties and filial piety deeply bonds us to our cultural roots. Like kites flying high in the sky, we will always be connected to the land and the people who have shaped us into who we are.
但是中国有所不同。尽管中国的年轻一代在世界各地有了新生活，但家庭纽带的强大力量和孝道之心却是植根于中国文化中的。就像高飞的风筝，我们将永远与塑造了我们的那片土地和人民相连在一起。

英文来源：“CHINA DAILY”微信公众号
翻译：储鑫（实习）
编审：董静 丹妮
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About the author & broadcaster

Cecily Liu is a London correspondent for China Daily, covering mainly financial news. She was born in Chengdu, grew up in New Zealand, and graduated from University College London with a BA in English Literature.
Contact the writer at Cecily.liu@mail.chinadailyuk.com