In lesson 25, the dialogue revolved around Adam wanting to find a job in China. As with other people in their late 20’s, they are probably settling into a particular career choice, and are working on bringing things to the next level.

Are you someone in a similar stage of your life? Or have you had enough experience, and are wondering whether your could be doing greater things, or doing something that you were really passionate about? I certainly have, and this week’s bilingual quote, 天生我才必有用(tiān shēng wǒ cái bì yǒu yòng) is a nice proverb reminding me that everyone of us have our own unique talents, and that there will be that particular calling where we will find our niche, excel in, and hopefully make the world a better place at the same time. The best way I can translate this proverb is to equate it to “finding one’s calling”.

This proverb is actually a line from a poem by the poet 李白(Lǐ Bái) (701-762 AD), probably one of the best known poets of ancient China. The poem is called “将进酒(Jiāng Jìnjiǔ)” and can be translated as “Please Drink.” 李白(Lǐ Bái) is known to enjoy drinking, and this poem expresses his disappointment in life, but he still thinks that he will find his calling. In the mean time, why not enjoy bottomless rounds of drinks?

A good translation of the entire poem can be found in the link below:

https://phoenixtranslation.wordpress.com/2014/01/01/%E6%9D%8E%E7%99%BD%E7%9A%84-%E5%B0%87%E9%80%B2%E9%85%92-li-bais-please-drink/