Left and Right Don't Exist

左和右其實并不存在

The first lesson I learned as a student pilot is that left and right don’t exist. Maybe driving on a highway or in a parking lot, left and right is precise enough to describe the location and movements of slow-moving bikers, pedestrians, and cars. But at 36,000 feet in the air in a steel tube hurdling almost 200 miles an hour? Left and right just don’t cut it.

作為一名飛行學員，我學到的第一個教訓是，左和右其實是不存在的。也許在高速公路上或停車場上行駛，左右方向足夠精確，可以讓你描述緩慢移動的自行車手、行人和汽車的位置和運動。但是在36000英尺（1萬米）的高空，在一個時速近200英里（321千米）的鋼管中飛行時，左右真的不重要。

During one of my first flights in a small Cessna-182, my flight instructor ordered me to scan the horizon for approaching aircrafts. To my right, I caught a glimpse of one: another Cessna with maroon stripes, the sun’s reflection glinting off its windows. Gesturing vaguely to my two o’clock, I informed my flying instructor, “There’s a plane to the right.”

在我乘坐小型塞斯納-182飛機的第一次飛行中，飛行教練命令我掃描地平線，尋找接近我的飛機。在我的右邊，我瞥見了另一架帶栗色條紋的塞斯納，太陽的反射正從它窗戶上閃爍。我模糊地指著兩點鐘方向，告訴飛行教練，“右邊有一架飛機?！?/span>

“No, to your right. From his position, what direction does he see you?” From his angle, I was to his left. In that moment, I realized that perspective and precision of language is everything. The radio chirped: “Cessna One-Eight-Two Sandra, heading north to John Wayne Airport. Over.”

“不，是你的右邊。從他的位置看，你的方向是什么？”從他的角度看，我在他的左邊。在那一刻，我意識到角度和語言的準確性是多么重要。無線電里嘰嘰喳喳地說：“塞斯納182桑德拉，向北去約翰·韋恩機場。完畢。”

I navigate using my compass’s north, east, south, and west directions because every pilot’s vantage point differs from each other both vertically and horizontally, creating opposite perspectives. My right was that pilot’s left.

我使用指南針的東、南、西、北方向進行導航，因為每個飛行員的有利位置在垂直和水平方向上都不同，從而產(chǎn)生了相反的視角。我的右邊就是那個飛行員的左邊。

Through flying, I began to consider all points of view, regardless of my personal perspective.Perhaps it was my ability to scan the horizon, to communicate a single story, uniting contrasting outlooks, that drew me to my love for journalism and the diverse melting pot that was my community.

通過飛行，我開始考慮所有的觀點，不管我個人的觀點是什么。也許正是因為我有能力掃視地平線，傳達一個故事，并綜合不同的觀點，才讓我愛上了新聞業(yè)和我所在社區(qū)這樣一個多元化的大熔爐。

To me, journalism modernizes the ancient power of storytelling, filled with imperfect characters and intricate conflicts to which I am the narrator. As editor-in-chief for my school newspaper, The Wildcat’s Tale, I aim to share the uncensored perspective of all students and encourage my editorial groups to talk — and listen — to those with whom they disagree. Starting each newspaper edition with a socratic, round-table discussion, I ask the other journalists to pursue stories that answer the questions: why did this happen and where will it lead?

對我來說，新聞業(yè)現(xiàn)代化了古老的講故事的力量，充滿了不完美的人物和復雜的沖突，而我是其中的敘述者。作為校報《野貓的故事》的主編，我的目標是分享所有學生未經(jīng)審查的觀點，并鼓勵編輯團隊與意見相左的人交談，并傾聽他們的意見。我們每一期報紙都以蘇格拉底式的圓桌討論開始，并請其他記者繼續(xù)報道相關的故事來回答這一問題：為什么會發(fā)生這種情況，它會導致什么結果？

Expanding beyond the perspectives of my classmates, I began writing articles for the Korea Daily, and later, the Los Angeles Times High School Insider. I schedule interviews with city council candidates, young and old voters, and mayors of my town, obtaining quotes and anecdotes to weave into my writing. My interviews with both Democratic and Republican voters have taught me to thoroughly report polarizing-opposite opinions through an unbiased lens. As a journalist, I realized I cannot presume the opinions of the reader, but instead simply provide them with the tools necessary to formulate their own conclusions.

超越我同學的視角，我開始為《韓國日報》以及后來的《洛杉磯時報高中內幕》撰寫文章。我安排了對市議會候選人、年輕選民和老年選民以及我所在城市市長的采訪，獲取引用和軼事，以融入我的寫作當中。我對民主黨和共和黨選民的采訪教會了自己如何通過公正的視角徹底報道兩極分化的對立觀點。作為一名記者，我意識到自己不能假設讀者的觀點，而只是為他們提供必要的工具，讓他們得出自己的結論。

However, differences in perspective in my articles are not solely limited to politics. I found that in my suburban community, people love to read about the small-town hospitality of their own friends and neighbors. Quirky traditions, like our Fourth of July carnival clown and local elementary school’s Thanksgiving talent show, are equally as important to me as national headlines are. My favorite stories to publish are the ones taped onto fridges, proudly framed on the mom-and-pop downtown diner, or pinned into the corkboard in my teacher’s classroom. I discovered the size of my story does not matter, but the impact I leave on the reader does.

