He urged participants to harness their inner resolve and strength to achieve success in Rotary.
他敦促與會者運用內在的決心和力量，在扶輪之中獲得成功。

by Noelene Cairncross, as told to Sarah van Heerden 
The Rotarian -- February 2011 

作者：Noelene Cairncross，依Sarah van Heerden口述撰寫扶輪人 – 2011年2月號

Thirty years ago, I was a shy teenager from Gelvandale, a suburb of Port Elizabeth, South Africa. The apartheid government had designated the town a colored group area, and many black families like mine were forced to relocate there.

30年前，我是個來自蓋爾凡戴爾的靦腆少女。蓋爾凡戴爾位於南非伊莉莎白港近郊，實施種族隔離政策的政府，指定該鎮為有色族群區，許多跟我一樣的黑人家族被迫遷徙到該地。

My knowledge of life outside was limited. I lived with my parents and 11 siblings in a two-bedroom council house owned by the government. Though I dreamed of becoming a doctor, affording a university education seemed impossible. My family had little money. Mother taught us strong morals, the value of hard work, and the importance of believing in ourselves, but a future in medicine, the opportunity to travel, or even a college education were just pipe dreams. Then a Rotarian entered my life and changed everything.

我對外界生活的所知有限。我與父母及11位兄弟姊妹一起住在政府提供的2房公營住宅。儘管我夢想過成為醫生，但卻不可能負擔得起大學教育費用。我的家庭非常窮困，但我的母親教導我們堅守倫理道德、努力工作的價值、並相信自己存在的重要性。不過，投入醫學領域、獲得出外旅行的機會、甚至是接受大學教育，對我來說是遙不可及的。之後，一名扶輪人進入了我的人生，改變了這一切。

In 1979, during my final year of high school, Bob Zeiss, president of the Rotary Club of Port Elizabeth West, gave a presentation at my school about Rotary Youth Exchange. There had never been a black Youth Exchange student from South Africa, and his club wanted to change that.

1979年是我高中生涯的最後一年，西伊莉莎白港扶輪社社長Bob Zeiss到學校說明扶輪青少年交換計畫。以往不曾來自南非的黑人青少年交換學生，而他的扶輪社打算改變此點。

The opportunity sounded extraordinary, but I doubted the club would choose me. Although I excelled academically, I was timid and had few friends. The thought of speaking in front of a room of unfamiliar faces was terrifying. Nevertheless, Bob saw my potential.

I applied, and the process was tough. I had to explain to a selection panel why I wanted to be a Youth Exchange student. I remember praying a lot before the panel convened. I remember the faces of the Port Elizabeth West club members as I stood before them. And I remember everyone’s surprise when I admitted that the farthest I’d ever traveled was to Humansdorp, a small town on the cape, about 80 kilometers away.

我提出了報名申請，遴選過程甚為嚴格。我必須向遴選小組說明自己想成為青少年交換學生的理由。我記得在遴選小組開會前祈禱了好久，也記得自己面前的西伊莉莎白港扶輪社員的容貌，當然更記得當我坦承最遠僅到過許曼斯多普，也就是約80公里遠的好望角小鎮時，每個人臉上驚訝萬分的表情。

That night, when Bob called to tell me they’d made their decision, I was convinced that they had chosen someone else, someone more confident and outgoing. He said they’d chosen me. I was speechless. I would spend a year in Canada and would be the first black Youth Exchange student from South Africa. It was a milestone for me, my family, and my country.

那一晚，在Bob打電話給我告訴我他們的決定時，我還一直認為他們選的是別人，一個更自信且外向的人。他卻表示我獲選了，這真的是讓我驚訝到說不出話來。我將在加拿大停留一年的時間，這將是第一位來自南非的黑人青少年交換學生。對我自己、我的家庭和國家而言，都是一大里程碑。

I was elated but anxious. There was much to do before I left. Bob volunteered to be my counselor and went out of his way to prepare and encourage me. Because I lacked confidence in public speaking, he arranged for me to attend a Toastmistresses’ course. The first session was a disaster. The Toastmistresses told Bob I was hopeless. I thought I would never speak in public again. Bob had shown faith in me, and I’d let him down.

我非常興奮卻又焦慮不安，因為在我出國前有太多事情要處理。Bob自願擔任我的顧問，竭盡所能地幫我做好準備並給我鼓勵。因為我對公開演講缺乏自信，他於是安排我參加國際演講協會的課程。第一堂課就是場災難。演講協會告訴Bob我的表現糟糕透頂。我自認再也無法於公開場合演講。Bob如此信任我，我卻讓他失望。

I phoned him to apologize, but he said that at one time Winston Churchill also had a fear of public speaking and encouraged me to try again. Determined to succeed, I completed the course and gradually gained confidence in myself. In the end, the Toastmistresses told Bob they had come to see the talent in me.

