Observing current affairs in today’s China, one comes across the term, “Bridging the Gap”, quite often. While this is in no way new, it is commonly used in reference to the Sino-international community. It helps organisations to better illustrate connections and relations that are forming between China and the outside world.
观察当今中国的时事，人们经常会遇到“弥合差距”一词。 虽然这并不新鲜，但它通常用于指代中国际社会。 它帮助组织更好地说明中国与外部世界之间正在形成的联系和关系。
With this swimming through my mind as I wondered about the city, I thought about how local Nanjingers connect with foreigners on the streets of the city, or more specifically, how foreigners connect with the masses. Fortunately, I live in one of the most foreigner-dense areas of Nanjing, and as a result, I am privy to many such day-to-day observations.
当我对这座城市感到好奇时，我想到了南京当地人如何在城市街道上与外国人联系，或者更具体地说，外国人如何与群众联系。 幸运的是，我住在南京外国人最密集的地区之一，因此，我透过许多这样的日常观察。
But wait a minute; I am a person who does not naturally smile.
但等一下；我是一个不自然微笑的人。
I am not bright and shiny; I’m actually pretty mild most of the time. Getting a smile out of me requires some serious comedy, or, if I’m totally honest, flattery. The problem with this is that those around me assume I am either angry, sad and/or unapproachable. This just isn’t the case; inside I am totally happy, sometimes even joyous. So why the sour face, bagpuss? Recently, I have set about changing this, and the best way I know how, is to remind myself to, you know, “just do it”; just smile.
我并不明亮和闪亮；实际上，大多数时候我都很温和。 让我微笑需要一些严肃的喜剧，或者，如果我完全诚实的话，奉承。 问题是，我周围的人认为我要么生气，要么悲伤，要麼難以接近。 情况并非如此；我内心完全快乐，有时甚至快乐。 那为什么是酸脸，包娘娘？ 最近，我开始改变这一点，我知道最好的方法就是提醒自己，你知道，“就去做吧”；只是微笑。
Having lived in China a long time, I, like most foreigners, have been guilty of “losing it” with the locals sometimes. If you are reading this and can honestly say that you have never had a negative thought or reaction to a local person on the streets of Nanjing, then hats off to you, you’re possibly the most zen person ever to have moved to China.
在中国生活了很长时间，我和大多数外国人一样，有时会对当地人“失去它”。 如果你正在读这篇文章，并且可以诚实地说，你从未对南京街头的当地人有过消极的想法或反应，那么向你致敬，你可能是有史以来搬到中国的最禅宗的人。
For most of us, though, day-to-day street battles is one of the most crucial reasons as to why such a large gap gets wedged between, perish the terms, “us” and “them”. The old adage that, “we are a guest in this country, therefore we should just drop our polite standards down a peg or two”, gets thrown right out the window the moment someone lights a cigarette in a lift, and then stops in front of you when you’re making haste towards an escalator. And rightly so, I hear you.
然而，对于我们大多数人来说，日常的街头战斗是“我们”和“他们”这两个术语之间存在如此巨大的差距的最关键原因之一。 老诱说，“我们是这个国家的客人，因此我们应该把我们的礼貌标准放下一两个钉子”，当有人在电梯里点烟时，就会被扔出窗外，然后当你匆匆驶向自动扶梯时，它停在你面前。 没错，我听到了。
Problems arise when our staunch values and frustrated interactions form large cultural gaps between us and the locals. You may not like to read this, but one of the things of which we need sometimes remind ourselves is that we chose to come here.
当我们坚定的价值观和受挫的互动在我们和当地人之间形成巨大的文化差距时，问题就出现了。 你可能不喜欢读这个，但我们有时需要提醒自己的一件事是，我们选择来这里。
Therefore, instead of giving up or living every day in a state of heightened stress, I offer one simple step that may just be an alleviation. As you have probably already guessed, my solution has been to try and stop hiding behind my infamous sour face, or continuing to ignore that going on around me, to dust off the corners of my mouth and stretch them wide, ear to ear.
因此，我没有放弃或每天生活在压力加剧的状态下，而是提供一个简单的步骤，这可能只是缓解。 你可能已经猜到了，我的解决方案是试着停止躲在我臭名昭著的酸脸后面，或者继续无视我周围发生的事情，掸掉我的嘴角，把它们从耳朵到耳朵拉大。
It has not been easy, I can tell you. It feels really awkward and uncomfortable.
我可以告诉你，这并不容易。 感觉真的很尴尬和不舒服。
Here’s the thing; all of this time, I have been beating myself up, shaming my outward appearance and my miserable self, but the most surprising effect of this whole experiment so far has been my realisation that local people are just as sour and miserable as I am.
事情是这样的；一直以来，我一直在自责，羞辱自己的外表和悲惨的自我，但到目前为止，整个实验最令人惊讶的影响是，我意识到当地人和我一样酸溜溜和悲惨。
When I began to really look at their faces, they appear just as harsh, down trodden, sad and unapproachable as me. What a revelation. The reason I can see it so clearly now is because when I smile, they smile back; a big, shiny mirror that instantly brings us closer.
当我真正开始看他们的脸时，他们看起来和我一样严厉、沮丧、悲伤和难以接近。 多么大的启示啊。 我现在之所以能如此清楚地看到它，是因为当我微笑时，他们也会回以微笑；一面闪亮的大镜子，瞬间拉近了我们的距离。
I don’t need to speak Mandarin for this. They don’t fall off their bike or smack into a pole with absolute shock; 10 times out of 10, they return the favour. And it completely changes how my day unfolds and closes any gaps in my bridge with the Chinese.
我不需要为此说普通话。 他們沒有從腳踏車上摔下來，也不会因絕對的冲击而撞到杆子上；10次中有10次，他們會報答。 它完全改变了我一天的展开方式，并缩小了我与中国人之间的任何差距。
I am not saying this has solved all of my street woes, nor am I walking about the streets with a constant eerie grin on my face looking like a weirdo, and it is certainly a work in progress. Yet, smiling, for me, has brought about profound change and has helped me to further bridge the gap between myself and those I see around me everyday. It helps me to remember that I always have a choice. I chose to be here, and I can choose, in every moment, to change my reality.
我并不是说这解决了我所有的街头困境，我也不会在街上走来走去，脸上总是带着诡异的笑容，看起来像个怪人，这当然是一项正在进行的工作。 然而，对我来说，微笑带来了深刻的变化，并帮助我进一步弥合了自己和我每天看到的周围人之间的差距。 这有助于我记住，我总是有选择。 我选择在这里，我可以选择每时每刻改变我的现实。
I can burn bridges or I can build them; the choice is mine.
我可以烧桥，也可以架起桥梁；选择权在我。
Smile at three strangers the next time you’re on the street, and see for yourself. If they don’t shine that mirror back at you, then maybe you’re just scaring them. Nevertheless, keep trying until it happens and life in Nanjing will begin to ease.
下次你在街上时，对三个陌生人微笑，亲眼看看。 如果他们不把那面镜子照回你，那么也许你只是在吓唬他们。 尽管如此，继续努力，直到它发生，南京的生活将开始轻松。