美国总统奥巴马每周电台演讲2013.06.16

Hi, everybody. This Sunday is Father’s Day, and so I wanted to take a moment to talk about the most important job many of us will ever have – and that’s being a dad.

大家好。本周日是父亲节，所以我想花点时间谈谈我们很多人一生最重要的一项工作—当爹。

Today we’re blessed to live in a world where technology allows us to connect instantly with just about anyone on the planet. But no matter how advanced we get, there will never be a substitute for the love and support and, most importantly, the presence of a parent in a child’s life. And in many ways, that’s uniquely true for fathers.

今天我们有福气生活在技术使我们能随时与地球上任何人交流的世界上。但是不管我们多么先进，在孩子的一生中，爱和支持，特别是父母的存在，是最重要的，无可替代的。而且在很多方面，对父亲们更是唯一的正确。

I never really knew my own father. I was raised by a single mom and two wonderful grandparents who made incredible sacrifices for me. And there are single parents all across the country who do a heroic job raising terrific kids. But I still wish I had a dad who was not only around, but involved; another role model to teach me what my mom did her best to instill – values like hard work and integrity; responsibility and delayed gratification – all the things that give a child the foundation to envision a brighter future for themselves.

我从来没有见过我的父亲。我是在单亲妈妈和慈祥的外祖母和外祖父的巨大付出中长大的。全国有很多单亲父、母承担抚养可怜的孩子们的伟大工作。但是我始终希望我有个父亲不仅在身边，而且还融入我的生活；成为我妈妈呕心沥血地教我做的身体力行的榜样—勤奋诚实的价值观的榜样；责任感和知足感的榜样—所有给孩子展望他们的更加光明的未来的基础的东西。

That’ s why I try every day to be for Michelle and my girls what my father was not for my mother and me. And I’ve met plenty of other people – dads and uncles and men without a family connection –who are trying to break the cycle and give more of our young people a strong male role model.

这就是为什么我每天都在为米切尔和我的两个女儿做的而我的父亲无法为我的母亲和我做的。我认识很多其他人—没有完整家庭的父亲、叔伯和男人—他们正在努力打破局限给更多年轻人一个强大的男性的榜样作用。

 Being a good parent – whether you’re gay or straight; a foster parent or a grandparent – isn’t easy. It demands your constant attention, frequent sacrifice, and a healthy dose of patience. And nobody’s perfect. To this day, I’m still figuring out how to be a better husband to my wife and father to my kids.

当好父母—不管你是同性恋或异性恋；养父母或祖父母—决非易事。它要求你永远的操心，经常的牺牲，不至于把孩子宠坏的耐心。没有人完美无缺。每当这一天，我都冥思苦想如何做我妻子更好的丈夫和我的孩子们的更好的父亲。

And I want to do what I can as President to encourage marriage and strong families. We should reform our child support laws to get more men working and engaged with their children. And my Administration will continue to work with the faith and other community organizations, as well as businesses, on a campaign to encourage strong parenting and fatherhood.

我作为总统希望做的是鼓励婚姻和稳固的家庭。我们应该改革我们的儿童抚养法让更多的男人努力融入他们的孩子们的生活。本届政府将继续与宗教和其他社区组织以及企业合作，鼓励双亲责任和父性。

Because if there’s one thing I’ve learned along the way, it’s that all our personal successes shine a little less brightly if we fail at family. That’s  what matters most. When I look back on my life, I won’t be thinking about any particular legislation I passed or policy I promoted. I’ll be thinking about Michelle, and the journey we’ve been on together. I’ll be thinking about Sasha’s dance recitals and Malia’s tennis matches –about the conversations we’ve had and the quiet moments we’ve shared. I’ll be thinking about whether I did right by them, and whether they knew, every day, just how much they were loved.

因为如果说我在这条路上学到了一件事，那就是如果家庭不幸，我们所有人的成功都如同白璧微瑕。这至关重要。当我回顾我的一生，我不会想到我通过的任何法案或我提倡的政策。我想到的是米切尔和我们共同走过的旅程。我想到的是萨沙的个人舞蹈演出和玛利亚的网球比赛—想到我们的交流和我们共享的静谧时光。我想到的是我们为她们做的是否正确，她们是否懂得，她们每天得到多少爱。

That’s what I think being a father is all about. And if we can do our best to be a source of comfort and encouragement to our kids; if we can show them unconditional love and help them grow into the people they were meant to be; then we will have succeeded.

这就是我认为作为一个父亲的全部。如果我们能成为我们的孩子们的满足和鼓励的最好的源泉；如果我们能献给他们无条件的爱和帮助他们成长为他们希望的成年人；那么我们就成功了。

Happy Father’s Day to all the dads out there, and have a great weekend.

祝父亲们节日快乐，周末愉快。