2017-05-20

【Aiden in English】

        Pearl Sydenstricker Buck was a West Virginia native. However, she went to China at an early age due to her father’s occupation of a missionary. She spent her first forty years or so in Jiangsu and Anhui of China excluding her education in Randolph-Macon Woman's College and Cornell Univ. for a few years, eventually to return to Green Hill Farm in PA.

        So who is Pearl S. Buck?

        Well, Pearl S. Buck, also known as John Sedges, was a writer, quite famous from what I know. She awarded a Nobel Prize in literature back to 1938, which on its own stands for a momentous feat. Her most famous book, The Good Earth, is internationally recognized about family stories in a Chinese village. However, her life was much more than just a writer. Pearl S. Buck was the founder of the Pearl Buck International, a child’s sponsorship program around the world.

        Today I visited her estate, now transformed into the National Historic Site. It used to be a mixed-race Asian orphanage called Welcome House, which is impressive. Pearl S. Buck only had one biological daughter and adopted many more.

        The house itself is nothing out of the ordinary barn to another late-19th century on the outside. The real surprise comes within. Pearl S. Buck was an American, yes, but essentially lived in an Oriental life. She loved Chinese clothing, food, furniture, and literature. So, as far as her home went, she converted the house into a mash-up of American and Chinese culture. From the china and the chopsticks to the oriental paintings and calligraphies on the walls, the roots to Pearl S. Buck were constantly reminded throughout the house.

        I find it how Pearl S. Buck integrated another culture into a home so well, especially when her husband and most children were not of Asian ethnicity. And, technically speaking, neither was she. However, this, more than anything, shows the independence of Pearl S. Buck to represent what she is, continuing on her own culture and what she grew up with.

        Many of Pearl’s books were based on her own experiences in life. Because of what she experienced in China, it became an inspiration to her novels and stories. Furthermore, her care for children past on beyond the pages and into the real world.  Pearl S. Buck International is a sponsorship system for children, in which donors give money to support orphans.

        Pearl S. Buck House has now been converted to a public tourist attraction, as well as a place to host events like a wedding ceremony. But she is still around, in the air, in the water, in the house. She was buried along the driveway, with her Chinese name, 賽珍珠, inscribed on the grave.

【紅霞譯文】

        賽珍珠（全名為珍珠·賽登斯特里克·巴克）是西維吉尼亞人，不過她在年幼的時候就隨當傳教士的父親來到中國，除了分別前往倫道夫·梅康女子學院和康奈爾大學接受高等教育外，前半生差不多有四十年的光景生活於中國江蘇安徽一帶，最後才返回賓州綠山農場。

        賽珍珠何許人也？

        賽珍珠又叫約翰·塞德斯，是一位相當了不起的作家，1938年榮獲諾貝爾文學獎，從此名揚天下，以中國鄉村農民生活為背景的《大地》被視為賽珍珠最具代表性的著作，引起國際性關注。然而，她不僅以寫作為生，而且還是“賽珍珠國際”的創始人，該機構致力於全球兒童公益事業。

        今天我前往賽珍珠莊園參觀，現在這裡已定為國家歷史文化遺址，該故居過去一度曾被用作孤兒院──“歡迎之家”，幫助收養具有亞洲血統的美國棄兒，令人深受感動。賽珍珠自己僅生過一個女兒，領養的孩子卻有很多。

        賽珍珠故居外表上看起來跟廿世紀後期普通農舍沒啥兩樣，真正驚艷的地方莫過於內部布局。雖說賽珍珠是地道的美國人，但卻保持東方人生活方式。她喜歡中國服裝、飲食、家具和文學，無論把家安在何處，室內擺設充滿美中兩國文化氣息，從瓷器筷子到牆上懸掛的東方字畫，不斷地讓人想起賽珍珠深厚的生活根基。

        我發覺賽珍珠故居兼收並蓄中為洋用，巧妙地將舶來文化融入自身生活之中，特別是其老公和多數子女並非亞裔出身，嚴格地說，她也不算。然而這恰好說明賽珍珠特立獨行，在保持自身文化元素的同時，始終對生於斯長於斯的故土一往情深。

        賽珍珠很多作品源於個人親身經歷，正因為那段中國生活閱歷，激發了她著書立說的熱情。此外，賽珍珠關懷兒童，並讓理想成為現實，賽珍珠國際是一個救濟兒童的基金會，熱心人可通過這個組織向孤兒捐款。

        如今賽珍珠故居不但對外開放供遊人參觀，而且還提供婚慶喜筵特色服務，空氣中、池塘邊、莊園裡，賽珍珠依然活在人間。她的遺體葬在離故居不遠的路邊，墓碑上刻着中文名字“賽珍珠”。

Today in History(歷史上的今天):

2016 Seventh-Grade Spring Concert(2016年初二春季音樂會)

2015 Mont Band Spring Concert(2015年蒙小管樂隊春季音樂會)

Crosslink(相關博文):

Fallingwater, PA(賓州落水山莊)