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参考消息今日在报眼位置刊出卫报16日此文的译文,译文是节选和改写,用题为《奥巴马“家书”感动美国公众》。
Sorry for the junk food: Obama's letter to his girls
The letter ends simply: "Love Dad". But before it reaches its conclusion it invokes political passions and leaves many readers struggling to remain dry-eyed.
The latest production from the Barack Obama factory of oratory is a letter to his daughters, Malia, 10, and Sasha, 7, written after an invitation by Parade magazine to reveal what he wants for them, and to "get personal". Being Obama, he does just that. He begins by regretting all the junk food his daughters ate on the campaign trail, and apologising for his absences. "I know that it hasn't always been easy for you and Mom, and that as excited as you both are about that new puppy, it doesn't make up for all the time we've been apart."
Cynics will accuse him of invoking his family to arouse support. There are points when it is hard to tell whether he is talking to the girls or to the nation. He says he ran for president "because of what I want for you and for every child in this nation" and gives a wish-list of child-friendly ambitions, from raising school standards to sweeping away barriers to achievement.
He writes about personal matters with ease, telling how the girls' arrival changed him from a self-centred young man into someone who found "that the greatest joy in my life was the joy I saw in yours", and extends his gratitude for Sasha and Malia's "patience, poise, grace and humour".
With their new life starting in four days' time, the girls will need all the patience and humour they can find. |
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