2015-12-12

【Aiden in English】

        When you’re talking about the stereotypical Chinese household, you may think of Harvard acceptance letters flying around at this time of the year. Well, that’s sort of why it’s stereotypical. Chinese kids in Chinese households do get admitted to Harvard, and it can get annoying to hear about sometimes.

        It’s just my luck that my mom’s friend Joyce’s son Kevin got enrolled into Harvard of early action, and even grabbed a scholarship from New England Conservatory regarding Harvard/NEC Dual Degree in 2011. At first, I was all like WOW, THAT’S AMAZING! But after Kevin’s younger sister Amy also got accepted for Harvard of early action 4 years later, mom went berserker on how I should be inspired on the way to a holiday party we anticipated. And I always thought through those times, wow mom, you’re really funny! Even if Harvard did send me an invitation, I would give it a second thought. I sincerely congratulate those two siblings for being so brave to even think about accepting. It would be far too stressful and nerve-racking for me, although I am Chinese. You see, not all Chinese kids are Albert Einstein’s, but neither are we the average American kid. A funny joke that goes around at school is that when an American boy laughs at your fat stomach, we Asians laugh at their grades. It got me cracking up because it is true, and their grades are really funny. I mean, who’s proud of a “C” in math?

        Volunteering only gets you so far. Harvard takes it to the point of testing how smart the students are. Not that I’m not smart, it’s just that how much of a geek is needed in you to get into Harvard. To start, the GPA acceptance in 4-year high school is at least 4.04 out of 5.0. It basically means that you need A’s in all your AP classes or in college prep classes. In addition, the SAT scores need to be off the charts. Over seventy-five percent averagely is above 2100 points, and twenty-five present score over 2350 points. Like I said, it’s a joke to even try. After you pass the easiest part of the exam, it’s up to a one-on-one meeting to see what you do many extra-curriculums outside of school. That is why I can’t definitely make it happen because if it has no points involved, I’m not going.

        Harvard is the hardest school to get into in America. As for Kevin and Amy, congratulations on completing something I would never even dream of. The determination set before Harvard is nearly as hard as going through it is from the middle school on, and the amount of effort, endurance, and the immunity to sleep-deprivation is something quite awesome to see.

【红霞译文】

        每逢阳历年到来之前，只要一谈及正统的华人家庭，你免不了联想起哈佛大学录取通知。没错，这就是为什么称之为“正统”，华裔子弟确有考上哈佛大学的，因此时常听人们聊个没完没了。

        算我走运，妈妈有一朋友即咏儿阿姨的公子泊宁于2011年底不但喜获哈佛大学提前录取，而且还一举赢得新英格兰音乐学院奖学金，成为拥有哈佛大学本科──新英格兰音乐学院硕士跨校间不同领域联合培养双学位的杰出精英。乍听到这一喜讯，我甚为震撼！四年后，妹妹依宁紧步哥哥泊宁之后尘，同样顺利获得哈佛大学提前录取资格。在参加节日聚会的路上，妈妈拿我开涮，鞭策我要以兄妹俩为榜样，我越想越觉得妈妈离谱！即使哈佛大学发来邀请，我也得三思而后行。我衷心祝贺这对兄妹无畏挑战，虽说同为炎黄子孙，但压力大伤脑筋的事情我向来难以胜任，显然并非所有华裔子弟都是阿尔伯特·爱因斯坦式人物，但我们又不能与一般的美国青少年相提并论。时下流行这样一个笑话，美国同学嘲讽你胡吃海喝，而亚洲同胞则八卦你学习成绩，这让我忍俊不禁，因为事实如此，小美的考试水平真算傻冒，我想说有谁自诩数学考了“C”呢？

        关键在于主观能动性，哈佛大学索性把它当成衡量学生聪明才智的法宝。我不是不聪明，但只有身怀绝技的佼佼者才能走进哈佛大学。首先，四年高中总平均成绩至少要达到五分制中四点零四分，这就意味着所有大学预修课程即大学预科全部成绩优秀；其次，学术能力评估测试分数需要好上加好，超过75%的录取者学术能力评估测试分数在2100分以上，其中25%的高于2350分。综上所述，凡夫俗子千万不要白日做梦。在通过最为基本的笔试测验以后，五花八门的课外活动将成为竞争者出奇制胜的关键要素，这恰好戳到了我的软肋，既然胸无远志，咱干脆别抽风干那些挑战极限的事情。

        哈佛堪称美国最难进的大学，恭喜泊宁和依宁圆满拓出一条我做梦都不敢想的阳关大道。值得钦佩的是，从初中到升大学前五～六年间，他俩始终坚定自己的理想信念，并为之付出不懈努力，哪怕牺牲个人休息时间。