众人拾柴火焰高。中美关系发展，离不开两国政府、地方、友好团体、各界人士的辛勤耕耘和精心呵护。特别是美中关系全国委员会、美中贸易全国委员会、美中政策基金会、美国商会、美国中国总商会、百人会、华美协进社、对外关系委员会、亚洲协会、布鲁金斯学会等友好团体和一大批友好人士，长期为促进两国友好合作奔走努力。中美关系持续发展，凝聚着大家的心血和汗水。在这里，我谨向所有致力于中美友好事业的地方政府、社会团体、大学和智库机构及各界人士，表示由衷的敬意和诚挚的感谢！

As a Chinese saying goes, the fire burns high when everyone brings wood to it. It is the loving care and hard work of the national governments, local authorities, friendly organizations and people from all walks of life in both countries that have made China-U.S. relations flourish. In particular, the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations, the U.S.-China Business Council, the U.S.-China Policy Foundation, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the China General Chamber of Commerce-USA, the Committee of 100, the China Institute, the Council on Foreign Relations, the Asia Society, the Brookings Institution and many other friendly groups and individuals have made untiring efforts over the years to promote friendly relations and cooperation between the two countries and brought the relationship to this far. Let me pay high tribute and express my heartfelt gratitude to all the local governments, social organizations, universities, think tanks and people from all sectors of society who have dedicated themselves to thecause of China-U.S. friendship.

女士们、先生们、朋友们！

Ladies and Gentlemen,Dear Friends,

新中国成立以来特别是改革开放以来，中国走过了一段很不平凡的历程，我们这一代中国人对此有着切身的体会。

Since the founding of the People's Republic, especially since the beginning of reform and opening-up, China has set out on an extraordinary journey, and the Chinese of my generation have had some first-hand experience.

上世纪60年代末，我才十几岁，就从北京到中国陕西省延安市一个叫梁家河的小村庄插队当农民，在那儿度过了7年时光。那时候，我和乡亲们都住在土窑里、睡在土炕上，乡亲们生活十分贫困，经常是几个月吃不到一块肉。我了解乡亲们最需要什么！后来，我当了这个村子的党支部书记，带领乡亲们发展生产。我了解老百姓需要什么。我很期盼的一件事，就是让乡亲们饱餐一顿肉，并且经常吃上肉。但是，这个心愿在当时是很难实现的。

Towards the end of the 1960s when I was in my teens, I was sent from Beijing to work as a farmer in a small village of Liangjiahe near Yan'an of Shaanxi Province, where I spent seven years. At that time, the villagers and I lived in “earth caves” and slept on “earth beds”. Life was very hard. There was no meat in our diet for months. I knew what the villagers wanted the most. Later I became the village's party secretary and began to lead the villagers in production. I understood their needs. One thing I wished most at the time was to make it possible for the villagers to have meat and have it often. But it was very difficult for such a wish to come true in those years.

今年春节，我回到这个小村子。梁家河修起了柏油路，乡亲们住上了砖瓦房，用上了互联网，老人们享有基本养老，村民们有医疗保险，孩子们可以接受良好教育，当然吃肉已经不成问题。这使我更加深刻地认识到，中国梦是人民的梦，必须同中国人民对美好生活的向往结合起来才能取得成功。

At the Spring Festival early this year, I returned to the village. I saw blacktop roads. Now living in houses with bricks and tiles, the villagers had Internet access. Elderly folks had basic old-age care and all villagers had medical care coverage. Children were in school. Of course, meat was readily available. This made me keenly aware that the Chinese Dream is after all a dream of the people. We can fulfill the Chinese Dream only when we link it with our people's yearning for a better life.