先来看一段视频：

下面是演讲原文：

Now, I want to start with a question: When was the last time you were called childish? 

现在，我想用一个问题开始：上一次你们被说到有孩子气是什么时候?

For kids like me, being called childish can be a frequent occurrence. Every time we make irrational demands, exhibit irresponsible behavior, or display any other signs of being normal American citizens, we are called childish, which really bothers me. 

对于象我一样的孩子们，被成为孩子气是时常发生的事。每次当我们做一些无理的要求，显现出不负责任的行为，或者显现出任何其他正常美国民众的信号时，我们就会被成为孩子气，这个实在很困扰我。

After all, take a look at these events: Imperialism and colonization, world wars, George W. Bush. Ask yourself: Who's responsible? Adults.

总之，来看看这些事件：帝国主义和殖民主义，世界大战，George W. Bush。问问你们自己：谁不负责任?成年人们。

Now, what have kids done? Well, Anne Frank touched millions with her powerful account of the Holocaust, Ruby Bridges helped end segregation in the United States, and, most recently, Charlie Simpson helped to raise 120,000 pounds for Haiti on his little bike.

现在，小孩子们做了些什么呢?Anne Frank通过他对大屠杀有力的记录感动了数百万人，Ruby Bridges在美国帮助了隔离，近的，Charlie Simpson通过他的小单车凑集了120,000英镑帮助海地。

So, as you can see evidenced by such examples, age has absolutely nothing to do with it. The traits the word childish addresses are seen so often in adults that we should abolish this age-discriminatory word when it comes to criticizing behavior associated with irresponsibility and irrational thinking.

因此，如你能见到的这些例子为证据，年龄不是左右这个的原因。孩子气这个个性看起经常会出现在成人中，当我们评论那些不负责任的行为和无理的想法时，我们应该舍弃年龄歧视这个词。

(Applause)Thank you.

（鼓掌）谢谢！

Then again, who's to say that certain types of irrational thinking aren't exactly what the world needs? Maybe you've had grand plans before, but stopped yourself, thinking: That's impossible or that costs too much or that won't benefit me. 

那么继续，谁能说某些无理思考的那类一定不是这个世界需要的?也许你也曾有伟大的计划，但是你自己终止了它，想想：那些不可能或者花费很太多或者那些不能让我受益的。

For better or worse, we kids aren't hampered as much when it comes to thinking about reasons why not to do things. Kids can be full of inspiring aspirations and hopeful thinking, like my wish that no one went hungry or that everything were free kind of utopia. 

或好或坏，我们孩子们当考虑到为什么不去这样想时理由的束缚。小孩子们能充满灵感，激情和有希望的想法，想我的希望是没有人会饥饿或者所有东西都免费的这种乌托邦想法。

How many of you still dream like that and believe in the possibilities? Sometimes a knowledge of history and the past failures of utopian ideals can be a burden because you know that if everything were free, that the food stocks would become depleted, and scarce and lead to chaos.

你们中还有多少人依然象这样做梦或者相信这是可能的?有时过去的一种知识和过去乌托邦式的理想的失败能成为一种负担，因为你知道如果所有东西都免费，那么食物库存将会被清空，或者变得稀少或者导致混乱。

On the other hand, we kids still dream about perfection. And that's a good thing because in order to make anything a reality, you have to dream about it first.

在另一方面，我们小孩子依然关于完美的梦想。并且那是一个好的事，因为想要使任何事实现，你必须先梦想它。

In many ways, our audacity to imagine helps push the boundaries of possibility. For instance, the Museum of Glass in Tacoma, Washington, my home state -- yoohoo Washington -- (Applause) has a program called Kids Design Glass, and kids draw their own ideas for glass art. 

在很多方面，我们大胆的想象帮助扩宽可能的边界。例如，Tacoma的玻璃博物馆，华盛顿，我家乡的州——雅虎华盛顿——(掌声)有个叫做孩子们创意玻璃的项目，孩子们把自己的想法制成玻璃艺术。

Now, the resident artist said they got some of their best ideas through the program because kids don't think about the limitations of how hard it can be to blow glass into certain shapes.

