after 28 years of absence.  我决定回到加纳。

I wanted to document on film the 2008 presidential elections.   我打算拍一部2008年总统大选的纪录片。

And there, I started by searching for the footprints in my childhood.  在那儿，我以搜寻我儿时的印迹作为开始。

And before I even knew it,  但是我都没有意识到，

I was suddenly on a stage surrounded by thousands of cheering people during a political rally. 我突然身处政治示威的队伍里周围围绕着成千上万高声呼喊人。

And I realized that, when I'd left the country,  我意识到，当年离开这个国家的时候，

free and fair elections in a democratic environment were a dream. 在民主环境下的自由公平选举只不过是个梦想。

And now that I'd returned, that dream had become reality,  如今我回来的时候，梦想已经实现了，

though a fragile reality.  尽管它很脆弱。

And I was thinking,  我想，

was Ghana searching for its identity like I was looking for my identity? 是不是像我在寻找自身定位一样加纳也在探索它的定位？

Was what was happening in Ghana a metaphor for what was happening in me? 发生在加纳的一切就像发生在我身上一切的隐喻？

And it was as if through the standards of my Western life,  就好像在西方式的标准下，

I hadn't lived up to my full potential.  我并没有完全挖掘我的潜能。

I mean, nor had Ghana,  加纳也是，

even though we had been trying very hard.  虽然我们都很努力的尝试过。

Now in 1957,Ghana was the first sub-Saharan country to gain its independence. 1957年加纳是撒哈拉以南非洲国家中第一个取得独立的国家。

In the late 50s,  50年代末期

Ghana and Singapore had the same GDP.  加纳和新加坡的GDP一样。

I mean, today, Singapore is a First World country and Ghana is not. 现在新加坡是个发达国家而加纳不是。

But maybe it was time to prove to myself,  但这也许正是证明我们自己的时候，

yes, it's important to understand the past,  是的，认识历史非常重要，

it is important to look at it in a different light,  要从另一个角度去解读它非常重要，

but maybe we should look at the strengths in our own culture and build on those foundations in the present. 但是也许我们应该重视自身文化中的力量并以现在的文化作为基石。

So here I was, December 7th, 2008.  2008年12月7日，我在现场。

The polling stations opened to the voters at 7:00 AM,  早晨7点投票站向选民开放，

but voters, eager to take their own political fate into their hands,  但选民想要掌握他们政治命运的愿望是如此急切，

were starting to line up at 4:00 AM in the morning.  他们凌晨4点就开始排队。