泰勒絲紐約大學畢業典禮演講中英全文

演講影片：https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VD8wBo_sWLM

大家好，我是泰勒。上次在如此大的體育場時，我正踩著高跟鞋、穿著閃閃發光的緊身衣跳舞。現在這身可真是舒服多了。

Hi, I'm Taylor. Last time I was in a stadium this size, I was dancing in heels and wearing a glittery leotard. This outfit is much more comfortable.

我要向紐約大學董事會主席Bill Berkeley和其他所有成員、紐約大學校長Andrew Hamilton、教務長Katherine Fleming以及今天在座的教職員工和校友表達由衷的感謝，是他們讓這一天成為可能。我很自豪能與同行領獎者Susan Hockfield和Felix Matos Rodriguez分享這一天，他們用自己工作改善了我們世界的方式，使我感到謙卑。至於我，我……90%相信自己在這裡的主要原因是我有一首歌叫《22》。我只想說，我很高興今天能在這里和你們一起慶祝、一起畢業於紐約大學2022屆。

I'd like to say a huge thank you to NYU's Chairman of the Board of Trustees, Bill Berkeley and all the trustees and members of the board, NYU's President Andrew Hamilton, Provost Katherine Fleming, and the faculty and alumni here today who have made this day possible. I feel so proud to share this day with my fellow honorees Susan Hockfield and Felix Matos Rodriguez, who humble me with the ways they improve our world with their work. As for me, I'm…90% sure the main reason I'm here is because I have a song called '22.' And let me just say, I am elated to be here with you today as we celebrate and graduate New York University's Class of 2022.

今天在座的所有人，沒有一個是孤軍奮戰的。我們每個人都是由那些愛我們、相信我們未來的人、向我們展示同理心和善意的人、或在即使不那麼入耳時依然告訴我們真相的人拼湊而成。那些在完全沒有把握的情況下、鼓勵我們做得到的人。有人為你講過事，教你尋夢，提供一些對與錯的道德準則供你嘗試和生活。有人竭盡全力向你這個孩子解釋這個瘋狂複雜的世界中的每一個概念，因為你問了無數個問題，比如“月亮是如何工作的”和“為什麼我們可以吃沙拉而不吃草”。也許他們做得並不完美，但也沒有人能做到完美；也許他們已經不在我們身邊了，如果是這樣的話，我也希望你們今天能想起他們。如果他們在這個體育場，我希望你們能找到自己的方式來表達自己的感激，感謝一路以來為到達共同目標所經歷的得與失。

Not a single one of us here today has done it alone. We are each a patchwork quilt of those who have loved us, those who have believed in our futures, those who showed us empathy and kindness or told us the truth even when it wasn't easy to hear. Those who told us we could do it when there was absolutely no proof of that. Someone read stories to you and taught you to dream and offered up some moral code of right and wrong for you to try and live by. Someone tried their best to explain every concept in this insanely complex world to the child that was you, as you asked a bazillion questions like 'how does the moon work' and 'why can we eat salad but not grass.' And maybe they didn't do it perfectly. No one ever can. Maybe they aren't with us anymore, and in that case I hope you'll remember them today. If they are here in this stadium,I hope you'll find your own way to express your gratitude for all the steps and missteps that have led us to this common destination.

我知道文字應該是我自己的“專長”，但我永遠無法找到合適的話來感謝我的媽媽和爸爸，還有我的兄弟Austin，感謝他們每天做出的犧牲，使我能夠告別在咖啡館唱歌，到今天和你們一起站在這裡，因為沒有任何語言足夠表達這份感激的。對於今天在這裡支持學生追求教育豐富性的所有了不起的父母、家人、導師、老師、校友們、朋友和親人，請讓我現在對你們說一句：歡迎來到紐約，它一直都等待著你的到來。

I know that words are supposed to be my 'thing', but I will never be able to find the words to thank my mom and my dad, and my brother, Austin, for the sacrifices they made every day so that I could go from singing in coffee houses to standing up here with you all today because no words would ever be enough. To all the incredible parents, family members, mentors, teachers, allies, friends and loved ones here today who have supported these students in their pursuit of educational enrichment, let me say to you now: Welcome to New York. It's been waiting for you.