我打電話給他向他道歉，他卻提到邱吉爾曾有一度也害怕公開演講，並鼓勵我再度嘗試。我於是下定決心要成功，接著完成該項課程，並逐漸找回對自己的信心。最後，演講協會告訴Bob他們開始看出我的天賦。

Meanwhile, the Port Elizabeth West club secured financial assistance for me, including a donation of R3,000 from the Ford Motor Company for my flight to Canada. Because of the apartheid regime, the club could have faced many obstacles in sending me to Canada. But Bob and the others seemed unphased. They always treated me like any other exchange student.

同時，西伊莉莎白港扶輪社為我找到了經濟援助，包括福特汽車公司捐贈R3,000以資助我前往加拿大的機票。因為政府實行種族隔離政策的緣故，扶輪社為了送我前往加拿大已經遭逢諸多阻礙，不過，Bob與其他人顯然未就此打退堂鼓。他們對待我的態度始終與其他交換學生無異。

There had never been a black Youth Exchange student from South Africa. Bob's club wanted to change that.

以往不曾有來自南非的黑人青少年交換學生，而Bob的扶輪社想改變此點。

As I prepared to depart, I met the rest of the outgoing exchange students from South Africa, all of whom were white. In a country where segregation was the law, I feared they wouldn’t accept me. But as we got to know each other, I realized politics wasn’t an issue, and we became friends. I remember standing in the crowd of Youth Exchange students in our matching green blazers, preparing to depart. At that moment, I felt shy Noelene disappear and a new confident, enthusiastic young lady emerge. All the while, Bob had been by my side, encouraging me.

當我準備出國時，我遇到了其他一起出國的南非交換學生，他們全部都是白人。置身於施行種族隔離法的國家，我害怕他們會排擠我。但是，隨著彼此相知漸深，我瞭解到政治不是問題，於是我們成為朋友。我依然記得自己站在一群穿著相同綠色夾克的青少年交換學生之中，準備出國的情景。當時的我，感受到靦腆怕生的自己已經消失，一個自信熱誠的全新少女就此浮現。不論何時，Bob一直在我身邊鼓勵著我。

It was a cold January night in 1980 when I arrived in Canada. Members of the Rotary Club of Timmins, Ont., were waiting at the airport to welcome me. It wasn’t just my first flight and my first trip overseas – it was also the first time I saw snow. I remember stepping outside, feeling the flakes on my skin. I was so excited to touch them, I forgot about how cold it was.

我是在1980年1月的一個寒冷冬夜抵達加拿大。安大略省提敏斯扶輪社的人員正在機場等候接機。這不僅是我的第一次飛行，也是首次出國 – 更是第一次看到雪。還記得自己走出外面，感受到雪花落在身上的感觸，我是如此雀躍地撫摸著雪，忘了當時有多麼冷。

During the year I spent in Timmins, I lived with four Rotarian families. All of them made me feel like one of their own. They helped me overcome my initial culture shock and supported me as I entered my new school. Though the majority of the students were white, they welcomed me and invited me into their homes as they would any visitor. I traveled extensively throughout Canada and the northern United States and spoke at many Rotary club meetings. With every speech, my abilities improved until I no longer felt nervous. I always kept in mind that I represented my country as an ambassador.

待在提敏斯(Timmins)的一年期間，我曾與四個扶輪家庭共住。所有人都把我當成他們的一份子。他們協助我克服起初的文化衝擊，並在我進入新學校時給予支持。儘管大多數學生都是白人，他們卻如同對待任何訪客一般熱切歡迎我，並邀請我前往家中作客。我在加拿大各地及北美旅行，在許多扶輪社會議上發表演講。每次演講就讓我的能力有所提升，直到自己不再感到緊張為止。我始終牢記在心自己相當是代表整個國家的大使。

Bob kept in touch with my host families and made sure I was financially secure during my stay. During one of our regular phone calls, he asked me what I wanted to do when I returned to South Africa. Although I held tightly to my dream of being a doctor, I knew medical school was out of reach. I told him I could pack groceries at Pick n Pay, the supermarket chain. That answer wasn’t good enough for Bob. “I asked you what you want to do, not what you could do,” he replied. I told him not to laugh. I said, “I want to be a doctor.”