然而，在我的文章中，不同的觀點不僅僅局限于政治。我發(fā)現(xiàn)，在我的郊區(qū)社區(qū)，人們喜歡閱讀關于他們自己的朋友和鄰居在小鎮(zhèn)上熱情好客的故事。古怪的傳統(tǒng)，比如七月四日狂歡節(jié)小丑和當?shù)匦W的感恩節(jié)才藝表演，對我來說和全國頭條新聞一樣重要。我最喜歡發(fā)表的故事是貼在冰箱上的故事，驕傲地掛在市中心夫妻餐廳上的故事，或者釘在我老師教室的軟木板上的故事。我發(fā)現(xiàn)故事的大小并不重要，但我對讀者的影響確實重要。

In my time as both a student pilot and journalist, I grew to love these stories, the ones that showed me that living life with blinders, can not only be boring, but dangerous. Whether I was 36,000 feet in the air or on ground level, by flying and writing, I realized that the most interesting stories of life come straight from the people most different from me.

在我擔任學生飛行學員和記者的那段時間里，我逐漸喜歡上了這些故事，這些故事告訴我，“蒙著眼睛”生活不僅無聊，而且非常危險。無論我是在36000英尺的高空還是在地面，通過飛行和寫作，我意識到生活中最有趣的故事都直接來自與我最不同的人。

Admissions Committee Comments

招生委員會的評論：

Stella begins this essay by discussing her experience learning to fly. This anecdote, however, is less about the act itself as it is what the experience taught her in regards to perspective and points of view. She’s then able to connect these takeaways to another aspect of her life – her love of journalism. As she shares more information about her approach and impact with journalism, she makes it clear that those lessons from flying are ever-present in her work. From listening to others’ ideas and points of view in the newspaper editing room to looking at stories from a balanced and thoughtful perspective, we’re able to learn a good deal about how she approaches not just her passions, but her community as well. This essay is able to add to the whole application by sharing with us some new passions and expanding on some of her impact, but its main focus is how she was able to apply lessons from one experience to other aspects of her life. As we think about what type of member Stella will be in our community, this essay helps us understand that she’ll be someone willing to listen, learn, apply those learnings, and make an impact.

斯特拉（Stella）在這篇文章的開頭討論了她學習飛行的經(jīng)歷。然而，這則軼事并不是關于行為本身的，因為這是她從經(jīng)驗中學到的視角和觀點。然后，她能夠將這些收獲與生活的另一個方面聯(lián)系起來，即與她對新聞的熱愛聯(lián)系起來。隨著她分享更多自己處理新聞的方法和對新聞業(yè)的影響，她明確表示，飛行的經(jīng)驗教訓永遠存在于她的各種工作中。從在報紙編輯室聽取他人的想法和觀點，到以平衡和深思熟慮的角度看待每個故事，我們能夠了解到她如何對待自己的激情以及社區(qū)。這篇文章能夠通過分享一些新的激情和擴展斯特拉的一些影響來增加整個申請的成功率，但文章的主要焦點是斯特拉如何能夠將一次經(jīng)歷中的經(jīng)驗教訓應用到生活的其他方面。當我們思考斯特拉將成為我們社區(qū)的什么樣的成員時，這篇文章能幫助我們了解她是一個愿意傾聽、學習和應用這些知識并產(chǎn)生影響的人。

筆者的點評：

本文的寫作視角非常巧妙，作者Stella從一次飛行學習開始寫起，并說有時候左和右其實并不存在，而只是看待事物的角度不同。然后，她講述了自己擔任記者的經(jīng)歷，比如作為校報《野貓的故事》的主編，開始為《韓國日報》以及后來的《洛杉磯時報高中內幕》撰寫文章，安排對市議會候選人、年輕選民和老年選民以及我所在城市市長的采訪等等。通過這些經(jīng)歷，我學會了如何通過公正的視角徹底報道兩極分化的對立觀點。作為一名記者，我意識到自己不能假設讀者的觀點，而只是為他們提供必要的工具，讓他們得出自己的結論。另外，通過閱讀和寫作故事，我發(fā)現(xiàn)故事的大小并不重要，但我對讀者的影響確實重要。

總之，在創(chuàng)作一篇文書時，可以多發(fā)散思維，創(chuàng)造性地思維，從某個小事說起，而不是就事論事，宏觀的東西講一堆。要多思考不同事物之間的內在聯(lián)系。比如這篇文章將飛行和新聞聯(lián)系起來，本身就非常地特別和創(chuàng)新。另外，我們需要批判性地思維，而不是盲從和堅持一個觀點，要學會從不同的視角看待某個事物。