我要感謝紐約大學讓我技術上，至少在紙面上，成為一名博士。當然不是你們在緊急情況下想要的那種“醫生”，除非你們的特殊緊急情況是迫切需要聽到一首歌，一首帶有朗朗上口的歌詞，和強烈宣洩橋段的歌曲；或者你們的緊急情況是需要一個可以在1分鐘內列舉50多種類型貓的人。

I'd like to thank NYU for making me technically, on paper at least, a doctor. Not the type of doctor you would want around in the case of an emergency, unless your specific emergency was that you desperately needed to hear a song with a catchy hook and an intensely cathartic bridge section. Or if your emergency was that you needed a person who can name over 50 breeds of cats in one minute.

本質上來說，我從來沒有經歷過真正普通的大學生活。我公立高中上到十年級，在機場航站樓的地板上完成了學業。之後，我進行了一場在公路上的電台巡迴演出，聽起來很迷人，但實際上，這場巡演僅僅是由一輛出租汽車、汽車旅館、以及我和我媽在登機時假裝母女吵架、以防有人想坐在西南角的我們之間所組成。

I never got to have the normal college experience, per se. I went to public high school until tenth grade and finished my education doing homeschool work on the floors of airport terminals. Then I went out on the road on a radio tour, which sounds incredibly glamorous but in reality it consisted of a rental car, motels, and my mom and I pretending to have loud mother daughter fights with each other during boarding so no one would want the empty seat between us on Southwest.

小時候，我常常想著自己會去哪所大學，幻想著我會在新生宿舍牆上掛什麼樣的海報。我甚至把我夢想中的大學生活拍成了“Love Story”MV的結尾，在那裡我遇到了一個在草地上看書的男模特兒，只須看一眼，就意識到我們曾在前世相愛過，這不正是你們在過去4年中的某個時刻所經歷的，對嗎？

As a kid, I always thought I would go away to college, imagining the posters I'd hang on the wall of my freshmen dorm. I even set the ending of my music video for my song “Love Story” at my fantasy imaginary college, where I meet a male model reading a book on the grass and with one single glance, we realize we had been in love in our past lives. Which is exactly what you guys all experienced at some point in the last 4 years, right?

但我真的不能向你們抱怨自己沒有正常的大學經歷，因為你們是在疫情期間上的紐約大學，基本上被隔離在宿舍里或不得不通過Zoom上課。正常情況下，每位大學生都為考試成績感到壓力，但你們還必須通過無數次核酸檢驗。我想，擁有正常的大學經歷也是你們所渴望的。但這種情況下，我們都學到了，你不會總是得到你在外送服務菜單上所選擇的東西，這就是生活。你得到你所能得到的。正如我想對你們說的，全心全意地，你們應該為自己所做的一切感到自豪。今天你們將離開紐約大學，走向世界，尋找下一個目標。我也將如此。

But I really can't complain about not having a normal college experience to you because you went to NYU during a global pandemic, being essentially locked into your dorms or having to do classes over Zoom. Everyone in college during normal times stresses about test scores, but on top of that you also had to pass like a thousand COVID tests. I imagine the idea of a normal college experience was all you wanted too. But in this case you and I both learned that you don't always get all the things in the bag that you selected from the menu in the delivery service that is life. You get what you get. And as I would like to say to you, you should be very proud of what you've done with it. Today you leave New York University and then you go out into the world searching for what's next. And so will I.

因此作為一項規則，我盡量不給任何人提供不請自來的建議，除非是被要求的。稍後我會詳細闡述。我想，在今天這種情況下我已被正式要求傳授任何我可能擁有的智慧，並告訴你們迄今為止對我的生活有幫助的事情。請記住，我絕對沒有資格告訴你們該做什麼。你們在這里工作、奮鬥、犧牲、學習和夢想，所以，你們知道自己在做什麼。你們做事的方式和原因，也會跟我不盡相同。

So as a rule, I try not to give anyone unsolicited advice unless they ask for it. I'll go into this more later. I guess I have been officially solicited in this situation, to impart whatever wisdom I might have and tell you the things that helped me in my life so far. Please bear in mind that I, in no way, feel qualified to tell you what to do. You've worked and struggled and sacrificed and studied and dreamed your way here today and so, you know what you're doing. You'll do things differently than I did them and for different reasons.