Bob與我的接待家庭一直保持聯繫，確認我在停留期間的經濟無虞。有次在例行通電話時，他問我回到南非後最想做些什麼。儘管我仍堅持著成為醫生的夢想，卻知道醫學院可謂遙不可及。我告訴他，可以在連鎖超市Pick n Pay從事雜貨包裝工作。這個答案對Bob而言不夠好。他回答說：「我問的是你想做什麼，而不是你能做什麼」。我告訴他可別笑出來，接著便說道：「我想成為醫生。」

The phone call had a dramatic impact on my life. With Bob’s encouragement, my dream seemed within reach for the first time. My time in Canada helped me grow spiritually and emotionally, and when I returned to South Africa, I was better equipped for the challenges I faced. Bob helped arrange a student loan for me, but the bank wouldn’t approve it without someone to cosign for it. Bob didn’t think twice. He guaranteed the loan.

這個電話對我的人生帶來深遠的影響。在Bob的鼓勵之下，我似乎頭一次能觸及到自己的夢想了。在我待在加拿大的期間，他的協助讓我在精神與情緒方面皆有所成長，所以在返回南非時，我已經準備好面對自己即將面臨的挑戰。Bob協助我安排就學貸款，不過，因為無人擔保而未獲銀行通過。Bob毫不猶豫地成為貸款保證人。

Finally, in 1982, I entered medical school at the University of Natal. Four years later, I graduated. I wouldn’t be where I am today if it weren’t for Bob. I’m a specialist obstetrician and gynecologist at Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Hospital near Durban, which serves a large and impoverished community. Part of my work is to care for pregnant HIV/AIDS patients and to prevent mother-to-child transmission of the disease. I didn’t enter into a more lucrative full-time private practice because medicine and helping people are my passion, and I get so much joy out of the work I do.

最後在1982年，我進入了納塔爾大學醫學院就讀，四年後畢業。如果不是Bob，我壓根不知道今天的自己會在哪裡。我在德爾班附近的聖雄甘地紀念醫院擔任專業婦產科醫師，該醫院服務的是為數龐大的貧困族群。我的工作有一部分是照料懷孕的愛滋病孕婦，避免親子之間傳染愛滋病。我沒有轉入比較賺錢的私人開業醫師，因為我的熱情所在是醫學及助人，而我從自己的工作之中獲得如此多的喜悅。

Over the years, I lost touch with the Rotarians who had made such a difference in my life. But in 2007, I spent two months practicing medicine in Canada and used the opportunity to visit Timmins. Some of the Rotarians I’d met during the exchange were still there, and they welcomed me just as they had almost 30 years before. The experience inspired me to reconnect with the Rotarians from Port Elizabeth as well. In 2009, I contacted a club president there, and weeks later, I reunited with Bob and several members of the Port Elizabeth West club. I was overjoyed and thanked them for all they’d done for me. I explained how they had changed my life and told them about my eldest daughter, Kristil, who works in Geneva as a financial analyst; my daughter Angelica, who is in her third year of college and dreams of becoming a magazine editor; and my son, Justin, who is in high school and plans to study business science at the University of Cape Town. It amazes me still to think of how I have grown since Rotary gave me the chance to fulfill my dream.

多年以後，我與為我的人生帶來如此轉變的扶輪人失去了聯絡。不過，在2007年時，我在加拿大接受為期兩個月的醫學實習，並乘機前往造訪提敏斯。我在交換期間認識的部分扶輪社員還在那裡，他們如同將近30年前般地熱切歡迎我。這場體驗激勵我再度與伊莉莎白港的扶輪社員聯絡。2009年，我聯絡到該處的扶輪社長，數週後，我再度聯絡上Bob，以及西伊莉莎白港扶輪社的幾名社員。我欣喜萬分地感謝他們為我做的一切，說明他們如何改變我的人生，並告訴他們，我的長女Kristill在日內瓦擔任財務分析師，女兒Angelica正就讀大學三年級，夢想成為雜誌編輯，以及就讀高中的兒子Justin，打算在好望角大學攻讀商學。只要想到從扶輪社給了我實現夢想的機會，以及自己如何獲得成長，仍讓我深感驚喜萬分。

I’ve stayed in touch with Bob ever since. Last year, I learned that the Rotary Club of Port Elizabeth West would be making him a Paul Harris Fellow. I flew to Port Elizabeth for the occasion to surprise him. The dinner was an emotional event. I sat next to Bob and his wife and presented him with the honor.

我自從那時候起就跟Bob保持聯絡。去年，我獲知西伊莉莎白港扶輪社打算頒給Bob保羅哈里斯之友的榮譽。我於是飛到伊莉莎白港給他一個驚喜。當晚的晚餐真是情感流露，我坐在Bob夫妻旁邊，向他宣布這項榮譽。

Last year, I also decided it was time I became a Rotarian. On 24 May, I was inducted as a member of the Rotary Club of Westville.

去年，我也決定自己該是成為扶輪人的時候了。因此，在5月24日，我成為韋斯特維爾扶輪社的社員。