作者：Violeta Nadurille
翻譯：潘澤彬、Luz
校對(duì)：Luz、Zuzana、Joanne
There is, in Chinese, a concept called yuánfèn (緣分). It refers to the belief that there are facts that come together for something to happen, a kind of predestination in relationships or even affinities. Something like “fate” or “destiny”, but none of these words is, in my opinion, true enough to what yuánfèn represents. This is what I base my relationship with China: A series of unexpected events that led me to get close to the language, the culture, and finally the people of this incredible country.
中文有一個(gè)詞叫做“緣分”，指的是相信事情會(huì)接踵而至，也指命中注定會(huì)建立的關(guān)系，甚至發(fā)展成親緣關(guān)系，類似于英文的 “fate”（命運(yùn)）或 “destiny”（天命）。但在我看來，這些詞都不足以表達(dá)“緣分”的真正含義?！熬壏帧本褪俏遗c中國的關(guān)系的基石。一系列意想不到的事情讓我有機(jī)會(huì)與這個(gè)了不起的國家親密接觸，了解它的語言、文化和人民。
I am Violeta, a Swiss-Mexican Spanish teacher in Shenzhen, and this story is a brief recount of the happenings that have led me to where I am today.
我叫 Violeta（中文名：姚紫蘭），瑞士裔墨西哥人，目前在深圳當(dāng)西班牙語老師。這個(gè)故事講的是我如何走到今天的。
Growing up in a bi-cultural family, my curiosity and sensitivity toward languages were never lacking. However, I never imagined studying Chinese. My Chinese journey began rather sporadically and was born, really, out of a sudden impulse on a lazy afternoon. Looking back on all the things that could have linked me to this mystical country, I attribute it to yuánfèn. I could trace my connection to Chinese back to my childhood, when every birthday I would ask my parents to take me to the only Chinese restaurant in town to celebrate. Or when I pasted the image of my Chinese Zodiac (龍) in my high school yearbook. But I cannot attribute any real merit to these fortuitous events, a reflection of the power of yuánfèn. It wasn’t until college, though, that I learned about China. On a random afternoon, I came across the university’s language course schedule posted on a bulletin board. By process of elimination, because Italian and Portuguese seemed too “simple”, I ended up enrolling in a Chinese course.
我在兩種文化的熏陶下長(zhǎng)大，對(duì)語言充滿好奇心和敏感性。然而，我從未想過學(xué)習(xí)中文。我的中國之旅開始得相當(dāng)隨意，是在一個(gè)慵懶的下午，一時(shí)沖動(dòng)萌生的想法。回顧過去的一切，有一個(gè)詞能將我同這個(gè)神秘的國家聯(lián)系起來，那就是“緣分”。童年開始，我就與中國產(chǎn)生了千絲萬縷的聯(lián)系，那時(shí)我每年生日，都會(huì)嚷嚷著讓父母帶我去鎮(zhèn)上唯一的中餐廳慶祝。高中時(shí)我會(huì)把中國生肖“龍”的形象貼在年鑒上。這些看似偶然的事情之所以會(huì)發(fā)生，并不是誰的功勞，而是“緣分”的力量。大學(xué)時(shí)，我才學(xué)到關(guān)于中國的知識(shí)。一天下午，我看到了公告欄上張貼著大學(xué)語言課程表。意大利語和葡萄牙語似乎太“簡(jiǎn)單”了，通過排除法，我最終報(bào)名了中文課程。
Two hours a day, five days a week, our amazing Shanghainese teacher Xu Yiwen sowed the seed of my love for China, its language, and its culture. Towards the end of that year, an amazing opportunity knocked on our doors. An agreement with the Beijing International Studies University (BISU) had been signed and, two students would be selected for a one-year academic exchange. I remember the moment the teacher shared the news with us as if it were yesterday. I can clearly recall how I sprung off my seat and bolted out of the classroom to call my parents and ask them to keep their fingers crossed for me. Out of the blue, a possibility arose that I would never have considered in my wildest dreams: Traveling to China! After a couple of weeks, the excitement wore off and I began to doubt the chances of getting the scholarship. I had no connections (yes, guanxi is a thing in Mexico too). Hence, by the end of the semester, I had given up all hope. I didn’t even submit the paperwork. But yuánfèn did its job. Our lovely teacher applied for me, and I was informed on Valentine’s Day 2009 that I had been awarded the scholarship. I was to travel on March 8th!