所以我不會告訴你們該怎麼做，因為沒人喜歡這樣。

So I won't tell you what to do because no one likes that.

但我將會提供一些希望我在開始職業生涯時就能知道的生活小竅門，以及在生活、愛情、壓力、選擇、羞恥、希望和友誼的生活訣竅。

I will, however, give you some life hacks I wish I knew when I was starting out my dreams of a career, and navigating life, love, pressure, choices, shame, hope and friendship.

第一，生活可能很沉重，特別是當你試圖背負這一切的時候。

成長和進入生活新篇章的一部分，是關於抓取和釋放。我的意思是，知道什麼要保留，什麼要放手。你不能背負所有的東西，所有的怨恨，所有關於你前任的最新消息，或者校霸在他叔叔創辦的對沖基金公司中得到的所有令人羨慕的晉升。決定什麼是你要保留的，其餘的就放手吧。很多時候，生活中的美好事物總是更輕鬆，所以也有更多的空間來容納它們。而一段糟糕的關係可以重過許多美妙、簡單的快樂。你可以自由選擇哪些東西來填補你的時間和空間。請保持辨別力。

The first of which is…life can be heavy, especially if you try to carry it all at once. Part of growing up and moving into new chapters of your life is about catch and release. What I mean by that is, knowing what things to keep, and what things to release. You can't carry all things, all grudges, all updates on your ex, all enviable promotions your school bully got at the hedge fund his uncle started. Decide what is yours to hold and let the rest go. Oftentimes the good things in your life are lighter anyway, so there's more room for them. One toxic relationship can outweigh so many wonderful, simple joys. You get to pick what your life has time and room for. Be discerning.

其次，學會與尷尬或難為情共存。

無論你多麼努力地避免它們，你都會在回顧你的生活時，伴隨著尷尬或難為情。這些在一生中是無法避免的。甚至“cringe”這個詞也有朝一日可能被視為“尷尬、難為情”。我敢肯定，你們現在可能正在做著或穿著一些以後回頭看會發現反感和搞笑的東西。你們無法避免它，所以不要嘗試著去避免。例如，我有一個階段，在整個2012年，我穿得像個50年代的家庭主婦。但你們知道嗎？我當時很開心。潮流趨勢和人生階段是有趣的。回頭看，笑一笑也很有趣。

Secondly, learn to live alongside cringe. No matter how hard you try to avoid being cringe, you will look back on your life and cringe retrospectively. Cringe is unavoidable over a lifetime. Even the term 'cringe' might someday be deemed 'cringe.' I promise you, you're probably doing or wearing something right now that you will look back on later and find revolting and hilarious. You can't avoid it, so don't try to. For example, I had a phase where, for the entirety of 2012, I dressed like a 1950s housewife. But you know what? I was having fun. Trends and phases are fun. Looking back and laughing is fun.

當我們談論讓我們感到不安但實際上不應該的事情時，我想說的是，我是一個提倡不隱藏對事物的熱情的提倡者。在我看來，熱情在我們的“無憂無慮的矛盾心理”文化中有一種虛假的污名，這種態度延續了這樣的想法， “想要”是不酷的，認為不努力的人從根本上講比努力的人更時髦。我無法知道，因為我做過很多事情，但我從來都不是“時髦”方面的專家。但我是那個站在這裡的人，所以當我這樣說時，你必須聽：永遠不要為嘗試感到羞恥。不勞而獲是一個神話。最不想嘗試的人只是我高中時想約會和成為朋友的人，而最想嘗試的人是我現在僱用來為我的公司工作的人。

And while we're talking about things that make us squirm but really shouldn't, I'd like to say that I'm a big advocate for not hiding your enthusiasm for things. It seems to me that there is a false stigma around eagerness in our culture of 'unbothered ambivalence.' This outlook perpetuates the idea that it's not cool to 'want it.' That people who don't try hard are fundamentally more chic than people who do. And I wouldn't know because I have been a lot of things but I've never been an expert on 'chic.' But I'm the one who's up here so you have to listen to me when I say this: Never be ashamed of trying. Effortlessness is a myth. The people who wanted it the least were the ones I wanted to date and be friends with in high school. The people who want it most are the people I now hire to work for my company.

