ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Lakshmi Pratury - Connector
Lakshmi Pratury is the host of The INK Conference and was the co-host of TEDIndia 2009.

Why you should listen

After two decades in marketing, venture capitalism and social entreprenuership, Lakshmi Pratury turned her focus toward linking her home country of India more tightly with the American community. Her firm, Ixoraa Media, runs meetings and events to spark dialogue and make connections. In 2009, she co-hosted TEDIndia and saw such a warm response to the conference that she founded The INK Conference, in partnership with TED, that would pick up where TEDIndia left off. Watch the INKTalks channel  to see some of the brilliant ideas shared at the INK Conference. Pratury blogs at Lakshmi's Lounge.

She worked at Intel for 12 years as a marketer and evangelist, then moved to a VC firm, Global Capitalist Partners. At GCP, she focused on connecting India's legendary software-development community with US tech. She began to focus more strictly on relationship-building with her move to the America India Foundation, where she founded the AIF's Digital Equalizer program, offering technology education to some 80,000 children and 2,000 teachers in India. She also launched the AIF Summit for social entrepreneurs from India.

More profile about the speaker
Lakshmi Pratury | Speaker | TED.com
TED2007

Lakshmi Pratury: The lost art of letter-writing

勒斯米柏維談「寫信」

Filmed:
715,735 views

勒斯米柏維憶起手寫信件這個消逝的藝術,並且分享她父親生前親手寫給她的一些筆記。 她那簡短而動人的談話, 可能會啟發你開始動手寫信。
- Connector
Lakshmi Pratury is the host of The INK Conference and was the co-host of TEDIndia 2009. Full bio

Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.