每天兩小時(shí)，每周五天，優(yōu)秀的上海老師徐一文在我心底播下了熱愛中國、中文和中國文化的種子。那年年底，一個(gè)意想不到的機(jī)會(huì)敲開了我們的大門。我們學(xué)校與北京第二外國語學(xué)院 (BISU) 簽署了一項(xiàng)協(xié)議，將挑選兩名學(xué)生進(jìn)行為期一年的學(xué)術(shù)交流。老師告訴我們這個(gè)消息的那一刻，仿佛就在昨天。我清楚地記得，當(dāng)時(shí)我激動(dòng)得從座位上蹦起來，沖出教室，給父母打電話，請(qǐng)求他們?yōu)槲移矶\。一種我做夢(mèng)都想不到的機(jī)會(huì)突然擺在我面前：去中國！但幾周后，興奮感消失了，我開始懷疑自己是否能得到這份獎(jiǎng)學(xué)金。我沒有任何“關(guān)系”（沒錯(cuò)，“關(guān)系”在墨西哥也十分重要）可以依賴。學(xué)期末，我已經(jīng)放棄希望，甚至沒有提交申請(qǐng)文件。但由于“緣分”的力量，我們可愛的老師替我申請(qǐng)了獎(jiǎng)學(xué)金。2009 年情人節(jié)，我得知獎(jiǎng)學(xué)金已收入囊中。3 月 8 號(hào)，我踏上了前往中國的旅途！
I remember my first impressions of the Northern Capital vividly. I landed at 10 a.m. on a much polluted Sunday morning, with temperatures well below zero. My first images of the city were of people wandering about, throwing out their trash, smoking a cigarette, having breakfast or just strolling around dressed in what looked like pajamas. What a sight! Cultural shock started sinking in little by little. Letrines, strong odors, huge crowds, curious glances, traditional hutongs alongside the much unexpected modernity… and I could go on to name a myriad of fascinating things that took me a while to understand, but which I ended up falling in love with.
我仍清楚地記得北京留給我的第一印象。那是一個(gè)周日，上午 10 點(diǎn)，飛機(jī)著陸在機(jī)場(chǎng)，那天的氣溫遠(yuǎn)低于零度，污染嚴(yán)重。我對(duì)這座城市的第一印象是人們四處閑逛，倒著垃圾，抽著煙，吃著早餐，穿著睡衣散步。滿眼都是我從未見過的景象！異域文化開始一點(diǎn)點(diǎn)地沖擊著我。公廁、強(qiáng)烈的氣味、龐大的人口、好奇的目光、傳統(tǒng)胡同和現(xiàn)代建筑相碰撞……還有許多神奇的事物，我需要花時(shí)間去了解，但最終我愛上了這一切。
Beijing was life-changing. Experiencing the four seasons for the first time, sharing day-to-day life with classmates from dozens of different countries, some of which I couldn’t even accurately place on a map. It seemed unreal, like a piece of fiction in the fabric of my life. I fell so deeply in love with my Beijing life that I requested and managed, against all odds, to extend my stay for a second year.
北京改變了我的人生。我第一次經(jīng)歷四季變換，與來自幾十個(gè)國家的同學(xué)一起生活，一些國家我甚至在地圖上都找不到。這一切是那么的虛幻，就像生命歷程中的一段小說。我深愛在北京的生活，所以我申請(qǐng)延長(zhǎng)學(xué)術(shù)交流時(shí)間一年，并獲得了批準(zhǔn)。
I returned to Mexico in 2012, but a portion of my heart stayed in China. Although busy catching up with college, I found every possible opportunity to practice my Chinese. I ate Chinese food almost every week. I spent my afternoons watching非誠勿擾, I thought about China every day. After graduating, yuánfèn knocked on my door once again. A post on social announced an International company looking for people fluent in Chinese and Spanish. My first thought was, “I am not at all fluent in Chinese”. I had no confidence in my rusty Chinese, but after hesitating for a few days I decided I had nothing to lose (other than 面子) by trying, so I sent my CV without much hope. Within two weeks I received a call. The young man who interviewed me was also a BISU graduate. What are the odds!
2012 年我回到了墨西哥，但我一部分心留在了中國。雖然忙著追趕學(xué)業(yè)進(jìn)度，但我會(huì)盡可能騰出時(shí)間練習(xí)中文。我?guī)缀趺恐芏紩?huì)吃中餐，利用下午的時(shí)間看非誠勿擾，每天都在想念中國。畢業(yè)后，“緣分”再一次敲開了我的大門。社交網(wǎng)站上有一個(gè)帖子，一家國際公司正招聘精通中文和西班牙語的人。我迸出的第一個(gè)想法就是“我中文一點(diǎn)都不流利”。我對(duì)自己蹩腳的中文沒有信心，但猶豫了幾天之后，我決定放手一搏，畢竟也不會(huì)損失什么（除了面子）。雖然沒有抱多大希望，但我還是投了簡(jiǎn)歷。不到兩周，我接到了一個(gè)電話。面試我的那個(gè)年輕人也是北外的畢業(yè)生。太巧了！
I got the job at a Chinese oil drilling company in Southeast Mexico. It wasn’t my French degree that got me a job, it was my two years in Beijing. With this experience, I learned about China from a new perspective: the corporate environment.
