2017-06-04

【Aiden in English】

        Throughout the countless years with countless complaints about countless reasons, I would’ve begged to not go to Guanghua Chinese School (GHCS) in PA. Not going to lie, I still don’t enjoy those Sunday afternoons, waiting for a lecture to finish or to a test to be scored.

        However, I do see the results of these grueling learning sessions.

        To me, this Chinese class is only difficult because it occurs once a week. Therefore, the teacher must give out bulks of homework in order to maintain a constant pace within the curriculum. Understandably, most students complain, but I think there really isn’t a way around it.

        I was once a complaining student, and still am today. But because of the summer’s trip to Beijing two years ago, I realized of how much GHCS helped. I was able to keep up with the language and overall understanding. Whether it was because of my constant practice at home or the Guanghua curriculum, there has been a great change to my Chinese in the past eight years.

        And so it all comes down to today: graduation. It’s the most important day of our Chinese learning career, the celebration of all our hard work, and the final moments within this building… unless you are coming back for the AP Chinese.

        However, I still think this day reflects on a milestone of reaching where I am now. All of the ninth graders came to class dressed in the blue graduation clothing, signifying the weight on this day. Many awards would be handed out after the graduation ceremony, but the stars of this event would be us, class of 2020-2022. I’ve become good friends with some of these classmates, even though we only meet once a week. This makes, I think, builds a strong bond. By means of cultural connections, the Chinese adolescent community can connect through common differences between us and other backgrounds, similarly to all other ways of life. GHCS taught us more about ourselves and exactly what it meant to be “Chinese”. From teaching the culture to experiencing it in person, I have to give many thanks for the enlightenment of knowledge regarding a world I still barely understand.

        Next year, I would be a teacher of a writing class as well as an AP student in GHCS, which is going to be an interesting balance. Most students wait till after AP to teach a class, but the National Honor Society requires a job by tenth grade, so this was a great opportunity. This graduation, due to these objectives, stands for more than a marking of completion. It shows how I’ve started yet another quest, another hill to climb towards success. And until I’ve reached my peak, there will always be taller, larger hills to climb in my foreseeable future.

        經歷無數個年頭無數次抱怨無數種理由，我求奶奶告爺爺試圖放棄到賓州光華中文學校上課。不瞞你說，每到星期天下午我心裡犯怵，課堂上要麼盼着放學要麼應付了事。

        然而，“寶劍鋒從磨礪出,梅花香自苦寒來”，我深知只有辛勤耕耘才能收穫果實。

        在我看來，學好中文之所以難度大是因為每周只上一次課，況且為了保證課業進度，老師必須布置大量課外作業，致使絕大多數學生叫苦連天，但我覺得光抱怨真不是辦法。

        我曾經也愛發牢騷，時至今日依舊如此，不過兩年前因為回了趟北京，方才意識到光華中文學校灌輸的知識是我享受生活的力量，我能聽懂中文了解社會。水有源樹有根，無論是因為常年堅持在家多說多練，還是因為光華教學有方，總之在過去八年裡，我的中文水平確有長足的進步。

        所有一切都歸結於今天這個特殊日子：畢業，它既是我們中文學習生涯中最重要的一天，也是慶祝我們堅持到底的光榮時刻，待不了多久我們馬上就會離開眼前這座教學大樓……除非你打算繼續留下來學習美國大學預修課程中文學科。

        不過我仍然認為今天迎來了一個校方認可本人中文水平的里程碑，所有九年級學生來到教室統一穿上藍色畢業服，足以體現其莊重程度。畢業儀式之後還要進行項目繁多的頒獎典禮，但這次慶祝活動閃亮登場的明星當該是我們這些2020-2022屆常規學校高中畢業生。儘管大家每周見面只有一次，然而我卻與其中不少同學早已結為好朋友，無疑光華中文學校是我們聯絡友情強有力的紐帶，從這裡培養出來的華裔青少年社團積極傳播中華文明，促進社會各界不同歷史背景不同生活方式的文化交流。光華中文學校引導我們更好地做自己，並以“中國人”為自豪，從傳授文化到社區服務，我由衷地感激光華為像我這樣不諳世事的在校生打開了一扇語言大門。

        明年我可能將以寫作班老師和高等中文班學生雙重身份出現在光華中文學校，兩者之間的平衡十分有趣，多數同學打算學完高等中文課之後才付諸行動，但是全美高中榮譽生會要求高中二年級以下的會員從事社會實踐，因此出任老師一職讓我有機會學以致用，從這些方面而言，此次畢業典禮遠比完成學業更有意義，它表示我已開始迎接新的挑戰，準備攀登新的高峰。山外有山天外有天，將來總有更高更大的山巒召喚我去探索。

Today in History(歷史上的今天):

2016: Life─A Salute to the Harvard Siblings(生活─向哈佛兩兄妹致敬)

Crosslinks(相關博文):

2016 GHCS Commencement(2016屆光華中文學校畢業典禮)

2015 GHCS Commencement—Bitter-Sweet-Salty(羨慕嫉妒愛)

2014 GHCS Commencement—Bamboo(2014屆光華畢業典禮—蜀苑)

2013屆光華畢業典禮拾遺(2013 GHCS Commencement—Potpourri)

2012屆光華中文學校畢業典禮(2012 GHCS Commencement)

2010屆光華中文學校畢業典禮(2010 GHCS Commencement)