00:12
So I thought, "I will talk about death死亡."
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我原先在想:「我會談論死亡。」
00:14
Seemed似乎 to be the passion today今天.
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那似乎是我今天要跟你分享的主題。
00:16
Actually其實, it's not about death死亡.
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但事實上,我將分享的與死亡無關。
00:18
It's inevitable必然, terrible可怕, but really what I want to talk about is,
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死亡是不可避免而又令人愄懼的,但我真正想談論的是
00:21
I'm just fascinated入迷 by the legacy遺產 people leave離開 when they die.
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我被人們死去時所留下的遺產吸引著。
00:24
That's what I want to talk about.
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這就是我想分享的主題。
00:26
So Art藝術 Buchwald布赫瓦爾德 left his legacy遺產 of humor幽默 with a video視頻
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如包可華(Art Buchwald) 透過影像留下他那一絲幽默
00:30
that appeared出現 soon不久 after he died死亡, saying,
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影帶在他死後隨即出現,說著:
00:32
"Hi你好! I'm Art藝術 Buchwald布赫瓦爾德, and I just died死亡."
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「嗨! 我是包可華(Art Buchwald),我剛剛死了。」
00:36
And Mike麥克風, who I met會見 at Galapagos加拉帕戈斯, a trip which哪一個 I won韓元 at TEDTED,
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我透過TED的旅程,在加拉巴哥(Galapagos)遇到米可,
00:41
is leaving離開 notes筆記 on cyberspace網絡空間 where he is chronicling記載
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當時他透過互聯網在個人空間上記述
00:45
his journey旅程 through通過 cancer癌症.
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他患上癌症的經歷。
00:48
And my father父親 left me a legacy遺產 of his handwriting手寫
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而我的父親則透過一些信件和一本記事本
00:52
through通過 letters and a notebook筆記本.
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留下他那手寫的遺產。
00:54
In the last two years年份 of his life, when he was sick生病,
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這個生病了的爸爸在生命中的最後兩年
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he filled填充 a notebook筆記本 with his thoughts思念 about me.
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把自己對我的看法都寫滿在記事本上。
01:02
He wrote about my strengths優勢, weaknesses弱點,
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他寫下我的長處和短處
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and gentle溫和 suggestions建議 for improvement起色,
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並提出一些能助我改正的方法
01:09
quoting引用 specific具體 incidents事故, and held保持 a mirror鏡子 to my life.
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同時亦引用特殊的例子,為我的生活提供反思。
01:15
After he died死亡, I realized實現 that no one writes to me anymore.
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在他離世後,我發現沒有人再寫信給我了。
01:20
Handwriting手寫 is a disappearing消失 art藝術.
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書寫這門藝術正漸漸地消失。
01:23
I'm all for email電子郵件 and thinking思維 while typing打字,
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我平日會用電子郵件,也會一面思考一面打字
01:26
but why give up old habits習慣 for new?
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但為何要為了新的事物而捨棄舊有的習慣?
01:29
Why can't we have letter writing寫作 and email電子郵件 exchange交換 in our lives生活?
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為何書信和電子郵件不能與我們的生活融合在一起?
01:33
There are times when I want to trade貿易 all those years年份
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有一段時間我因為太忙碌而沒有坐下來跟我父親聊聊天
01:39
that I was too busy to sit with my dad and chat with him,
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有時,我真的很想換回那幾年
01:43
and trade貿易 all those years年份 for one hug擁抱.
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然後再以那些時光來換爸爸的一個擁抱。
01:49
But too late晚了.
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可是已經太遲了。
01:51
But that's when I take out his letters and I read them,
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但每當我拿出並細閱他的信
01:57
and the paper that touched感動 his hand is in mine,
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我感到與他緊密相連,
02:00
and I feel connected連接的 to him.
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因為他觸摸過的那張信紙就在我手中。
02:03
So maybe we all need to leave離開 our children孩子
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也許,我們需要留給我們的孩子的不是金錢上的遺產
02:07
with a value legacy遺產, and not a financial金融 one.
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而是那種擁有真正的價值和意義的遺產。
02:10
A value for things with a personal個人 touch觸摸 --
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透過觸碰去留下有價值的物品--
02:13
an autograph簽名 book, a soul-searching自我反省 letter.
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一本手寫書,一封真摰的信件。
02:17
If a fraction分數 of this powerful強大 TEDTED audience聽眾
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假如這些甚有影響力的TED觀眾的其中小部分
02:20
could be inspired啟發 to buy購買 a beautiful美麗 paper --
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能被感動而去買一張漂亮的紙--
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John約翰, it'll它會 be a recycled回收 one -- and write a beautiful美麗 letter
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約翰,那會是一張環保再生紙-- 然後寫一封美麗的信
02:27
to someone有人 they love, we actually其實 may可能 start開始 a revolution革命
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給他們深愛的人,我們或許要開始實行一個大變革
02:30
where our children孩子 may可能 go to penmanship書法 classes.
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讓我們的孩子去上手寫課。
02:33
So what do I plan計劃 to leave離開 for my son兒子?
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那麼,我應該留些什麼給我的兒子呢?
02:37
I collect蒐集 autograph簽名 books圖書, and those of you authors作者
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我在蒐集手寫書, 同時也在蒐集一些唱片, 翠絲。
02:39
in the audience聽眾 know I hound獵犬 you for them --
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而坐在觀眾席上的一些作家都知道
02:42
and CDs光盤 too, Tracy特雷西.
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我正為這出版的事宜而緊跟著他們--
02:44
I plan計劃 to publish發布 my own擁有 notebook筆記本.
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我亦計畫出版自己的筆記。
02:48
As I witnessed目擊 my father's父親的 body身體 being存在 swallowed吞食 by fire,
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在我目睹我父親的遺體被火吞噬時,
02:52
I satSAT by his funeral葬禮 pyre柴堆 and wrote.
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我坐在他葬禮的柴火旁,寫下
02:56
I have no idea理念 how I'm going to do it,
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我不知道我將如何過日子
02:57
but I am committed提交 to compiling編譯 his thoughts思念 and mine
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但後來我決定要將他和我的一些想法
03:00
into a book, and leave離開 that published發表 book for my son兒子.
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輯錄成一本書、出版, 然後留給我的兒子。
03:04
I'd like to end結束 with a few少數 verses經文 of what I wrote
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我想以一首我在父親葬禮中寫的短詩
03:06
at my father's父親的 cremation火葬.
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來結束今天的分享。
03:08
And those linguists語言學家, please pardon赦免 the grammar語法,
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讀語言的學者們, 請饒恕我的文法
03:11
because I've not looked看著 at it in the last 10 years年份.
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因為我至少有十年沒讀到這首詩了。
03:13
I took it out for the first time to come here.
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這是我第一次將它公開在這裡。
03:16
"Picture圖片 in a frame, ashes灰燼 in a bottle瓶子,
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「在相框中的照片,在甕裡的骨灰,
03:20
boundless漫漫 energy能源 confined受限 in the bottle瓶子,
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無窮的力量被緊封於甕內
03:23
forcing迫使 me to deal合同 with reality現實,
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它迫使我面對現實
03:26
forcing迫使 me to deal合同 with being存在 grown長大的 up.
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迫使我逐漸成長。
03:29
I hear you and I know that you would want me to be strong強大,
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我確實聽到你的話, 而我知道你想我堅強
03:33
but right now, I am being存在 sucked down, surrounded包圍
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但此刻, 我被這些肆虐的情緒浪潮
03:37
and suffocated窒息 by these raging憤怒 emotional情緒化 waters水域,
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吞沒、包圍,這一切令我窒息
03:40
craving to cleanse潔淨 my soul靈魂, trying to emerge出現
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就如你所敎導一樣
03:43
on a firm公司 footing立足點 one more time, to keep on fighting戰鬥 and flourishing芊芊
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我渴望我的靈魂能被洗滌, 讓我能嘗試浮出水面
03:49
just as you taught me.
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再一次踏穩每一步, 繼續奮鬥和茁壯地成長。
03:51
Your encouraging鼓舞人心的 whispers耳語 in my whirlpool渦流 of despair絕望,
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當我感到絕望和混亂時, 我聽到你在我耳邊低聲鼓勵我、
03:55
holding保持 me and heaving起伏 me to shores海岸 of sanity明智,
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扶持我、並把我拉到岸邊, 使我清醒,
04:00
to live生活 again and to love again."
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讓我能重生和再次去愛。」
04:02
Thank you.
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謝謝。
Translated by Szu-Ching Chang
Reviewed by Feiman Luk

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ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Lakshmi Pratury - Connector
Lakshmi Pratury is the host of The INK Conference and was the co-host of TEDIndia 2009.

Why you should listen

After two decades in marketing, venture capitalism and social entreprenuership, Lakshmi Pratury turned her focus toward linking her home country of India more tightly with the American community. Her firm, Ixoraa Media, runs meetings and events to spark dialogue and make connections. In 2009, she co-hosted TEDIndia and saw such a warm response to the conference that she founded The INK Conference, in partnership with TED, that would pick up where TEDIndia left off. Watch the INKTalks channel  to see some of the brilliant ideas shared at the INK Conference. Pratury blogs at Lakshmi's Lounge.

She worked at Intel for 12 years as a marketer and evangelist, then moved to a VC firm, Global Capitalist Partners. At GCP, she focused on connecting India's legendary software-development community with US tech. She began to focus more strictly on relationship-building with her move to the America India Foundation, where she founded the AIF's Digital Equalizer program, offering technology education to some 80,000 children and 2,000 teachers in India. She also launched the AIF Summit for social entrepreneurs from India.

More profile about the speaker
Lakshmi Pratury | Speaker | TED.com