我從12歲時開始寫歌，從那時起，它就成為了我生活的指南針，反過來，我的生活也指導了我的創作。我所做的一切都只是我創作的延伸，無論是導演視頻還是短片，為巡演創造視覺效果，還是站在舞台上表演。這一切都與我對這項工作的熱愛有關，讓我獲得通過理清想法、縮小範圍、並將其打磨成功的快感。編輯。半夜醒來，摒棄舊的想法，只是因為你想到了一個全新的、更好的想法。一個情節設置，將整個故事聯繫到一起。他們稱之為“hook”是有原因的。有時單單一串文字就會讓我深陷其中，在它被記錄或寫下來之前無法專注於任何事情。

I started writing songs when I was twelve and since then, it's been the compass guiding my life, and in turn, my life guided my writing. Everything I do is just an extension of my writing, whether it's directing videos or a short film, creating the visuals for a tour, or standing on stage performing. Everything is connected by my love of the craft, the thrill of working through ideas and narrowing them down and polishing it all up in the end. Editing. Waking up in the middle of the night and throwing out the old idea because you just thought of a newer, better one. A plot device that ties the whole thing together. There's a reason they call it a hook. Sometimes a string of words just ensnares me and I can't focus on anything until it's been recorded or written down.

作為一個作詞者，我不能坐以待斃、或者在一個創意區停駐太久。我已經製作並發行了11張專輯，在這過程中，我轉換許多種類，從鄉村到流行，到另類、再到民謠。這好像一個非常作詞曲者中心的討論，但某種程度來說，我真的認為我們都是作家。大多數的我們都會在不同的情況下用不同的聲音寫作，你在Instagram的限時內容與你的畢業論文中的不同。你向老闆發送的電子郵件與給你家人、最好的朋友的電子郵件是不同的。我們都是文學的變色龍，而我認為這很迷人，這只是大多時候，我們想法多面性的延續。而且我知道，搞清楚要成為誰、何時成為、你現在是誰、要如何行動才能到達你想去的地方，這些會讓人不知所措。對此我有一些好消息：這完全取決於你。但我還有一些可怕的消息：這完全取決於你。

As a songwriter I've never been able to sit still, or stay in one creative place for too long. I've made and released 11 albums and in the process, I've switched genres from country to pop to alternative to folk. This might sound like a very songwriter-centric line of discussion but in a way, I really do think we are all writers. And most of us write in a different voice for different situations. You write differently in your Instagram stories than you do your senior thesis. You send a different type of email to your boss than you do your best friend from home. We are all literary chameleons and I think it's fascinating. It's just a continuation of the idea that we are so many things, all the time. And I know it can be really overwhelming figuring out who to be, and when. Who you are now and how to act in order to get where you want to go. I have some good news: it's totally up to you. I also have some terrifying news: it's totally up to you.

我先前說過，除非有人要求，我從來不提供建議，現在我會告訴你們為什麼。作為一個15歲就開始我眾所周知的職業生涯的人，是有代價的。這個代價就是多年不請自來的建議。在十多年來，作為每個房間裡最年輕的人，意味著我不斷收到音樂界的前輩、媒體、記者和高管的警告。這些建議常常以隱晦的警告形式出現。看，我那時還是一個在我們的社會完全沉迷於擁有完美年輕女性榜樣的想法時的青少年。感覺就像我所做的每一次採訪，都包括記者對我有一天“脫軌”的輕微挖苦，這對每個來對我說的人也意味著不同的事情。因此，我成為了一個年輕的大人，同時被灌輸了這樣一個信息：如果我不犯任何錯誤，美國所有的孩子長大都會成為完美的天使。但是，如果我真的出錯了，整個地球都會從它的軸心上掉下來，這完全是我的錯，我會永遠永遠地被關進流行歌星的監獄。這一切都圍繞著這樣一個想法，即犯錯等於失敗，最終失去了任何幸福或有意義的生活的機會。

I said to you earlier that I don't ever offer advice unless someone asks me for it, and now I'll tell you why. As a person who started my very public career at the age of 15, it came with a price. And that price was years of unsolicited advice. Being the youngest person in every room for over a decade meant that I was constantly being issued warnings from older members of the music industry, the media, interviewers, executives. This advice often presented itself as thinly veiled warnings. See, I was a teenager in the public eye at a time when our society was absolutely obsessed with the idea of having perfect young female role models. It felt like every interview I did included slight barbs by the interviewer about me one day 'running off the rails.' That meant a different thing to everyone person said it me.So I became a young adult while being fed the message that if I didn't make any mistakes, all the children of America would grow up to be perfect angels. However, if I did slip up, the entire earth would fall off its axis and it would be entirely my fault and I would go to pop star jail forever and ever. It was all centered around the idea that mistakes equal failure and ultimately, the loss of any chance at a happy or rewarding life.

