Two girls living next door to each other - a seemingly¹ plain scene that has two very different life stories behind it.

两个女孩比邻而居，这样看似稀松平常的场景背后，却有着两段完全不同的生活境遇。

Chi Zhen, an 18-year-old preparatory student in Seville, Spain, used his camera to tell the story of two lives, which went viral online. Comments on the photos indicate that they have inspired many to believe that the future is in their own hands.

18岁的迟震（音译）现在西班牙塞维利亚读大学预科，他用相机记录了两个女孩各不相同的生活经历，并引发网友疯传。从这些照片下的评论我们可以看出，它们使人们相信一个道理：未来掌握在自己手中。

Chi has seen many of his peers² living life without a goal, wasting their time and blaming bad luck for it. Feeling regret for them, he took a series of photos of his friends Veronica and Anna Maria, both freshmen³ at the University of Seville in Spain. They live completely different life styles and are getting opposite results. Chi hopes the photos will inspire those who have let go of their own fate⁴. It has certainly attracted attention, with more than 213 million views on Renren.com and 30,000 shares.

迟震发现很多同龄人生活得毫无目标、浑浑噩噩，怪罪时运不济。迟震为他们感到惋惜，于是他拍下了一组照片；照片中的人是他的朋友维诺尼卡和安娜?玛丽亚。同为西班牙塞维利亚大学大一新生的她们却有着截然不同的生活方式，结局也是完全相反。迟震希望通过这组照片来激励那些对命运听之任之的人。而这的确十分奏效。人人网上，有超过2.13亿人次浏览了这组照片，并分享了3万次。

In the photos, Anna Maria, a chubby⁵ Spanish girl, can be seen watching a TV drama. “She spends most of her time in front of her laptop,” says Chi. “She loves watching TV so much that she just eats take-away food in front of her laptop every day.”

照片中，胖乎乎的西班牙女孩安娜?玛丽亚正在看电视剧。“她大部分时间都坐在笔记本电脑前，”迟震说，“她沉迷于看电视，每天都会一边看电脑一边吃外卖。”

Anna Maria rarely goes out, because she thinks she’s not attractive and doesn’t know what to say in social situations. She blames fate. “I’m not as lucky as Veronica,” she often says.

安娜?玛丽亚十分“宅”，因为她觉得自己不漂亮，在社交场合不知道该说什么好。她怪自己命不好，“我没有维诺尼卡那么幸运。”是她的口头禅。

But she doesn’t know that while she’s wasting time watching TV dramas, Veronica, the “lucky” girl next door, has taught herself four foreign languages and traveled to many places. She goes to the library frequently and her extensive⁶ knowledge and experience allow her to take part in any conversation and become the center of attention.

但她有所不知的是，当她在电视剧上挥霍时间时，隔壁的维诺尼卡，这个她口中的“幸运”女孩，正在自学四门外语，并且去过很多地方旅行。维诺尼卡经常会泡在图书馆中，读万卷书、行万里路令她在任何社交场合都游刃有余，并且成为人们关注的焦点。

Chi thinks that Anna Maria resembles many of his Chinese friends who study abroad. They are confined⁷ to their little circles, always complaining about their fate, yet never changing it.

迟震认为安娜?玛丽亚跟自己的很多中国留学生朋友很像。他们禁锢在自己的小圈子中，总是抱怨命运，却从未努力去改变。

“They say ‘maybe I’ll do it in my next life’, but they are in their 20s, their best time. How can they give up hope and accept this as their life?” Chi says.

“他们说：‘如果有下辈子，我会改变命运的’，但他们只有20岁，处在人生最好的时光。怎么能放弃希望，听之任之？”迟震说。

Looking at Veronica, it’s obvious that she’s taking control of her fate. She’s studying Chinese, facilitating⁸ communication with Chi. Her experience has encouraged Chi to mix with students from all countries, and he’s getting good results.

看看维诺尼卡，显然她已经掌握了自己的命运。为了与迟震更好地交流，她正在学习中文。受到她亲身经历的启发，迟震开始同各个国家的学生打成一片，结果还不错。

“I learned⁹ about so many different ideas and attitudes, but I still need some time to get used to them,” he says.

“我从他们身上学到了很多不同的想法和人生态度，但我还需要花时间去适应。”他说。

The influence of the photos has gone far beyond what Chi expected. One user commented on his photos on Renren.com, saying: “A wall separates two worlds, and the life we have depends on what we do. I’d rather grasp my fate now than complain about everything later.” Another is determined¹⁰ to make a change right away. “I’m turning off my laptop and not watching TV dramas anymore,” he wrote.

这组照片的影响力远远超出了迟震的预期。一位人人网网友在照片下评论道：“一堵墙分开两个世界，有什么样的行动就有什么样的生活。与其事后抱怨连连，不如趁现在把握命运。”另一网友则决定马上做出改变。他写道：“我关掉了笔记本电脑，不再去看那些电视剧了。”