Lin Hua graduated from the prestigious Tsinghua University as an English major. It might have meant he would engage in some job concerning English all his life. However, destiny often changes directions. In 1953, he was transferred to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and was required to work in Denmark only a few months later.
Lin Hua stayed there for seven years. At that time, premier Zhou Enlai suggested that young people working for the embassy should learn the language of the country where they resided. So Lin Hua started to learn Danish while working as an English translator for the embassy.
On April 2nd, 1955, the 150th anniversary of Hans Anderson' s birth, Denmark held a grand celebration for him. The king and queen participated in each activity: performances, a banquet, torch parade - it was a wonderful occasion. At night, each family lit a candle to commemorate their country's most famous son. The quiet night, the flickering candlelight and the magical atmosphere touched Lin Hua deeply. On his way back to Copenhagen, he said to his colleagues: "I feel I have the duty to introduce Hans Anderson to Chinese people."
On his 35th birthday, Lin Hua began his translation of Hans Anderson's works and said it was the best way to celebrate his birthday. However, due to his busy work schedule for foreign affairs, he didn't translate much. His translation career started in earnest only after he retired. He set a very strict requirement for himself: to translate at least 1,200 words every day. After three years' hard work, the complete Hans Christian Anderson Fairy Tales finally came out.
The publication of the book brought unexpected glory to Lin Hua. In 1997, the queen of Denmark conferred on him the honor of "Knight of the Danish National Flag." The same year, he gained the Anderson Special Award from the city of Odense, where Hans Anderson was born.
Fifty years has passed since Lin Hua set up his mind to translate his fairy tales. However, his passion never fades. Now he plans to translate Anderson's other works, including his diaries, letters and autobiography. Hopefully, Lin Hua will bring us all the facets of Anderson's life and character - he was more than a brilliant fairy story teller who has brought untold pleasure to the world's children.
(CRI June 11, 2004)
