这是奥巴马刚就任美国总统的2009年为全美学生做的开学演讲，今天看来依然毫无违和感，且每个看过的人都说被触动了。你会是例外吗?

　　Every single one of you has something you’re good at. Every single one of you has something to offer. And you have a responsibility to yourself to discover what that is. That’s the opportunity an education can provide.

　　你们每一个人都有自己擅长的东西。你们每一个人都有可以贡献的东西。发现你擅长的和可以贡献的东西是你对自己应有的责任。这正是教育为你提供的机会。

　　And this isn’t just important for your own life and your own future. What you make of your education will decide nothing less than the future of this country.

　　然而这不仅仅关乎你的人生和未来。你从教育中获得的收获几乎决定着这个国家的未来。

　　Where you are right now doesn’t have to determine where you’ll end up. No one’s written your destiny for you. Here in America, you write your own destiny. You make your own future.

　　你现在的情况并不能决定你未来的成就。没有人能决定你的命运。在我们美国，你的命运由你自己来决定。你的未来由你自己去创造。

　　That’s no excuse for not trying.

　　不要为不尝试找借口。

　　But the truth is, being successful is hard.

　　事实上，成功很难。

　　But Michael Jordan once said, "I have failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed."

　　但乔丹曾说过：“我的一生中失败了一次一次又一次，这才是我成功的原因。”

　　These people succeeded because they understand that you can’t let your failures define you – you have to let them teach you.

　　那些人获得了成功，因为他们懂得，失败不能定义你，但失败可以教育你。

　　No one’s born being good at things, you become good at things through hard work.

　　没有人生来就擅长所有事，擅长是通过努力获得的。

　　Don’t be afraid to ask questions. Don’t be afraid to ask for help when you need it. Asking for help isn’t a sign of weakness, it’s sign of strength. It shows you have the courage to admit when you don’t know something, and to learn something new.

　　别怕问问题。当你需要帮助的时候别怕寻求帮助。寻求帮助不是弱者的表现，反而是强者的表现，因为这说明你有勇气承认自己在某些方面的无知，且你想要学习一些新东西。

　　And even when you’re struggling, even when you’re discouraged, and you feel like other people have given up on you – don’t ever give up on yourself. Because when you give up on yourself, you give up on your country.

　　就算你在苦苦挣扎，就算你心灰意冷，就算你觉得其他人都放弃了你，你也不要放弃你自己。因为你放弃了自己，就等于放弃了你的国家。