但我的經驗卻並非如此。我的經驗是，我的錯誤也帶來了生命中那些最美好的事情。當我們搞砸了某件事情而感到尷尬也是必要的人生體驗。重新站起來，撣撣灰塵，然後看看誰在經歷磨難之後仍願意跟你站在一起，並一起笑對磨難的人，那是個命運的禮物。回頭看那些我被拒絕、被排斥、落選、失敗、未晉級的時刻，就會體會到被否定和被肯定一樣重要，甚至更重要。

This has not been my experience. My experience has been that my mistakes led to the best things in my life. And being embarrassed when you mess up is part of the human experience. Getting back up, dusting yourself off and seeing who still wants to hang out with you afterward and laugh about it? That's a gift. The times I was told no or wasn't included, wasn't chosen, didn't win, didn't make the cut…looking back, it really feels like those moments were as important, if not more crucial, than the moments I was told 'yes.'

在家鄉的時候，沒有被邀請去參加派對或過夜，讓我感到深深的孤獨，也正是因為孤獨，我才能夠坐在房間裡去寫歌，拿到其他地方的入場卷。納什維爾的唱片公司高管跟我說，只有35歲的家庭主婦才會聽鄉村音樂，而且他們的花名冊也沒有一個十三歲小孩的位置，讓我在回家的車上哭了。但後來，我把我的歌曲放到了MySpace上，沒錯，就是MySpace，同時也在跟上面的其他和我一樣喜愛鄉村音樂的年輕人互相留言，卻找不到一首歌能唱出他們的心聲。有很多記者撰寫關於我的文章都是具批評性的，這讓我覺得自己彷彿生活在一種奇怪的模擬世界中，但也讓我開始自省，去了解真正的我到底是什麼樣的人。在整個世界看我的感情生活就像看球賽一樣，而且我每一場都輸了，在我十幾二十歲的時候，可不是一個很好的約會方式；但也教會我如何無畏地保護好我的私生活。年輕時經歷無數次地公開羞辱，雖然讓當時的我非常痛苦，但也迫使我快速地學會了不要在意那些荒謬可笑的言論，看淡那些分秒必爭、不斷波動的社會相關性和大眾好感度。那次被取消幾乎毀掉了我的事業，但也讓我成為了一名出色的品酒師。

Not being invited to the parties and sleepovers in my hometown made me feel hopelessly lonely, but because I felt alone, I would sit in my room and write the songs that would get me a ticket somewhere else. Having label executives in Nashville tell me that only 35 year old housewives listen to country music and there was no place for a 13 year old on their roster made me cry in the car on the way home. But then I'd post my songs on my MySpace and yes, MySpace, and would message with other teenagers like me who loved country music, but just didn't have anyone singing from their perspective. Having journalists write in-depth, oftentimes critical, pieces about who they perceive me to be made me feel like I was living in some weird simulation, but it also made me look inward to learn about who I actually am. Having the world treat my love life like a spectator sport in which I lose every single game was not a great way to date in my teens and twenties, but it taught me to protect my private life fiercely. Being publicly humiliated over and over again at a young age was excruciatingly painful but it forced me to devalue the ridiculous notion of minute by minute, ever fluctuating social relevance and likability. Getting canceled on the internet and nearly losing my career gave me an excellent knowledge of all the types of wine.

