在1987年，田纳西州立大学邀请我回去做毕业演讲。那时，我已经有了自己的电视节目，并加入了国家联合会。我制作了一部电影，并被奥斯卡提名，而且成立了我自己的公司——哈普传媒公司。可我告诉他们，我不能去演讲除非我得到那一个学分，因为我爸爸仍在说，没有学位我将一事无成。

　　So, I finished my coursework, I turned in my final paper and I got the degree. And my dad was very proud. And I know that, if anything happens, that one credit will be my salvation.

　　因此，我完成了我的课程，上交了我的毕业论文，然后拿到了学位。我爸爸非常骄傲。从此我知道，无论发生什么事情，那一个学分都会成为我的救星。

　　But I also know why my dad was insisting on that diploma, because, as B. B. King put it, "The beautiful thing about learning is that nobody can take that away from you." And learning is really in the broadest sense what I really want to talk about today, because your education, of course, isn't ending here. In many ways, it's only just begun.

　　而且我还知道为什么父亲总是坚持让我取得文凭，因为，正如B.B金所说：“关于学习的美好之处在于别人不会把知识从你身上拿走。”这正是我今天想说的，因为你们的教育并没有在这里结束。从很多方面来说，一切才刚刚开始。

　　The world has so many lessons to teach you. I consider the world, this Earth, to be like a school and our life the classrooms. And sometimes here in this Planet Earth school the lessons often come dressed up as detours or roadblocks. And sometimes as full-blown crises. And the secret I've learned to getting ahead is being open to the lessons, lessons from the grandest universe of all, that is, the universe itself. It's being able to walk through life eager and open to self-improvement and that which is going to best help you evolve, because that's really why we're here, to evolve as human beings. So, to grow into being more of ourselves, always moving to the next level of understanding, the next level of compassion and growth.

　　这个世界将教会你们很多。我认为这个世界，这个地球，就像一所学校，而我们的人生就像是教室。在世界这所大学里，有些课程装扮成人生的弯路或障碍，有些则充满危机。而我所学到的应对这一切的秘诀就是：勇于面对一切挫折与危机，世界本身就是世上最好的大学。在人生的旅途中，要对生活充满激情，并不断提高自我，这就是我们作为人类存在于世的意义。不断提升自我，去追求人生的更高境界，去追求更高级别的怜悯的成长。

　　重点讲解：

　　1. turn in

　　上交；提交；交付；

　　eg. Now we wait for them to turn in their essays.

　　现在我们等着他们交上作文。

　　eg. I want everybody to turn a report in.

　　我希望每个人都上交一份报告。

　　2. insist on

　　坚持，强调，坚决要求；

　　eg. Crippen insisted on his innocence.

　　克里平坚称自己是无辜的。

　　eg. She insisted on being present at all the interviews.

　　她坚持所有采访自己都要在场。

　　3. as sb. put it

　　正如某人所说；

　　eg. As Rogers put it, "One can always be surprised.

　　诚如罗杰斯所说：“事情往往会出现意外嘛。”

　　eg. She was, as she put it once, a booby who only wanted to soar.

　　正如她曾经说的，她是一只想要高飞的笨鸟。

　　4. take away from

　　拿走；夺走；减损；贬低；

　　eg. 'It's starting to rain again.' — 'Not enough to take away from the charm of the scene.'

　　“又下起雨来了。”——“这丝毫不影响景色的美丽。”

　　eg. If a man empties his purse into his head,no man can take it away from him; An investment in knowledge always pays the best interest.

　　倾囊求知，无人能夺；投资知识，得益最多。

　　5. consider sb./sth. to be(（to be可省）

　　认为；看待；

　　eg. We don't consider our customers to be mere consumers; we consider them to be our friends.

　　我们没有把客户仅仅看作是消费者；我们还把他们当作朋友。

　　eg. I had always considered myself a strong, competent woman.

　　一直以来，我始终认为自己是个女强人。

　　6. full-blown

　　具有一应特征的；完全成熟的；彻头彻尾的；

　　eg. Before becoming a full-blown director, he worked as the film editor on Citizen Kane.

　　在成为一名完全成熟的导演之前，他曾经是电影《公民凯恩》的剪辑师。

　　eg. Sometimes a simple question can blossom into a full blown article.

　　有时，一个简单的问题可以衍生出一篇完整的文章。

　　7. get ahead

　　获得成功；

　　eg. He wanted safety, security, a home, and a chance to get ahead.

　　他希望能获得人身安全和保障，能组建家庭并且有机会在事业上大展宏图。

　　eg. He was talking about the way to get ahead in business.

　　他正在谈如何成功地推展业务。

　　8. grow into

　　成长为；发展为；

　　eg. The boys grew into men.

　　这些男孩子长成了男子汉。

　　eg. This political row threatens to grow into a full blown crisis.

　　这场政治争端有可能演化成一场全面爆发的危机。