U1 Reading 1 with Translation.doc

Janitor Filipaj, the Dream PursuerVerena Dobnik1 For years, Gac Filipaj mopped floors, cleaned toilets and took out trash at Columbia University. A refugee from war-torn Yugoslavia, he made a living working for the Ivy League school since 1993. But Sunday, May 13, 2012, was payback time: The 52-year-old janitor put on a cap and gown to graduate with a bachelors degree in classics. 2 As a Columbia employee, he didnt have to pay for the classes he took. His favorite subject was the Roman philosopher and statesman Seneca, the janitor said to the Associated Press reporter during a break from his work at the student union building he cleans. “(1) I love Senecas letters because theyre written in the spirit in which I was educated in my family not to look for fame and fortune, but to have a simple, honest, honorable life,” he said. 3 For Filipaj, the degree comes after years of studying late into the night in his Bronx apartment, where hed open his books after a 2:3011 p.m. shift as a “heavy cleaner” his job title. Before exam time or to finish a paper, hed pull all-nighters, then go to class in the morning and then to work. As his mother tongue is Albanian, it took him almost seven years to learn to master the English language before he was admitted to the School of General Studies. (2) His graduation with honors resulted from his strong will to overcome all the difficulties he ran into in the following dozen years of studies, including readings in ancient Latin and Greek. 4 On Sunday morning on Columbias Manhattan campus, Filipaj flashed a huge smile and a thumbs-up as he walked off the podium after a handshake from Columbia President Lee Bollinger, who presided over a ceremony in which General Studies students received their graduation certificates. 5 “This is a man with great pride, whether hes doing custodial work or academics,” said Peter Awn, dean of Columbias School of General Studies. “(3) He is very humble and grateful, but hes one individual who makes his own future.” 6 Its been a long road for Filipaj who fled to the United States in 1992, leaving behind his parents and siblings on a family farm in Montenegro, then a Yugoslav republic. Filipaj has always been a dedicated student. When he was living in Montenegro and working on his family farm, he attended the Law College in Belgrade as a part-time student, but he was unable to finish his degree due to the cruel civil war and had to leave his homeland during the last year of his studies. 7 At first in New York, his uncle in the Bronx offered him shelter while he worked as a restaurant busboy. “I asked people, which are the best schools in New York?” he said. Since Columbia topped his list, “I went there to see if I could get a job.” Filipaj was accepted at Columbia as a janitor. 8 Part of his $22-an-hour janitors pay still goes back to his brother, sister-in-law and two kids in Montenegro. Filipaj has no computer, but he bought one for the family, whose income comes mostly from selling milk. Filipaj also saves by not paying for a cellphone; he can only be reached via landline. 9 During the interview with the Associated Press, Filipaj didnt show the slightest regret or bitterness about his hard life. Instead, he cheerfully described encounters with surprised younger students who wondered why their classmate was cleaning up after them. “They say, Arent you.?” he said with a grin. 10 His ambition is to get a masters degree, maybe even a Ph.D., in Roman and Greek classics. He hopes to become a teacher someday, while translating his favorite classics into Albanian. 11 For now, hes trying to get “a better job,” maybe as supervisor of custodians or something similar, at Columbia if possible. Hes not interested in furthering his studies to make more money. “(4) The richness is in me, in my heart and in my head, not in my pockets,” said Filipaj, who is now an American citizen. 12 Soon after, the spirited, 5-foot-4 janitor picked up a broom and dustpan and went back to work.清洁工菲利帕：一位追梦人弗里那多布尼克1 多年以来，盖茨菲利帕一直在哥伦比亚大学做拖地板、打扫厕所和倒垃圾的工作。他是一位来自遭遇战难的南斯拉夫难民，自1993年以来，他靠为这所常青藤大学打工谋生。但是，2012年5月13日这个星期天是个回报 的日子：52岁的清洁工获得了古典文学学士学位，头顶方冠身着长袍，参加毕业典礼。 2 作为哥伦比亚大学的雇员，他可以听课而无需缴纳学费。在打扫学生会大楼的休息间歇，他对美联社记者说：他最喜欢的学科是关于罗马哲学家、政治家塞涅卡的学科。“我喜欢塞涅卡的作品，因为这些作品中弘扬的正是我的家庭教育所推崇的精神不追名逐利，过简单、诚实、体面的生活，”他说道。 3 对于菲利帕，这个学位来之不易。多年来他经常在布朗克斯公寓里学习到深夜。在这里，他作为一个“负责重活的清洁工”（他的工作头衔），干完下午2:30到晚上11点的晚班后，才开始学习。考试前或者要交论文前，他会通宵学习，第二天上午去上课，之后再去工作。由于他的母语是阿尔巴尼亚语，所以在被录取入读通识教育学院之前，他花了几乎7年的时间才学会了英语。他以优等成绩毕业，是因为他有坚强的意志去克服长达12年的学习中所遇到的一切困难，包括阅读用古拉丁语和希腊语写的文献。 4 星期天上午，在哥伦比亚大学曼哈顿校区，哥伦比亚大学校长李博林格尔主持了通识教育学院的毕业典礼，向学生颁发毕业证书。菲利帕和校长握完手后，满脸笑容，竖起大拇指走下讲台。 5 “这是一位很有自尊的人，不管他是在做管理清洁工作还是做学问，”哥伦比亚大学通识教育院院长彼得 奥恩说道。“他非常谦卑，并怀有感恩之心，但他是一个创造自己未来的人。” 6 这对菲利帕来说，是一条漫长的道路。1992年，菲利帕离开了生活在前南斯拉夫黑山共和国家庭农场的父母和兄弟姐妹逃到美国。他一直是一位认真读书的好学生。他生活在黑山并在家庭农场劳动期间，作为半工半读 生，他在贝尔格莱德的法学院学习过。但是，由于残酷的内战，他未能取得学位，在学习的最后一年，他被迫离开祖国。 7 初到纽约时，住在布朗克斯的叔叔为他提供了住处，当时他在餐厅做勤杂工。“我问别人，哪些学校是纽约最好的？”他说。既然哥伦比亚大学位于榜首，“我就去了那里，看看可否找到一份工作。”菲利帕被哥伦比亚大学录用当了清洁工。8 清洁工的工资是每小时22美元，他的一部分工资仍会寄给黑山的哥哥、嫂子和两个孩子。菲利帕没有电脑，但他为家人买了一台，家人的大部分收入来自卖牛奶。菲利帕还为了省钱，不买手机，人们只能通过座机与他联系。 9 在接受美联社采访时，菲利帕没有表现出一丁点对艰苦生活的后悔或怨恨。相反，他兴高采烈地描述着他与诧异的年轻同学的邂逅，他们不