现在，定居的艺术家曾说他们借用一些他们在这个项目中好的想法，因为孩子们不会考虑玻璃受限于制成特定的形式的困难的问题。

They just think of good ideas. Now, when you think of glass, you might think of colorful Chihuly designs or maybe Italian vases, but kids challenge glass artists to go beyond that into the realm of broken-hearted snakes and bacon boys, who you can see has meat vision. (Laughter)

现在，当你考虑玻璃时，你可能会考虑Chihuly多彩的设计或者可能是意大利的装饰，但是孩子们敢于挑战艺术家们并超越他们进入心碎蛇和火腿男孩的领域，看到了吗，火腿男孩有“肉视力”啊。

Now, our inherent wisdom doesn't have to be insiders' knowledge. Kids already do a lot of learning from adults, and we have a lot to share.

现在，我的先天思维没能堪比行内人的知识。孩子们已经从大人们那里学习了很多，并且我们有很多分享。

I think that adults should start learning from kids. Now, I do most of my speaking in front of an education crowd, teachers and students, and I like this analogy. 

我认为大人们应该开始从小孩子中学习。现在，听我演讲的人大多数都是教育圈的人，老师和学生，我喜欢这种类比。

It shouldn't just be a teacher at the head of the classroom telling students do this, do that. The students should teach their teachers.

这个不能仅仅是老师在教室前叫学生做这做那。学生应该同样教他们的老师。

Learning between grown ups and kids should be reciprocal. The reality, unfortunately, is a little different, and it has a lot to do with trust, or a lack of it.

孩子们在成长中学习应该是互惠的。而事实呢，很不幸，有一些区别，这个信任的关系很大，或者说是缺乏的结果。

Now, if you don't trust someone, you place restrictions on them, right. If I doubt my older sister's ability to pay back the 10 percent interest I established on her last loan, I'm going to withhold her ability to get more money from me until she pays it back. (Laughter) 

现在，如果你不相信某人，你对他们设定约束，那好。如果我怀疑我姐姐没有能偿还我给他的上一笔利息的百分之十，我将会在他还回这个之前拒绝她从我这里借更多的钱。(笑)

True story, by the way. Now, adults seem to have a prevalently restrictive attitude towards kids from every "don't do that," "don't do this" in the school handbook, to restrictions on school internet use. 

顺便说一下，这是真实的故事。现在，成人们看起来有一个对于孩子们盛行的约束态度，从学校手册中的每个“不要做这个，”“不要做那个，”到在学校网络使用的各种限制。

As history points out, regimes become oppressive when they're fearful about keeping control. 

历史告诉我们，当政体害怕统治失控时变得暴虐。

And, although adults may not be quite at the level of totalitarian regimes, kids have no, or very little, say in making the rules, when really the attitude should be reciprocal, meaning that the adult population should learn and take into account the wishes of the younger population.

并且，尽管大人们可能不会象独裁主义政体那样心狠手辣，但是孩子们没有，或者非常少，说能去制定规则，而正确的态度应该是两者互相尊重，意味着成人们应该学习和考虑孩子们的希望和想法。

Now, what's even worse than restriction is that adults often underestimate kids abilities. We love challenges, but when expectations are low, trust me, we will sink to them. My own parents had anything but low expectations for me and my sister. 

现在，比限制更糟糕的是大人们经常低估孩子们的能力。。我们热爱挑战，但是当期望很低时，我说真的，我们将会不思进取。我自己的父母对我和我姐姐有除开低的期望的任何东西。

Okay, so they didn't tell us to become doctors or lawyers or anything like that, but my dad did read to us about Aristotle and pioneer germ fighters when lots of other kids were hearing "The Wheels on the Bus Go Round and Round." Well, we heard that one too, but "Pioneer Germ Fighters" totally rules. (Laughter)

好的，他们未曾要求我们去成为医生或者律师或者任何象那样的职业，但是我的爸爸给我们读过亚里士多德和先锋细菌斗士听，而其他小孩还在听“公车的轮子转啊转”。是的，我们也听过那些，但是“先锋细菌都是”比这个强多了。(笑声)

I loved to write from the age of four, and when I was six my mom bought me my own laptop equipped with Microsoft Word. Thank you Bill Gates and thank you Ma. I wrote over 300 short stories on that little laptop, and I wanted to get published. 

从四岁开始我就喜欢上了写作，并且在我六岁时我妈妈给我我自己的装备有微软Word软件的笔记本。谢谢你Bill Gates和我的妈妈。我在那台小笔记本电脑上写了300篇小故事，并且我希望能得到出版。

Instead of just scoffing at this heresy that a kid wanted to get published, or saying wait until you're older, my parents were really supportive. Many publishers were not quite so encouraging. One large children's publisher ironically saying that they didn't work with children. Children's publisher not working with children? I don't know, you're kind of alienating a large client there. (Laughter)