TED演讲: 献给欺凌的受害者(7)

 　　Every school was a big top circus tent, and the pecking order went from acrobats¹ to lion tamers, 每个学校都像是一个大马戏团，人与人之间等级分明，从杂耍员到驯兽师，

　　from clowns to carnies, all of these miles ahead of who we were.  从小丑到龙套，他们的等级都比我们高好几层楼。

　　We were freaks -- lobster² claw boys and bearded ladies, oddities juggling³ depression and loneliness, 我们是怪胎--女孩长着胡子，男孩长着龙虾的爪子，被鄙弃，被戏弄，感到沮丧，感到孤独，

　　playing solitaire, spin the bottle, trying to kiss the wounded parts of ourselves and heal, 一个人玩纸牌，一个人玩转瓶子，亲吻自己的伤口，尝试治愈自己，

　　but at night, while the others slept, we kept walking the tightrope⁴. 但每每夜深人静，我们会走上钢丝，默默练习。

　　It was practice, and yes, some of us fell.  是的，也有不成功的例子

　　But I want to tell them that all of this is just debris⁵ left over when we finally decide to smash 但是我想要告诉他们，当我们决定跟过去的自己决裂，开始全新的自己，

　　all the things we thought we used to be, and if you can't see anything beautiful about yourself, 这些经历不过是我们抛弃的废墟，如果你无法看到自己的美，

　　get a better mirror, look a little closer, stare a little longer,  换个更好的镜子，凑得更近一点，看得更久一点，

　　because there's something inside you that made you keep trying despite everyone who told you to quit. 因为你的内心深处有个声音，一直在阻止你离开现在的自己。

　　You built a cast around your broken heart and signed it yourself. You signed it, "They were wrong." 你在自己破碎的心灵周围筑起城墙，并亲手写上：“他们是错的。”

　　Because maybe you didn't belong to a group or a clique⁶.  或许因为你不被任何一个小团体接纳。

　　Maybe they decided⁷ to pick you last for basketball or everything.  或许他们只是找不到人玩的时候才拉上你。

　　Maybe you used to bring bruises⁸ and broken teeth to show-and-tell, but never told,  或许你想要向他们展示自己的伤口，但是你从来没有，

　　because how can you hold your ground if everyone around you wants to bury you beneath it? 你怎么能在一个所有人都敌视你的环境中表露自己的弱点呢？

　　You have to believe that they were wrong. They have to be wrong. 你不得不相信他们是错的。他们必须是错的。

　　Why else would we still be here?  不然我们为何存在？

　　We grew up learning to cheer on the underdog because we see ourselves in them. 我们为失败者喝彩，因为我们就是他们。

　　We stem from a root planted in the belief that we are not what we were called. 我们并不像那些强加给我们的外号一样不堪，这是我们得以成长的信念。

　　We are not abandoned cars stalled out and sitting empty on some highway, and if in some way we are, don't worry. 我们并不是高速路边被抛弃的破旧车辆，即使有些相似也没有关系。

　　We only got out to walk and get gas. We are graduating members from the class of We Made It, 我们只需要一些汽油就能开起来。我们的成功是靠自己努力的克服这些，

　　not the faded echoes of voices crying out, "Names will never hurt me." Of course they did. 而不是反复的骗自己，“我永远不会被这些侮辱的外号所伤”。它们当然会伤害你。

　　But our lives will only ever always continue to be a balancing act that has less to do with pain and more to do with beauty. 但是我们的生活本来就是如此，不断在喜怒哀乐之间平衡反复，更少的回味痛苦，体验更多的美。

1 acrobats   

n.杂技演员( acrobat的名词复数 )；立场观点善变的人，主张、政见等变化无常的人

参考例句：

• I was always fascinated by the acrobats at the circus. 我总是着迷于马戏团里的杂技演员。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The acrobats' performance drew forth applause from the audience. 杂技演员的表演博得了观众的掌声。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 lobster   

n.龙虾，龙虾肉

参考例句：

• The lobster is a shellfish.龙虾是水生贝壳动物。
• I like lobster but it does not like me.我喜欢吃龙虾，但它不适宜于我的健康。

3 juggling   

n. 欺骗, 杂耍(=jugglery) adj. 欺骗的, 欺诈的 动词juggle的现在分词

参考例句：

• He was charged with some dishonest juggling with the accounts. 他被指控用欺骗手段窜改账目。
• The accountant went to prison for juggling his firm's accounts. 会计因涂改公司的帐目而入狱。

4 tightrope   

n.绷紧的绳索或钢丝

参考例句：

• The audience held their breath as the acrobat walked along the tightrope.杂技演员走钢丝时，观众都屏住了呼吸。
• The tightrope walker kept her balance by holding up an umbrella.走钢丝的演员举着一把伞，保持身体的均衡。

5 debris   

n.瓦砾堆，废墟，碎片

参考例句：

• After the bombing there was a lot of debris everywhere.轰炸之后到处瓦砾成堆。
• Bacteria sticks to food debris in the teeth,causing decay.细菌附着在牙缝中的食物残渣上，导致蛀牙。

6 clique   

n.朋党派系，小集团

参考例句：

• The reactionary ruling clique was torn by internal strife.反动统治集团内部勾心斗角，四分五裂。
• If the renegade clique of that country were in power,it would have meant serious disaster for the people.如果那个国家的叛徒集团一得势，人民就要遭殃。

7 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

8 bruises   

n.瘀伤，伤痕，擦伤( bruise的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• He was covered with bruises after falling off his bicycle. 他从自行车上摔了下来，摔得浑身伤痕。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The pear had bruises of dark spots. 这个梨子有碰伤的黑斑。 来自《简明英汉词典》