My interaction with the outside world（ｌｏｃａｌ ｓｏｃｉｅｔｙ）

我喜欢观看戏剧音乐演出，也喜欢游览名园，也喜欢参与各种艺术或思潮讨论会。在参与各种本地活动的过程中，我也慢慢产生了想要说一嘴的冲动。于是有时我会写一封建议信或读者来信，但若干次都石沉大海。。。我想把我的参与者来信罗列于下，让文友看看到底是那里不对付，让本地文化工作者选择视而不见（是英文表达问题，还是意识形态不一样，人家根本犯不着理我）：

一是给《读者文摘》编辑的信：

To whom it may concern:

I am a reader of Reader digest, even when I was in China. It was in 1985 that I first read a copy of "Reader's digest' when I was a high school junior(a Chinese edition) .The feeling was like you were blowing with a spring wind .From then on, I had been kept on reading some articles on this magazine(in Chinese or English version).

About 10years ago, I immigranted to New York,and took quite a few English classes. Reader digest became a modest writing sample for me.

After a while, I became a blogger, I published more than 100 articles in a oversea_Chinese oriented website .www wenxuecheng com.

My point is: my  emotion of expressing is so strong that I cannot help to write articles to express my self whenever I met someone or experience something.I wrote mostly in Chinese, sometimes in English.

I understand that my  English article is not as good as a local American's , while we have a different view to see the local American society as an immigrant.

I appreciate the articles in Reader Digest, for the reason it shows the core value of "Old American"  .I mean it shows the 

Valued moral level of an old time that people are less shrewd and less self_centered .

I have two concern :

1)would you mind me submit some article that is not so well written in English but having some point.

2)can you figure out that there is an article part like immigrant story?

I make this suggestion , for the reason that reading your Magazine make me feel comfortable and relaxed ,even in tears sometime. So I think maybe the editors behind the magazine is more friendly and openly to more Reader's and writers 

Your loyal　M

二是给一个大花园的管理委员会写的建议信：

Hi!

I have had a membership of Old garden for months 

I should say I enjoy the scene of the garden very much .

I had visit there more than ten times .

I preferred to take my friend there to have a summer picnic 

It was nice.

By the way, may I have a suggestion?

I have been a member of an active dancer group In Queens for about three years. 

We do exercise by dancing the Chinese Squad dance with the Chinese folk songs .

It is a nice experience 

Sometime ,I think it will be a wonderful moment if our dance group will be dancing in the sunlight of Old Westbury garden .

Is there any possibility that you guys make some event about some different countries' folk dance?

I experienced your Scottish festival event,and it lasted a whole day. Very impressive!

It must cost your a lot of effort.

I appreciate your effort.

And I try to figure out what is a good way to run a historic site like yours successfully.

No idea yet, an open minded way?

I did visit other site for golden shore in long island which represents a generation named The Glided  Age.a new TV play series by HBO .

My another example is the cliff house in exit 36 of LIC 495.Their management and event planning is not so great.

What is the way?

I just wish everything will be great ,　ａｎｄ　the site could last for generations 

Thanks for your time and concern 

三是给镇子的市政厅活动中心的月度音乐会组织者写的：

Hi!

My name is M. I took part into two month"s Jaz concert (Dec.&Jan2022).I am very much enjoyed by their performance 

My point is how to extend the influence of music(classis music especially).

I know this year ｔｈｅ　ｃｏｎｃｅｐｔ　ｏｆ　the Jaz concert is for memorizing Louis Armstlong.

So what will it be for next year?

In my opinion Queens is a diversity neighborhood.

I knows a lot of Chinese_American who love music and Chinese folk song as while. 

My suggestion is if we could organize the part_time musicians to do some exercise on every single country"s folk song topic to drawing more attention to the community.

Like I take part in a Chinese square dance group in a 162st park nearby, we dance with the Chinese folk songs almost every day.we enjoy in them .

If there is a concert with our song as a ｂａｃｋｇｒｏｕｎｄ, we would be very appreciated .

(Not so many chinese_American has good music education/or know how to play instrument of music).

If you can contact with the hostess of Jaz music concert(the female musician saxphoeist).

I guess some interesting idea will happen.

Thanks for your time and concern!

M from Queens 

四是写给我当时所读的大学英文系女性权力和反教育中的性别民族歧视活动组织者的：

Dear F:

Hi!

May I speak something that I am too shy to speak in the public about the concern of race or sex harass within the classrooms?

First, I come from China 6 years before. I met with some sex assault there.

