Chapter 15

Chapter 15 THE BIG DEBATE! THE MOMENT OF TRUTH!… AND THE REASON GYM IS CANCELED TODAY! Po LIKED TO WIN. Often, that was a good quality. When he was on the basketball court…or rehearsing for a play…or studying for a test? That drive to succeed was hugely important. But it was possible to be too competitive. To take things too far. To put just winning ahead of how you win. He tried to remember that as he adjusted his microphone in the moments before his debate with Shelly Silver. The entire class had packed into the cafeteria to witness it. And Po found himself craving their applause. But he reminded himself that he wasn't here for applause. He was here to discuss important subjects that his fellow students cared deeply about. And he needed to take that seriously.

第十五章大辩论！关键时刻到了！今天健身房取消的原因！阿宝喜欢赢。 通常，这是一种好的品质。 当他在篮球场上，或者排练戏剧，或者准备考试的时候？ 这种成功的动力非常重要。 但竞争也可能过于激烈。 把事情做得太过分。把赢放在如何赢之前。 在与谢利·西尔弗辩论之前，他一边调整麦克风，一边努力回忆这句话。 全班同学都挤进自助餐厅来见证这一切。 阿宝发现自己渴望得到他们的掌声。 但他提醒自己，他不是来鼓掌的。 他来这里是为了讨论他的同学们非常关心的重要课题。 他需要认真对待这件事。

Mr. Malory stepped to the center of the stage and addressed the assembled students. "Greetings, Woodsword," he said. "As a neutral party, I've been asked to moderate this debate over my lunch hour. Normally I'd be sad to miss lunch…but I was going to eat a bologna sandwich today, so I'd rather be here with all of you." Mr. Malory paused, as if waiting for laughter. But no one made a sound. He turned to Po and Shelly. "Tough crowd," he whispered to them.

马洛里先生走到舞台中央，向聚集在一起的学生们发表讲话。 “你好，木剑。”他说。 “作为一个中立党派，我被要求在午餐时间主持这场辩论。 他说：“一般来说，错过午餐我会很难过，但是今天我要吃腊肠三明治，所以我宁愿和大家在一起。” 马洛里停顿了一下，好像在等着别人笑。 但是没有人发出一点声音。他转向阿宝和雪莉。 “这群人真厉害，”他低声对他们说。

Shelly was at her own lectern, which was set up a few feet away from Po's. She didn't look nervous. In fact, she looked eager to begin. "Let's start with you, Shelly," said Mr. Malory. "Why do you want to be class president?" Shelly didn't hesitate. "I want to make a difference at Woodsword," she answered. "I want to help make our school the very best it can be. I have a plan to expand our after-school activities by twenty percent, and to reduce our carbon footprint by twice that percentage. That's why I gave out reusable spoons when I announced my campaign—the disposable

雪莉站在自己的讲台上，离阿宝的讲台只有几英尺远。 她看起来并不紧张。事实上，她似乎急于开始。 “我们从你开始吧，谢莉。”马洛里先生说。 “你为什么想当班长？”雪莉没有犹豫。 “我想在森林剑有所作为。”她回答。 “我想帮助我们学校成为最好的学校。 我有一个计划，将我们的课外活动扩大20%，并将我们的碳足迹减少两倍。 这就是为什么当我宣布我的竞选活动时，我分发了可重复使用的勺子——一次性的

plasticware that the cafeteria provides us is wasteful and unnecessary, and it has to go." Po was stunned. It hadn't even occurred to him that her handouts were part of a waste-reduction plan. He'd thought she was just trying to be flashy! "And I had to stay up late doing the math, but…I think I may have a solution to the block party dilemma," said Shelly. "If we change the event into a ticketed fundraiser, we have the opportunity to keep the party fun…while actually making money instead of spending it. I think that might satisfy everybody!" The students all applauded for Shelly, and Po found he couldn't blame them. He almost wanted to join them! "Same question for you, Po," said Mr. Malory. "Why do you want to be president?" Po thought for a moment about his answer. And he decided to be honest.

食堂提供给我们的塑料餐具既浪费又不必要，必须取消。” 阿宝惊呆了。他甚至没有想到她的施舍是减少浪费计划的一部分。 他以为她只是想装腔作势！谢利说：“我不得不熬夜做数学，但我想我可能有一个解决街区派对困境的办法。” “如果我们把活动变成门票筹款活动，我们就有机会保持派对的乐趣……同时真正赚钱，而不是花钱。” 我想这会让大家满意的！”同学们都为雪莉鼓掌，阿宝发现他不能责怪他们。 他几乎想加入他们！“同样的问题也问你，阿宝。”马洛里先生说。 “你为什么想当总统？”阿宝想了一会儿他的回答。 他决定要诚实。

"I don't really want to be president," he said. He heard gasps from the crowd, but he didn't let that stop him. "What I want is to win the election, because winning feels good. And winning a vote makes you feel like people really like you." He sighed. "I like being the center of attention. But that's the only thing I would like about being president. I'm not actually ready for the responsibility. I mean, nobody told me there'd be math involved." He grinned. "And that's why…I've decided to endorse Shelly Silver for class president."

“我真的不想当总统，”他说。 他听到了人群的喘息声，但他没有让这阻止他。 “我想要的是赢得选举，因为获胜的感觉很好。 赢得投票会让你觉得人们真的喜欢你。” 他叹了口气。“我喜欢成为人们关注的焦点。 但这是我想当总统的唯一原因。 我还没准备好承担责任。 我是说，没人告诉我这里面会有数学。” 他咧嘴一笑。“这就是为什么……我决定支持雪莉·西尔弗竞选班长。”

Now Shelly herself gasped. Everyone else seemed to be stunned into silence. Po looked into the crowd and saw that every student was sitting absolutely frozen in place. Then he saw Morgan begin to clap. And Jodi. And Harper and Theo and Ricky. And then everybody else.

现在雪莉自己倒吸了一口气。 其他人似乎都惊呆了，鸦雀无声。 阿宝看了看人群，发现每个学生都一动不动地坐着。 然后他看到摩根开始鼓掌。 和乔迪。还有哈珀，西奥和里奇。 然后是其他人。