中国日报外籍专家的“抗疫”故事 II

The novel corona virus’ ultimate impact remains a question mark. But the responses from the government, society and the international community have been exclamation points.

新冠肺炎疫情的最终影响力还不得而知，但中国政府、社会和国际社会的反应已彰显出来。

This increases the likelihood that a final period will, hopefully, be placed on this chapter sooner.

因此疫情应该很快就能终结。

Few countries could mobilize such a rapid and comprehensive response so quickly. Nimble seems the right word. That is, with flexibility, speed and efficacy.

很少有国家能这样反应迅速。用来形容灵活、快速和高效的nimble一词可以用在这里。

I realized this while spending the Spring Festival holiday in one of the least-developed, and one of my favorite, countries out of around 30 I’ve traveled to.

今年春节，我在一个世界最不发达的国家之一度过，但那里也是我最喜欢的国家之一。

Great place. But it couldn’t respond like China could — and is.

当时我就意识到，虽然那个国家很好，但无法像中国一样对疫情的反应如此迅速。

It was a firsthand reminder that China’s responses matter beyond its borders.

我亲身体会到中国的反应会对外国产生影响。

China’s reaction serves as an example of how its governance and social management are working well not only for the country but also for the world. 

中国的做法树立了榜样，体现出行政和社会管理如何为国家和世界服务。

At the same time, organizations and experts around the globe are cooperating at new levels to maximize our species’ ability to deal with such outbreaks. These results will continue to contribute long after the current virus. 

同时，全球不同组织和专家的合作也达到一个新程度，释放出最大的能力应对疫情。这些都将在疫情结束后产生长远影响。

And more outbreaks will come.

更多的疫情还会爆发。

China has snapped into action to build hospitals; to produce and distribute medical supplies; to establish relevant databases; to implement quarantines; to swiftly develop and enforce standards and procedures; to introduce supportive economic measures; to use advanced technology to, when possible, enable remote workforces; to control the prices and supplies of necessities; and to curb panic while promoting education.

中国快速修建医院、生产分配物资、建立数据库、实行隔离制度、开发实行标准流程、引入经济措施、利用高科技实现远程办公、控制物价、降低恐慌情绪。

Essentially, that is, to nimbly allocate resources and establish procedures to shorten this passage of Chinese history before its final punctuation arrives.

分配物资和建立流程都为了缩短疫情时间。

And it will.

这些措施会生效的。

But the question remains: when?

但问题是，什么时候？

Whatever the outbreak’s impact on growth figures, it won’t just be because of — but ultimately despite — the virus. Perhaps the same is true of many other measures of wellbeing.

疫情对发展的影响并不仅仅来源于病毒。

Again, these are questions of scales — of contagion, of severity, of time.

传染范围、严重性和时间都是问题。

We have some preliminary answers to some of these dimensions. But the question of “how long” remains open-ended.

一些问题已经有解答，但是疫情持续的时间依然未知。

Enterprises, celebrities and ordinary people are also writing this story, largely through donations.

企业、明星和老百姓用捐款的方式书写自己的故事。

It’s a reality I’ve seen repeated since the Wenchuan earthquake left 90,000 dead or missing in 2008. People from every background in China and the international community come together when mass adversity becomes reality.

从2008年汶川地震以后，我就经常看到中国百姓和国际社会携手度过难关。

People donate time and energy that are ultimately investments in a better, shared future.

人们投入时间和精力创造更好的共享未来。

A construction worker who worked full-throttle to build the Huoshenshan Hospital in Wuhan donated his entire salary to the hospital. Residents with private cars are offering rides to medical workers and delivering supplies in the city.

火神山医院的一位工人捐献了一个月的工资；私家车主接送医生上下班和运输物资。

My daughter’s martial arts class will make a donation to Wuhan for every kid who completes a five-video routine.

我女儿参加的武术班表示，会为完成五个视频动作的孩子捐款给武汉。

Overseas Chinese are organizing shipments of masks. Pop singers are calling for wealthy peers to give. Foreign friends are sharing QR codes for donations to verified agencies.

海外华人捐赠口罩、歌星呼吁捐款、外国友人把捐款二维码发给不同机构。

And people are responding.

大家都在响应。

Such times typically bring out the best in policy and in people.

政策和人性的闪光点都展现了出来。

It’s a wonderful feature of humanity that, typically, bad things bring out the good in us.

坏事可以挖掘出人性美好的一面。

I introduced this punctuation analogy to my wife recently while talking about the current situation.

我最近把这个类比分享给了妻子。

She asked me what I think it is now.

她问我现在怎么想。

“An ellipsis …” I responded.

一种省略……

She soon after sat down to plan her indefinitely delayed semester.

她很快开始备课了。

She turned to me and asked: “How do I prepare for something that is an ellipsis?”

“我要怎么准备省略句？”

“Like you would prepare for something that is a question mark.”

“就像你准备问号一样。”

“OK …” she said, shrugging.

“好吧。”她耸肩。

“It is …” I said, nodding. It is OK.

我点头说道，没问题。