My best friend in high school was harassed by my in-charge teacher. The secret was caged many years until the teacher was arrested ten years later.

The point is I seated by her side, and I only noticed she became quieter, and her grade became lower, and never realized what she was suffering.

I myself seemed be influenced too. I always was quiet and shy, seldom being brave enough to wear a skirt or speak to an adult male during my high school year and first two years' college life (For I noticed that when a girl showed some attraction or bloomed like a flower, and later on she would be greyed like a faded flower within a year. It showed me the way to avoid it, and that was to be modest and cover myself up)

Secondly, I had an ex-husband who had been teaching in a college campus within 10 years and dated with his female students, later on our marriage was dissolved.

at that time, I felt very hurtful by his behavior and his girls' behaviors, but I did not find a way out.

Thirdly, When I began to study in CUNY school three years ago, I began to appreciate my professor and their style, some of male professor were very attractive during the lectures.

One of the English professors was kind and casual in his way, but he was strict to my grade. When it was my last-time meeting with him before my final, I really needed him to give me a better grade.

I even imagined If I had flirted with him, it would work. Because he really showed some interest in me, and I had the big pressure not to be failed.

I did nothing, and I failed that subject.

we all know about the sex scandals, and we all know the women status in real life. That is the pressure we face every day.

I think if you guys did not supply a place like the meeting, I will never get a chance to organize my concern about it.

Thank you!

M

这一回我得到了一封回信如下：

Dear M,

 

Thank you for sharing this with me! I am so sorry to hear about your experiences. Each event you described sounds incredibly painful, and sadly, somewhat familiar. I have not had the exact same experiences, but as you say, we women deal with harassment and abuse all the time. Unfortunately it is commonly teachers, bosses and professors who abuse their power with students. This is not ok! It makes my angry and sad. I think it's so important to talk about what?'s happened, and I'm very glad that you wrote to me.

 

Do you want to get together and talk sometime? I'm on campus Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays.

但其实后来我也没太参加她的活动会议，而且也有点避开她深入谈论这些问题（其一，参会的女孩儿们说的遭遇都有些压抑沉重，二，比起我在中国遇到的女性遭受的性别侵害例子，女大学生们的例子都属于小儿科了，即因为她们的会议和声音，我意识到纽约这里特别是在大学里，在维护女性学生免遭性别侵害方面已经做得相对好了；三是跟人深入剖析自己的痛心有点难为情。。。特别对方是个年轻的白人英语教师。。。四是时间不允许。。。）

五是在大学修课时，我见缝插针参加了古典文学系某阅读分享小组（他们主要是研究古希腊等经典文学的本科生和爱好者），每次约一小时，主要是大家分享预先阅读过得希腊长诗歌或文章（已译成现代英语），由一个少壮的拉丁裔老师Host。我在参加几次后，给老师写了封信，表达自己的某些不同意见。原电邮丢了，但也是没回音。。。

六是我在大学修点古典音乐基础时，写了篇课尾感谢信兼交流信，跟音乐教授表达对他的感谢，并想交换自己对古典音乐作品的某些不同想法（不知是我表达不清，还是他太忙，或是他作为一个乐评人，觉得我音乐基础太初步，不是同一层次，故而免谈）。其结果是没回音。。。

ANYWAY，我回顾一下，发现自己在与本地文化人（受过教育的、掌握些话语权的人）交流的结果，都是没结果。。。

这不免让我深思，到底为什么？

或者是我早知如此，主流文化领域或主流社会中，华裔少数，声音很轻或极弱，力量也轻也弱，故有声音听不到回响。我又想到了奥巴马，他即使做过两届总统，身在主流社会中，他想做的事基本也办不到，只能做个工具人。在美国社会生活中，我除了做好自己，又能如何呢？（当然我也有谢绝的时候。如我若干年前，去JOHNJAY大学参加过一次反对枪支滥用的讨论会，会后几年时间它的组织者都发信息让我去参加在曼哈顿的若干次游行集会，我没应声（没时间精力）；二是我原在纽约医疗机构工作，它的工会也屡次发短信要我去曼哈顿参加游行集会，我也没去。后来不干那行了，收其短信就更没去））

另外我也想过，有回复的那封信，是因为我说在点儿上，写信有内容。其他几封，会不会是我没站在收信人的立场上想问题，或发给的人不管那事儿，或语焉不祥，人家没工夫和兴趣跟我瞎掰掰。。。

结果是，如那家花园让我续会员卡时，我也IGNORE。

总之，这与当地人交流的事儿，在我是不断尝试不断失落的过程。。。