(若大家喜歡我鏡頭下的馬拉松風景,不妨Click樂施會的標誌,資助他們的扶貧工作)

2012年8月5日星期日

想當年.昂山素姬的一席話

 
英國以往容許碩士或博士畢業生,可以申請為期兩年的Post-Study Visa,讓他們在可以英國找工作,但保守黨政府取消了這項政策,好讓就業機會留給英國人。

當年認識的倫敦書友當中,除了因為男/女朋友在香港那些,大部分人都想留在倫敦生活,不太想回香港,總是因為一些夢想、一些理想希望實現,你才會山長水遠、花數十萬元去英國流學。我們太愛倫敦的生活了,全世界最美的建築、最精明的腦筋、最好的博物館、最濃的文化氣息都在這裡,住在這裡一段時間,再無知的人也會沾染點學養。

我忘記我有沒有寫過這些了。曾幾何時,我也很希望在英國找到工作,留在英國生活,可惜英國不太需要我的技能,最多只找到一些臨時工、散工找到,例如醫院做中文翻譯、去牛津大學做監考、幫City of London政府接待內地記者,更新中文網站。

City of London(中文叫倫敦金融城)的總部Guildhall,位於倫敦的Bank,我從未打過中環的工,但倒有機會越級升呢,穿西裝與倫敦金融界的人逼地鐵去Bank、去Guildhall上班,感覺還是相當不錯。City of London是世界的經濟中心,競爭來自全世界,在這裡返工也算一項成就,儘管只是一分臨時工。

後來收到中文大學通知,請我回去做兼職教師後,我知道我下半生,恐怕也不會再有機會在英國工作、在英國長時間生活了,但總算是找到新出路,始終人生有不同的階段。

認識在倫敦讀書的朋友當中,礙於運氣、礙於機會,十居其八都難逃回家的「宿命」,總有些少不甘心,他們都有一點才能,一點勇氣,押了時間、花了金錢,但始終無法改變下半生的命運,闗係、際遇比能力更重。友人P去年在英國修讀MA畢業,今年初趕上了尾班車申請了最後一屆的Post Study Visa,他也無法突破「宿命」,試了半年後還是決定放棄在倫敦發展,年底回香港。

可以留下的大多是專業人士、商管人材,因為他們去到那裡都吃香,一般人要逃離「宿命」,的確要鋼一般的意志及破釜沈舟、永遠不要回香港的決心。

例如從事文化工作的朋友Q,先是申請一年working holiday,然後有請獎學金讀書,再加兩年post study visa,用盡所有方法留在英國,她幾乎所有工也做過,劇團、翻譯、唐人街士多收銀...努力賺錢吊命交租。Q去年抽中綠卡,得到美國的居留權,去年底已搬到美國洛杉磯。

我認識的人之中,經常說要移民的人不少,但坐言起身入表抽綠卡的只有Q,她成功是應該的。

留不下,也不必太傷感,可以在英國讀書和生活已經很幸福了,夢想或許實現不了,但我們也不是空手而回,帶走的是點滴回憶,令我們回味一生。今年六月底,昂山素姬回牛津大學取榮譽學位,只有在英國讀書和生活的我們,才會更明白昂山說的是甚麼:

Today, many strands of my life have come together. The years that I spent as a student at St Hugh’s; the years I spent in Park Town as a wife and mother; the years I spent under house arrest - when my university, the University of Oxford, stood up and spoke up for me.

During the most difficult years I was upheld by memories of Oxford. These were among the most important inner resources that helped me to cope with all the challenges I had to face.

The memories were in fact very simple ones. Some are days like these, when I went on the Cherwell with friends in a punt, or sat reading on the lawn at St Hugh’s, or in the library - not looking at a book, but out of the windows.

But these were very precious memories – because I had lived a happy life. And this made me understand so much better the young people of Burma – who wanted to live a happy life and who had never been given an opportunity to lead one.

......

The most important thing for me about Oxford was not what I learnt there in terms of set texts and set books we had to read, but in terms of a respect for the best in human civilisation.

And the best in human civilisation comes from all parts of the world. It is not limited to Oxford; it is not limited to Burma; it is not limited to any other country. But the fact that in Oxford I had learned to respect all that is the best in human civilisation helped me to cope with what was not quite the best.

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