June 8th
六月八日
Dear Haiqing,
亲爱的老师，
I hear you are very unhappy these days because your parents cant afford to buy you some brand-name shoes and garments you like very much. And I write you this letter to share with you what I think about this matter.
我听说你这几天很不高兴，因为你的父母买不起你喜欢的名牌鞋和衣服。我写这封信给你，告诉你我对这件事的想法。
To begin with, beauty is just skin deep. Dont you think it silly to pay so much attention to your appearance? He is a shallow person who judges others by their appearance; in the same sense, he is a shallow person who thinks that a brand-name garment can add to his glamour. So please, just forget about those brand-name things. What really matters is not whether you wear brand-name shoes or garments but whether your clothes fit you. As a student, you have to wear the school uniform on the weekdays and to be honest, you look very smart in it. Then why do you have to bother to buy the expensive brand-name things?
首先，美只是皮肤的深层。难道你不觉得很傻地去关注你的外表吗？他是一个肤浅的人，他们的外表来判断别人；在同样的意义上，他是一个浅薄的人，他认为一件名牌服装可以增加他的魅力。所以请，忘记那些名牌的东西。真正重要的不是你穿什么名牌鞋子或衣服，而是你的衣服是否适合你。作为一名学生，你必须在工作日穿校服，诚实，你看起来很聪明。那么，为什么你要买昂贵的名牌东西呢？
Secondly, I know your parents are both average workers. Hard as they work, they dont earn much. Despite this, they do their best to give you a lot of things on demand. Look at the callus on their hands and wrinkles on their faces, how can you have the heart to ask for more than they can afford, which will surely break their hearts? Remember, parents dont owe us expensive summer camps; they dont owe us Sony Walkman; nor do they owe us Nike shoes, If you really want those fancy things, you should take a part-time job to contribute to their purchase rather than ask your parents for money to add to their already heavy burden. Dont you think so?
其次，我知道你的父母都是普通工人。他们工作很辛苦，他们挣的钱不多。尽管如此，他们还是尽了最大的努力给你很多东西。看看他们脸上的痂，脸上的皱纹，你怎么能有能力要求他们超过他们能承受的，这肯定会打破他们的心？记住，父母不欠我们昂贵的夏令营；他们不欠我们的索尼随身听；他们也不欠我们的耐克鞋，如果你真的想要那些花哨的东西，你应该做一份兼职工作来促进其购买而不是问你的钱来增加他们的父母已经沉重的负担。你不这么认为吗？
Thirdly, we have such a wide variety of things available these days which are both nice and inexpensive. Whats the point of paying much more for those brand-name things that are not much better? My friend, take my advice, and youll be a wiser consumer as well as a more considerate child to your parents.
第三，我们有各种各样的东西，这是很好的和廉价的。对于那些不太好的东西，要付更多的东西是什么呢？我的朋友，接受我的建议，你会是一个更聪明的消费者，以及一个更体贴的孩子，你的父母。
poverty, sometimes, is a good thing. It can test a persons character and it makes a man out of a boy faster than anything else. Keep working hard, and you are bound to be able to afford those things in the near future. Now you may as well focus on your study. Anyway, wouldnt it be funny for a would-be achiever to be so preoccupied with brand-name things all day long?
贫穷，有时，是一件好事。它可以测试一个人的性格，它使一个人的男孩比其他任何东西都快。继续努力，你一定会在不久的将来能承受这些东西。现在你可以把重点放在你的学习上。总之，不会是一个有趣的可能的成就是如此关注名牌的东西一整天？
Keep in touch.
保持联络
Yours
你的
Huangping
黄屏