我在航班上给美国人讲故事 ||辽宁 田洪文

● 田洪文

2012年4月24日至5月6日我在美国旅行。5月4日晚我乘坐美国航空公司航班UA407，波音757，从丹佛飞向西雅图。飞机晚07:10起飞，晚09:00（当地时间）。两城时差1小时。飞行近3小时。

我的座位40B，我的右侧一位中年美国男士，左侧一位约20岁的女士。起飞后，这位男士与我进行了长谈。他问我来自哪个国家，来美国几次，去过什么地方，这次来美做什么。

当然，我一一做了回答：

1. 我是中国人；

2.我来美国四次；

3.我到过洛杉矶、旧金山、圣迭戈、拉斯维加斯、大峡谷、纽约、首都华盛顿和芝加哥；

4.这次我来美国旅游，随旅行社刚刚结束美国西中部环行旅行，到了丹佛、总统纪念山，黄石国家公园、大提顿国家公园、拱门国家公园、大盐湖和盐湖城、科罗拉多峡谷等。

他很惊讶，说：“啊，你到过美国这么多地方！”。然后他很客气地问：“你觉得哪个国家好，中国，还是美国？”

我稍微思考一下，然后回答说：“一个国家好与不好，取决于它的人民。人民说它好，那么这个国家就是好的。您愿意听我讲一讲我的故事 吗？”他微笑着回答说：“请。”

以下是我讲的故事：

我的父母 出生于1931年，那年日本侵略中国东北，后来的抗日战争持续了14年。中国蒙受了巨大苦难。随后中国共产党和国民党又进行了三年的解放战争，就像美国在1861年至1864年发生的内战一样。最终共产党获胜，1949年10月中华人民共和国成立。那时中国非常，非常贫穷。

1953年我出生在沈阳西郊。1960年我上村里的小学。我清楚记得那时中国遭受连续三年的自然 灾害，没有足够食物，甚至一些人饿死。中国人自力更生，克服了所有困难。中国非常贫穷。

1976年我入读沈阳师范学院，1979年毕业。毕业后我在沈阳一所高中成为英语教师。第二年我27岁结婚。我和爱人无房居住，这样我们校长让我们住在学校食堂的一间休息室，面积只有9平米。

那时中国住房实行国家分配制度。整个国家经济状态不好。中国仍然很穷。

我们在9平米的小屋住了8年，直到1989年我们分到40平米的新公寓。1998年我们分到了第二个64平米的新房子。到了20世纪90年代，人民过上了较好的生活 。中国不穷了。

去年我买了一套大得多的房子，117平米，2间卧室，一间书房，一间客厅，一间厨房，2间卫生间。我投入大笔钱进行装修。巨变那！

此外，2010年我还购买了一间52平米的办公室。

2006年1月，我第一次访问美国时，我非常羡慕你们的生活，因为我见到大多数人开车上学上班。2008年11月，在通过交通考试得到驾照后，我又买了新丰田车。现在许许多多家庭都有车。

我在青少年时，经常看见航班在我村庄上方空中飞过。那是沈阳至北京的航线。我多么期望有一天能够坐飞机在蓝天飞翔！

在过去的10年中我和家人乘飞机游遍了中国大部分地区，甚至到国外。这次美国旅行结束后，本月下旬，我和爱人去看欧洲。

请看我的穿戴。我穿的和在家里一样。

在过去的30多年，我们的生活水平有了很大很大提高。感谢我们政府的正确领导。中国再也不是过去的中国了。中国现在富裕了。

当我讲完，我也很有礼貌的问这位美国人：“您认为中国怎样？中国好吗？”

周围的美国旅客也认真听了我的叙述，不时地点点头。从他们的眼神中，我看到他们对中国有了新的认知：现在的中国很好！

英文原稿

On April 24 to May 06, 2012, I was travelling in USA. On the evening of May 04, I flew from Denver to Seattle by the flight UA 407 (United America), Boeing 757. The plane took off at 07:10 pm and landed on 09:00 pm (local time), there was 1 hour time difference between the 2 cities. It took nearly 3 hours.

My seat number was 40B. To my right, there was a middle-aged American man, to my left there was a young American girl, about 20 years. After the plane took off, the man had a long talk with me. He asked where I was from, how many times and what places I had been to in USA, what I did this time.

Of course, I answered his questions one by one:

1. I was from China;

2. I had been to USA for four times;

3. I had visited Los Angeles, San Francisco, San Diego, Las Vegas, Grand Canyon, New York, Washington DC, Chicago;

4. This time I came to USA for a travel, I had just finished the trip around the west-middle part of USA, following a travel service. We visited Denver, Mount Rushmore National Memorial, Yellow Stone National Park, Grand Teton National Park, Arches National Park, Salt Lake and Salt Lake City, Colorado Valley.

To his surprise, he said, ”Oh, you have been to so many cities and places in USA!” Then he said politely, ”Do you think which country is good, China or USA? ”

I thought a little, then I answered, “It depends on its people whether a country is good or not. People say it”s good, then the country is good. Would you like me to tell a story about myself?” “Please”, he smiled.

My story is like this:

My parents were born in 1931, that year Japan invaded the northeast of China, then the Anti-Japanese War lasted 14 years. China suffered a lot. Then the libration war between the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the Kuomingtang (KMT) of China lasted for3 years, just like the Civil War which happened in 1861-1864 in USA. At last the CPC won and the People”s Republic of China was founded in October, 1949. At that time China was very, very poor.

I was born in the west suburb of Shenyang in 1953. I went to my primary school in my village in 1960. I remember clearly China was suffering from the natural disasters which lasted for 3 years. We didn”t have enough to eat, even some people died of hunger. We overcame all the difficulty through our own efforts. But China was very poor.

I entered Shenyang Teachers” College in 1976 and graduated in 1979. After graduation, I became an English teacher in a high school in Shenyang. Next year I got married at the age of 27. My wife and I had no house to live in, so my headmaster let us live in the rest room of our school dining hall, which was only 9 square metres.

At that period, China carried out the system that dwelling houses were allotted by our country. The whole country”s economic situation was in bad condition. China was still poor.

We lived in the 9-square-metre room for 8 years till we were allotted a new apartment house in 1989, which was 40 square metres.

My second new house was allotted in 1998, which was 64 square metres. I paid one fourth of the house price. In the nineteen nineties, people lived better life. China was not poor.

I bought even much larger house last year, which is 117 square metres, with 2 bedrooms, 1 writing room, 1 sitting room, 1 kitchen and 2 toilets. I used much money to decorate the house. Great changes!

Besides, in 2010, I also bought an office with 52 square metres.

When I visited USA in January, 2006 for the first time, I admired your life very much, as I saw most people drive cars to work, to school. I bought my new TOYOTA car in November, 2008 after I passed our traffic examinations and got my driving license. And now many ,many families have cars.

When I was young, I often saw passenger planes or airliners flying over my village in the sky, that was the airline from Shenyang to Beijing. How I wished that I could take planes and fly in the blue sky!

In the past 10 years my family have traveled in most parts of China by airliners, even to foreign countries. When I return to China at the end of this trip, my wife and I are going to see Europe late this month.

You can see my wears. I”m wearing the same as I stay at home.

In the past more than 30 years, our living level has improved much more. Thanks a lot for the right leadership of our government. China isn”t what it used to be. China is rich now.

When I finished my story, I asked the man politely, too, ”What do you think of about China? China is good?”

The American passengers around listened carefully, nodded sometimes as I was stating . From their eyes, I could see they got some new recognition that present China is good !