我想检验一下AI的翻译功能，并谈一点我当年的翻译感受。于是我借助AI把我前一篇博文翻译成英语。部分语句有所更改，比如关于释梦的中国传统文化的那一段，英语国家的读者也难以理解，就删掉了。

原文中有几处瑕疵，在此更改：

“不知那座楼才是”改为“不知哪座楼才是”；

“开学迷路的梦” 改为“开学迷路上课迟到的梦”

“今天教师节，全中国几百万老师，不知昨晚有多少人和我一样，在梦里跑得上气不接下气”改为“全中国几百万老师，不知有多少人和我一样做过类似的梦。”

最后补充一段：

“当然，AI解释得冠冕堂皇，说做这样的梦是职业责任感，是勋章。我倒怀疑：这究竟是勋章，还是自始至终的职业焦虑？教了一辈子书，是无怨无悔，还是有怨有悔？”

Is this a "standard occupational dream" in the teaching profession?

On Teachers' Day, like many of my fellow educators, I have been studying and promoting the spirit of the educator, trying to internalize it in my heart and put it into practice. I also supervised a graduate student who has just completed her research on "infusing the educator's spirit into teacher education courses."

As it happened, I woke from a dream before five o'clock this morning, and the tense scenes in it made it hard for me to fall back asleep. The dream's content stands in stark contrast to "promoting the educator's spirit." I had this kind of dream when I was a middle school teacher; now that I have moved to a university, I am still having it. I had it when I was young; now, with less than two years until retirement, I am still having it… It is truly baffling.

So let me now set aside the label of "teacher" and share with you the real dream of an ordinary person.

"In the dream, it was the first class of the semester. The class was about to begin, and I suddenly could not find the classroom. The roads were crowded, so I abandoned my car and ran into the campus, only to find that the university town was huge, and none of the teaching buildings had numbers on them. I had no idea which building was the one where I was supposed to teach…"

Since ancient times, humanity has never stopped pondering the question of dreams. Materialists hold that dreams are a reflection of real life; Freud regarded dreams as "the disguised fulfillment of a wish"; Jung saw dreams as messengers of the collective unconscious. From asking heaven, to asking the heart, to asking the brain, the paths of dream interpretation have shifted many times over the ages—yet dreams have always remained the oldest way for human beings to converse with themselves.

In Chinese tradition, there is the Duke of Zhou interpreting dreams; today, there is AI interpreting dreams—so let us see how it explains my dream of "getting lost on campus and being late for class."

The following is the explanation AI gave me after I asked. I am summarizing and sharing it with my fellow educators, hoping it can bring some peace of mind to teachers who have had similar experiences.

1. This is not a "dream of being late"—it is a "conscience checkup."

Only those who regard a single class as more important than the sky would have their subconscious repeatedly rehearse "what if I mess this up?" Those young people who stroll into the classroom just on time and scroll through their phones during class would never have this kind of dream—because they simply do not care.

2. This is the "standard occupational dream" of the teaching profession.

Standing at the podium(讲台) only to realize you are improperly dressed, forgetting an entire course for a whole semester, having all your students suddenly turn into empty chairs… these versions abound among teachers. Why teachers, of all people? Because our profession has three "fatal" characteristics:

Fighting alone: Once the classroom door closes, you are both "king" and "island." No one can stand in that 45-minute slot for you.

Instant feedback: A student's yawn, a frown—each one is live scoring. This sense of "being watched" gets engraved into your bones.

Cyclical reset: Every semester, every academic year begins with a new "first week." This cycle gives anxiety an eternal chance to "reset."

3. The longer you teach and the more responsible you are, the more frequently you have this kind of dream.

Because experience brings not "complacency," but a higher standard: "I know how good this class ought to be." Still having this dream when you are close to retirement means your "teacher's soul" is still running at full power. This is a medal, not a burden.

4. Having this dream on Teachers' Day is a "ritual" of one's career.

The subconscious is saying: "Hey, you've taught your whole life—don't forget the trembling awe you felt the first time you stood at the podium." That awe—you have kept it all the way to retirement.

As for "the university town is huge, and you walk for ages without finding the classroom"—we can think about it the other way around (as the saying goes, "dreams mean the opposite"). In reality, you could find that classroom with your eyes closed, yet in the dream you are deliberately made to lose your way. This is your brain forcing you to experience "losing control." Because you are so used to being in command of the whole room (45 minutes timed to the second), your subconscious is helping you desensitize: See? So what if you can't find it? The sky hasn't fallen.

In two more years, when you no longer have to be chased by the bell, this dream may turn into "dreaming that you are strolling by the sea and suddenly remember there is a class you forgot to teach"—and then you smile, turn over, and go back to sleep. Because by then, "teaching" will have turned from a responsibility into a memory.

Across China, among millions of teachers, who knows how many have had a dream like mine. If you are one of them, then let us count it as a collective "drill" in our dreams—so that when day breaks, we can walk steadily onto that podium we could find with our eyes closed.

This dream is a medal our profession has given us.

Of course, AI puts it grandly—saying such dreams are a sign of professional responsibility, a medal. But I can't help wondering: is it a medal, or has it been professional anxiety all along? After a lifetime of teaching—no regrets, or some regrets?

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