Lost in Translation

“Beating someone is to care for someone and scolding someone is an expression of love…” – Estee Teo

This translation is so direct, which keeps me wondering if the author meant that way when he wrote it. There is indeed a Chinese term called “打是情骂是爱 (da shi qing, ma shi ai)”. But according to my understanding, the sentence has a different meaning. Translation appears deceptively easy if you have mastered two languages well enough. My translation lecturer Mr Shaun Yeo once said

“It is easy to speak fluently in two languages, but it takes twice the time to build the bridge in between.”

Isn’t it true that when we can easily get eggs, flour and water, but it take a great amount of efforts to make a cake out of these materials? And isn’t it true that when we missed an opportunity we considered great in our life later to discover there are even greater blessings from God?

There are many things seemingly bad in our lives, on the surface, they are nothing but bad. I could remember those times when my dad spanked me for what I did and my mom scolded me again and again for playing computer games. I was angry with them then for I did not understand what it took to discipline someone, only now have I started to thank my parents for what they have done in my life, realizing that my life could never be the same if they didn’t take courage to correct my ways in the past.

I always wonder if I could go back in time, to learn tolerance, to hold my anger when my parents disciplined me. But focusing on the things we don’t have forces us to have a mentality of “lacking”, and that does not help in our growth, while concentrating on the things we have already had helps us to grow in a direction where our life could be filled with thanksgiving and never be emptied again. It is interesting how the world has changed so much these days where people live in denial and materialism. Craving for power, longing for more and more in whatever way it can be. It is good to have big goals in life, but it is another matter to not be content all the time, just to seek that little thing in our life .

From the translation, we can see the philosophies people have towards life, which could be from the past experience as a student or working. There is a sense of straightforwardness in the expression that was being translated here, without much to be concerned and being thought of. Complexity makes things easy while simplicity gives extra complexity to the current problems.

From my understanding, the translation of that Chinese term is “It shows affection when you hit someone, and even love exists in scolding a person”.

life, fulfilment, translation, philosophy, love

I, Emmo

I started to write fewer posts these days. Not only have I realized that publishing posts of quality which provide materials for people to ponder, writing news around the region which would otherwise be buried is more helpful than simply blurting out my immediate thoughts, but also has I been consumed by these posts by Estee with recent ones

“I was the heartbreaker” And “Walking Away Alive”

Funny Sad Angry Blue Joyful Poetic Insightful Past Future Bright

Grown up in an environment where logical thinking and fact-based argument are required of me, still I will be sentimental from time to time - when my thoughts pile and feelings gather, the surge of emotion overtaking my logic. That’s when my instinct betrays my decision, my actions go against my thinking.

“Don’t be that emotional, that’s only a movie!” My friends often say that to me when I shed tears for the genuine love of a mother for her children, celebrate the success of an underdog - enormous efforts and faith, or feel the pain a friend suffered from losing his best friend. Words and phrases used in the movie, songs sang at the end of a show make my emotion go unleashed before it hits a halt, with a trail of impacts done, being them good or bad.

Deprivation of being emotional in the past makes me more emotional nowadays, though I am not good at articulating my emotion yet. However, I discover when I share with my friends my emotion, there are several rules governing the content:

1. The state of mind at that moment shapes my words. After watching an M18 movie, I get excited and intrigued by the content, thus what tell my friends would be more direct, in a storyteller’s tone. Hearing a friend’s sharing about her difficulty in choosing modules and filing for graduation, I will naturally become caring and encouraging. When I hear floods took away thousands of life in China, the voice of mine will sound small in personality yet defensive in tone. Remember my listener does not have the same knowledge as I do.
2. There is a underlying criticism about myself. The criticism might be directed towards an incident, a person’s actions, a nation’s attitude, and most of the time – me myself. I need to be perfect, whatever is below the par is not acceptable. Though I start lowering my expectation in my life, that small voice asking me to remain competitive, keep perfectionism still sticks somewhere in my mind. Trying to accept, learning to commit and working to excel.
3. Struggle between emotion and logic. Striking a balancing between emotion and logic thinking is some tough job for me. When I write to people or speak with friends, the idea of “Peter, don’t be too emotional” or “Peter that’s too logical” will hit my tongue and hand so hard that I could barely speak out what is in my mind. Pick one side, and be aware of the existence of the other side.

God has blessed us with emotions in life. Every one of us shall find a way to channel them out and refresh ourselves with new positive ones in life, because we are first emotional being before we could think and talk logically.

Today, are you emotional enough?

emotion, love, standard, self criticism, logic