如果时光倒流，我会告诉21岁的自己，一个人的幸福在懂得，生活不只是一份漂亮的成绩单；你的资格证书、个人简历也不是你的生活——尽管你会看到很多与我同龄，甚至比我还大的人将这些东西与幸福划等号。生活艰难而复杂，出乎任何人的掌控；只有谦逊地认识到这一点，你才能安然度过生活中的潮起潮落。
至于为什么选择第二个主题——想象力的重要性，你们可能会认为是因为它在我生活的重建过程中所起到的作用，但事实并非完全如此。虽然我愿誓死捍卫睡前故事对孩子想象力的重要性，但自己对想象力的理解已经更广泛了。想象力是人类独有的设想未知的能力，它还是所有发明创造的源泉。事实证明，想象力是最富变革性和启示性的力量，也正是这种力量会让我们同情他人的不幸遭遇——即使我们并未经历过。
读书笔记
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7.布什就里根总统病逝发表讲话（节选）
This is a sad hour in the life of America. A great American life has come to an end.
I have just spoken to Nancy Reagan on behalf of our whole nation， Laura and I offered her and the Reagan family， our prayers and our condolences.
Ronald Reagan won America's respect with his greatness and won its love with his goodness. He had the confidence that comes with conviction， the strength that comes with character， the grace that comes with humility， and humor that comes with wisdom.He leaves behind a nation he restored and a world he helped save.
During the years of President Reagan， America laid to rest an era of division and self-doubt. And because of his leadership， the world laid to rest an era of fear and tyranny.Now， in laying our leader to rest， we say“thank you”.
He always told us that， for America， the best was yet to come. We comfort ourselves in the knowledge that this is true for him， too.His work is done， and now， a shining city awaits him.
May God bless Ronald Reagon.
这是美国历史上的一个悲痛时刻。一个伟大的美国生命走到了尽头。我刚才与南茜·里根通过电话。我和罗拉代表全国人民为南茜和里根家族祈祷，并表达慰问之情。
罗纳德·里根以其伟绩赢得美国人民的尊敬。以其美德赢得美国人民的爱戴。他拥有由信念而生的自信、由个性而生的力量，由谦逊而生的优雅，以及由智慧而生的幽默。他留下了一个复兴的国家，一个他拯救过的世界。
里根总统任职期间，美国告别了分歧和缺乏自信的年代。由于他的领导，世界结束了恐惧与暴政的时代。现在，在我们这位领袖要安息之时，我们要对他说一声：“谢谢！”
他总是告诉我们：美国最美好的日子还在后头。我们慰藉自己，对他来说也是如此。他的使命已经完成，现在，等待他的是一个辉煌之城。
愿主保佑罗纳德·里根。
读书笔记
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8.里克·瓦格纳在杜克大学毕业典礼上的演讲（节选）
In my experience， in life and in business， in dealing with education and working with government leaders， there are actually lots of really smart people out there. What distinguishes those who are truly leaders， those who really contribute in government， in medicine， in education， in business， in the arts， is passion and enthusiasm.
You see， being successful in any field， is hard work. Being successful requires not only that you learn everything you can about your chosen field， but that you apply your knowledge with a passion and enthusiasm that affects others， and engages them as well.
In today's highly collaborative workplace， few great things are accomplished by individuals alone. Just like in college basketball， you need great teams， and you need people who can inspire those teams and lead those teams to greater heights.
Enthusiasm is contagious. Your goal should be to start the epidemic.But， I should tell you， that even with knowledge， passion， and contagious enthusiasm， you are going to face some tough challenges in some tough days.A year and a half ago， some of the so-called“experts”were claiming that General Motors was headed for bankruptcy， and I ought to be fired.Those were some tough days for me.Even great institutions like mine， and now your alma mater， Duke University， encounter challenging times， like over the last year.
But the real successful people， the real contributor， the really great institutions， like Duke University and General Motors， have another important characteristic， which is persistence and resilience. No matter how great the challenge， no matter how dark the future seems， the best people， the really successful people， simply do not give up.
经验告诉我，无论是生活中还是商场上，无论是教育领域还是政府机构，确实有很多聪明绝顶的人。而无论在政府、医药、教育、商业还是艺术领域，真正的领导者、真正在行业内作出贡献的那些人成功的关键，就是对工作的激情和热忱。
你们知道，任何成功都需要付出艰辛的努力。取得成功不仅需要过硬的专业知识，更需要在运用知识的过程中，充满激情和热忱，并让他人也受你的感染、全身心地投入。
在今天需要高度合作的工作中，大多数事情都需要团体合作才能完成。正如在大学打篮球一样，谁都需要一支优秀的团队，需要一个能够激励他人、领导团队不断进取的人物。
热忱是可以互相感染的，而你们就应该成为那些传播热忱的人们。不过，需要提醒你们的是，即便有了知识、有了热情、有了可以感染他人的热忱，你们仍会面临挑战。
一年半之前，一些所谓的“专家”宣称通用公司濒临破产，而我也应该下台。在这段时间里，我度日如年。即使是一些了不起的机构，比如我们的母校杜克大学，也曾面临过挑战，比如在去年。
然而，那些成功者、奉献者和真正伟大的机构——比如杜克大学和通用汽车公司，还具备更重要的特质：坚持不懈，能屈能伸。不管面临多大的挑战，不管前景看上去多么悲观，那些优秀的人、真正的成功者也决不放弃。
9.用发展的眼光看中国（节选）
My beloved motherland is a country both old and young.
She is old， because she is a big oriental country with a civilization stretching back several thousand years. With diligence and wisdom， the Chinese nation created a splendid civilization and made significant contributions to the progress of humanity.
She is young， because the People's Republic is just 60 years old， and the country began reform and opening up only 30 years ago. The Chinese people established the New China after unremitting struggles and ultimately found a development path suited to China's national conditions through painstaking efforts.This is the path of socialism with Chinese characteristics.Following this path， our ancient civilization has been rejuvenated.