我知道我聽起來像一個完美的樂觀主義者，但我真的不是。我經常失去方向。有時一切都感覺完全沒有意義。我知道從完美主義的角度過好自己的生活所帶來的壓力。我知道我正在和一群完美主義者交談，因為你們今天是從紐約大學畢業的。所以你們這些話，你們可能很難接受：在你們的生活中，你不可避免地會說錯話，相信錯誤的人，反應過慢，反應過度，傷害不該傷害的人，過度思考，根本不思考，自我破壞，創造一個只有你經驗存在的現實，毀掉自己和他人的完美時光，否認任何錯誤，不採取措施糾正，感到非常內疚，讓內疚吞噬你，跌入谷底，最終設法解決你造成的痛苦，嘗試下次做得更好，洗滌，反覆。我也沒打算撒謊，這些錯誤會導致你失去一些東西。

I know I sound like a consummate optimist, but I'm really not. I lose perspective all the time. Sometimes everything just feels completely pointless. I know the pressure of living your life through the lens of perfectionism. And I know that I'm talking to a group of perfectionists because you are here today graduating from NYU. And so this may be hard for you to hear: In your life, you will inevitably misspeak, trust the wrong people, under-react, overreact, hurt the people who didn't deserve it, overthink, not think at all, self sabotage, create a reality where only your experience exists, ruin perfectly good moments for yourself and others, deny any wrongdoing, not take the steps to make it right, feel very guilty, let the guilt eat at you, hit rock bottom, finally address the pain you caused, try to do better next time, rinse, repeat.And I'm not gonna lie, these mistakes will cause you to lose things.

我想告訴你們，失去東西並不僅僅意味著失去。很多時候，當我們失去一些東西時，我們也會收穫到一些東西。

I'm trying to tell you that losing things doesn't just mean losing. A lot of the time, when we lose things, we gain things too.

現在你們離開了學校的條條框框，開始規劃自己的道路。你們的每一個選擇都會導致下一個選擇，而下一個選擇又會引至再下一個選擇，我也知道有時很難知道該走哪條路。生活中總會有需要為自己挺身而出的時候；那些當正確的做法是退縮和道歉的時候；那些當正確的做法是戰鬥的時候；那些當正確的做法是轉身逃跑的時候。那些需要我們全力以赴的堅持的時候，那些需要優雅的放手的時候。有時，正確的做法是拋棄老舊的思想、以進步和改革的名義。有時，正確的做法是聽取前人的智慧。但，你們又怎麼會知道在這些關鍵時刻時，正確的選擇是什麼呢？你不會知道的。

Now you leave the structure and framework of school and chart your own path. Every choice you make leads to the next choice which leads to the next, and I know it's hard to know sometimes which path to take. There will be times in life when you need to stand up for yourself. Times when the right thing is to back down and apologize. Times when the right thing is to fight, times when the right thing is to turn and run. Times to hold on with all you have and times to let go with grace. Sometimes the right thing to do is to throw out the old schools of thought in the name of progress and reform. Sometimes the right thing to do is to listen to the wisdom of those who have come before us. How will you know what the right choice is in these crucial moments? You won't.

我又該怎麼給這麼多人提供人生選擇的建議呢？我不會的。壞消息是，你們現在要靠自己了。好消息是，你們現在終於可以靠自己了。

How do I give advice to this many people about their life choices? I won't. Scary news is: you're on your own now. Cool news is: You're on your own now.

我給大家最後留下這些話：我們是被內心深處的本能、直覺、慾望、恐懼、傷疤和夢想所引導的。有時你們會搞砸事情，我也一樣。而當我搞砸的時候，你們大概都會在網路上看到。無論如何……困難的事情都會發生在我們身上。我們會走出困境，我們會吸取教訓，我們也會因此變得更有韌性。

I leave you with this: We are led by our gut instincts, our intuition, our desires and fears, our scars and our dreams. And you will screw it up sometimes. So will I. And when I do, you will most likely read about on the internet. Anyway…hard things will happen to us. We will recover. We will learn from it. We will grow more resilient because of it.

只要我們有幸還在呼吸，我們就會吸氣、呼吸、深呼吸、呼氣。我現在作為一名“doctor”，所以我知道呼吸是如何運作的。

As long as we are fortunate enough to be breathing, we will breathe in, breathe through, breathe deep, breathe out. And I'm a doctor now, so I know how breathing works.

我希望你們知道我是多麼榮幸能和你們分享這一天。我們會一起完成這件事，就讓我們一起跳舞，就像2022屆學生那樣吧！

I hope you know how proud I am to share this day with you. We're doing this together. So let's just keep dancing like we're…the class of 22.