我得到了這份工作，這是一家中國石油鉆探公司，位于墨西哥東南部。我的競(jìng)爭(zhēng)優(yōu)勢(shì)并不是我學(xué)法語，而是我在北京兩年的學(xué)習(xí)經(jīng)歷。這段工作經(jīng)歷讓我從一個(gè)全新的角度了解中國，那就是企業(yè)環(huán)境角度。
I always wanted to pursue a master’s degree, and I always wanted to return to China. What I didn’t know is that I would do both at the same time. I started looking into scholarships. By March 2016, I had sent in my application. Without waiting for the outcome of the university’s selection process, I bought a one-way flight to Beijing and submitted my resignation. My acceptance letter from Nankai University came in two weeks after leaving the company. I was accepted on a full scholarship for three years.
我一直想攻讀碩士學(xué)位，也一直想回到中國，但沒想到這兩件事能同時(shí)實(shí)現(xiàn)。我開始研究如何申請(qǐng)獎(jiǎng)學(xué)金。2016 年 3 月，我提交了申請(qǐng)。沒等錄取結(jié)果出來，我就買了一張飛往北京的單程機(jī)票，并提交了辭呈。離職兩周后，我收到了南開大學(xué)的錄取通知書，獲得了三年的全額獎(jiǎng)學(xué)金。
In August 2016 I landed at the BIA and as I stepped off the plane, it felt like coming home. It is a difficult feeling to describe with words, as if I was escaping one reality to land in another, in an alternate world, a dream that I never stopped dreaming. My arrival in Tianjin felt more like a simple move to a new house than like a transition to a completely different reality on the other side of the planet.
2016 年 8 月，我搭乘的飛機(jī)著落于北京國際機(jī)場(chǎng)。走下飛機(jī)的時(shí)候，我感覺就像回到了家。這種感受難以言表，仿佛我逃離現(xiàn)實(shí)世界，降落在另一個(gè)世界，又仿佛在做一個(gè)永遠(yuǎn)不會(huì)醒來的夢(mèng)。我來到天津，感覺就像搬家一樣簡(jiǎn)單，盡管我是來到地球的另一端，一個(gè)完全不同的世界。
This move marked the beginning of the rest of my life. I met my husband online. I never believed in online dating, but was bored and wanted to make new friends. Yuánfèn was working hard, again. We fell for each other pretty quickly. By 2019 we had signed our “l(fā)ittle red book” and organized a full-on traditional wedding in rural Hebei. Our marriage has been a trip through the mountains. Moving forward slowly, up and down the hills, but enjoying the marvelous scenery along the way. We are learning from each other day after day, merging our cultures and broadening each other’s understanding of the world.
搬到天津是我人生的轉(zhuǎn)折點(diǎn)。我在網(wǎng)上認(rèn)識(shí)了我現(xiàn)在的丈夫。以前我從不相信網(wǎng)戀，但無聊的我想結(jié)交新朋友，于是“緣分”又開始發(fā)揮作用。我們很快相愛了。2019 年，我們一起領(lǐng)了“小紅本”，在河北農(nóng)村舉辦了一場(chǎng)傳統(tǒng)婚禮。我們的婚姻是一場(chǎng)翻山越嶺的旅行，攜手徐行，起起伏伏，一路上欣賞著絕妙的風(fēng)景。我們每天都相互學(xué)習(xí)，融合彼此的文化，拓寬彼此的世界觀。
We are living in Shenzhen since 2020, with two cats and a fish tank. And while we are enjoying life in the hustle and bustle of this ultra-modern city, we look forward to a future back in Mexico. Although we don’t know when, we know that at some point it’s going to be his turn to immerse into my culture and discover where I come from: a tiny little town on the coast of Oaxaca, in southern Mexico. We see ourselves strolling on the beach every sunrise with a dog chasing the waves, maybe a couple of toddlers playing in the sand, and our memories of China always present in our morning conversations. Some day, if yuánfèn permits.
2020 年我們搬到深圳生活，養(yǎng)了兩只貓和一缸魚。我們?cè)谶@個(gè)喧囂的超現(xiàn)代城市中享受生活的同時(shí)，期盼著未來能回到墨西哥。雖然我們不知道這一天什么時(shí)候會(huì)到來，但我們確信未來一定會(huì)輪到他沉浸于我家鄉(xiāng)的文化，了解我的故鄉(xiāng)墨西哥南部瓦哈卡海岸的一個(gè)小城。到那時(shí)，日出時(shí)分，我們會(huì)在海灘上漫步，狗狗追逐海浪，也許還有幾個(gè)蹣跚學(xué)步的孩童在沙地上玩耍，而我們則談?wù)撝谥袊挠洃?。未來，如果“緣分”允許的話。
