On the first第一 /fɜːrst/ Monday of the new term学期 /tɜːrm/, a stranger陌生人 /ˈstreɪn.dʒɚ/ walked into Jack's classroom. The teacher introduced介绍 /ˌɪn.trəˈduːst/ him as Marcus — a transfer转学的 /ˈtræns.fɚ/ student from overseas海外 /ˌoʊ.vɚˈsiːz/. His background背景 /ˈbæk.ɡraʊnd/ was unusual不寻常的 /ʌnˈjuː.ʒu.əl/: his parents were diplomats外交官 /ˈdɪp.lə.mæts/, and this was his fourth school in five years. His individual个人的 /ˌɪn.dɪˈvɪdʒ.u.əl/ status地位 /ˈsteɪ.t̬əs/ in the class was hard困难 /hɑːrd/ to read — was he a resident居民 /ˈrez.ɪ.dənt/ or still静止 /stɪl/ just a visitor访客 /ˈvɪz.ɪ.t̬ɚ/? He sat down消退 /daʊn/ quietly安静地 /ˈkwaɪ.ət.li/, not making eye contact进行眼神交流 with anyone.
Jack observed观察 /əbˈzɜːrvd/ that Marcus had a very different attitude态度 /ˈæt.ɪ.tuːd/ from most new students. He never tried to express表达 /ɪkˈspres/ himself or communicate沟通 /kəˈmjuː.nɪ.keɪt/ beyond what was necessary必要的 /ˈnes.ə.ser.i/. At lunch午饭 /lʌntʃ/, Jack attempted尝试 /əˈtempt.ɪd/ to strike up a conversation搭话，开始聊天. "Which country did you come from most recently最近 /ˈriː.sənt.li/?" Marcus looked up上涨 /ʌp/ briefly. "Singapore. Before that, Belgium." Jack wasn't sure确定的 /ʃʊr/ what to say. He had never met someone whose identity身份 /aɪˈden.tɪ.ti/ was spread分散 /spred/ across so many foreign外国的 /ˈfɔːr.ɪn/ places.
For the first week, Jack assumed以为 /əˈsuːmd/ Marcus didn't care关爱 /ker/ about tradition传统 /trəˈdɪʃ.ən/ or the school's culture文化 /ˈkʌl.tʃɚ/. But one afternoon he spotted发现 /ˈspɑː.tɪd/ Marcus in the library, absorbed专注于 /əbˈzɔːrbd/ in a thick book about native本土的 /ˈneɪ.t̬ɪv/ plants. "I didn't think you'd be into that," Jack said, surprised吃惊的 /sɚˈpraɪzd/. "I try to learn about every place I locate定居 /loʊˈkeɪt/ in," Marcus replied. "Otherwise, you never really belong属于 /bɪˈlɔːŋ/ anywhere." Jack sat down. "How do you adapt适应 /əˈdæpt/ every time?" "Slowly. But each place adds an original独特的 /əˈrɪdʒ.ɪ.nəl/ layer层 /ˈleɪ.ɚ/ to your version版本 /ˈvɜːr.ʒən/ of yourself."
Jack began to appreciate欣赏 /əˈpriː.ʃi.eɪt/ Marcus's way of thinking. Moving so frequently频繁地 /ˈfriː.kwənt.li/ meant dealing with a new generation代 /ˌdʒen.ɚˈeɪ.ʃən/ of classmates every year — each with their own culture文化 /ˈkʌl.tʃɚ/ and tradition传统 /trəˈdɪʃ.ən/. The challenge was always the same: how to express表达 /ɪkˈspres/ yourself honestly诚实地 /ˈɑːn.ɪst.li/ and communicate沟通 /kəˈmjuː.nɪ.keɪt/ across跨越 /əˈkrɔːs/ different backgrounds背景 /ˈbæk.ɡraʊndz/. Jack realized that Marcus's spirit精神 /ˈspɪr.ɪt/ — his willingness to keep trying不断努力的意愿 — was something rare, even admirable令人钦佩的 /ˈæd.mɪ.rə.bəl/.
A few days later, Marcus made his first real attempt尝试 /əˈtempt/ to reach out主动联系，伸出援手. He saw classmates recruiting招募 /rɪˈkruː.tɪŋ/ volunteers志愿者 /ˌvɑː.lənˈtɪrz/ for a neighborhood社区 /ˈneɪ.bɚ.hʊd/ clean-up event活动 /ɪˈvent/ and raised his hand without hesitating犹豫 /ˈhez.ɪ.teɪ.tɪŋ/. That small action transformed改变 /trænsˈfɔːrmd/ how his classmates saw him. On the day of the event, several local residents居民 /ˈrez.ɪ.dənts/ and neighbors邻居 /ˈneɪ.bɚz/ came to gather聚集 /ˈɡæð.ɚ/ at the corner街角 /ˈkɔːr.nɚ/ park. Marcus welcomed迎接 /ˈwel.kəmd/ every new arrival到来者 /əˈraɪ.vəl/ and encouraged鼓励 /ɪnˈkɜːr.ɪdʒd/ even the reluctant不情愿的 /rɪˈlʌk.tənt/ ones to join. He knew how to bridge the gap弥合鸿沟 between stranger陌生人 /ˈstreɪn.dʒɚ/ and neighbor邻居 /ˈneɪ.bɚ/.
That evening, Jack finally encouraged Marcus to open up敞开心扉 about his life. "The hardest part isn't the language or adapting适应 /əˈdæp.tɪŋ/ to a new environment环境 /ɪnˈvaɪ.rən.mənt/. It's trust信任 /trʌst/. Earning people's respect尊重 /rɪˈspekt/ takes time, and you can't rush comfort舒适感 /ˈkʌm.fɚt/. Every place I've lived居住 /lɪvd/ has a different way of showing welcome欢迎 /ˈwel.kəm/." Jack nodded slowly. He reflected反思 /rɪˈflek.tɪd/ on how he'd misjudged误判 /ˌmɪsˈdʒʌdʒd/ Marcus at first — reading reserve保守 /rɪˈzɜːrv/ as arrogance傲慢 /ˈær.ə.ɡəns/. "Well, you belong归属 /bɪˈlɔːŋ/ here now. Your individual个体 /ˌɪn.dɪˈvɪdʒ.u.əl/ spirit气质 /ˈspɪr.ɪt/ is exactly what this generation代 /ˌdʒen.ɚˈeɪ.ʃən/ needs." Marcus smiled — the first real smile Jack had seen from him. "That means a lot. Genuinely真诚地 /ˈdʒen.ju.ɪn.li/."