030 Thanking Notes



陈豪在北京的ABC美国公司工作,他到美国同事Amy的办公室去找她。

(Office ambience)

C:Amy, 你有时间吗?

A:I can always make time for you, Chen Hao. What's the matter?

C:我有个客户,听说我搬家,专门送了我一幅画儿。

A:That doesn't sound like a problem. It sounds more like a nice gesture.

C:可是那画的颜色和风格跟我的公寓格格不入。

A:That's too bad. He probably chose something he would like to have and didn't consider your taste. I hope you thanked him for it anyway.

C:我觉得也是,给别人买东西,应该买别人喜欢的才对。不过我还是打算发个电子邮件,谢谢他,但是不知道怎么写,所以来请教你。

A:Well, first of all, you shouldn't use e-mail to thank someone for a gift. A proper note of gratitude should be handwritten.

C:什么是 gra--ti--tude?

A:Gratitude is the same as thanks or appreciation.

C:那一定要手写吗?

A:E-mail is impersonal and lacks warmth. The effort you make to show your gratitude should match the effort that your client expended in sending you the gift.

C:我能不能买张现成的感谢卡,在上面加上一句,然后签个字呢?

A:I'm sorry, but that won't do either. You need to demonstrate your good manners by composing a personal note in your own words on the appropriate stationery.

C:你能陪我去买合适的卡片吗?

A:I don't have time now. But let's meet at the stationery store at noon.

******

MC:中午,陈豪和Amy一起到卡片专卖店。

C:Amy, 这种可以折叠的感谢卡挺大方的。

A:They are acceptable, but not as classy as these correspondence cards that are made of heavier stock paper.

C:噢,correspondence cards,就是回复卡。

A:You should order some with your name engraved across the top for future use.

C:我说有时候收到别人的卡片,上面还有名字的缩写,原来是可以订做的呀。好,就买这个。不过我还是不知道怎么写。

A:It's not so hard, and you don't have to be dishonest.

C:你启发启发我。

A:You can tell your client how much you appreciate his thoughtfulness and generosity in sending you a painting by this artist.

C:有了。我就说“你怎么知道我家到处都是白墙的?画儿是我最需要的。”这样写,他也不知道我是不是喜欢那幅画。

A:And you have all the elements of a proper thank you note.

C:Amy, 你能再重复一下写感谢卡的注意事项吗?

A:A note of thanks is hand written on quality notepaper. It begins with a specific reference to the gift, remarks about its quality, why you appreciate it and how you will use it.

C:这么说,其实也不难嘛。谢谢你,Amy.