李金凤对中国的热爱像是一种执念。“四五岁时，我在家乡伯明翰的图书馆看到一本中国画册。画册里，小女孩穿的衣服，她身后的背景，就像有一种魔法，深深地迷住了我。后来我经常做同样一个梦：我也走在一个中式庭院里，白墙黑瓦，宁静而又美丽。”

　　Li Jinfeng's love for China is a kind of conviction. "When I was four or five years old, I went to the library of Birmingham in my hometown and picked up a book of photos of a little girl in China. In the album, the clothes worn by the little girl, the background behind her, appeared to my eyes as magical and deeply fascinated me. Later, I had a recurring dream for many years in which I walked in a courtyard with white walls. It was empty except for me, serene and tranquil."

　　李金凤说，在小学美术课上，其他小朋友画的都是英国房子，自己画的却是小桥流水、庭院楼阁。她的卧室也是中国风：仕女娃娃、水墨书画、中式桌椅……从小，她就是大家眼里的“中国人”。

　　Li Jinfeng said that in the art class of elementary school, other children painted ordinary British houses, but she always painted small bridges and courtyards. Her home is decorated with Chinese style, Chinese paintings, calligraphy with favourite Song poetry, Chinese tables and chairs... From an early age, she was referred to as "the Chinese one" in her family.

　　▲李金凤7岁时画的中式花园。

　　李金凤告诉记者，对普通英国人来说，改革开放前的中国，古老而神秘；学习中文更是不太可能实现的梦想，那时英国只有极少数大学开设中文课程。

　　For ordinary British people, China before the reform and opening up was seen as an ancient, mysterious place. Learning Chinese at that time was a dream that was unlikely to be realized since only a few universities in the UK offered Chinese courses.

　　为了离梦中的中国更近一些，李金凤瞒着父母，报考了伦敦大学亚非学院学习中文，希望能实现自己的中国梦。1979年，她终于获得来北京语言学院（现在的北京语言大学）留学一年的机会。

　　In order to find the China of her dream, Li Jinfeng enrolled at the School of Oriental and African Studies at the University of London to study Chinese, without her parent's approval. In 1979, she finally got the opportunity to study at the Beijing Language Institute (now Beijing Language and Culture University).

　　▲1979年，北京颐和园，李金凤（左一）与原北京语言学院的同学合影。

　　来中国留学无疑是让人兴奋而又难忘的。可是在北京，她并没有找到梦中的白墙黑瓦。就这样，这个貌似近在咫尺卻又遥不可及的梦，就一直珍藏在她脑海中的一个角落里。

　　Studying in China was full of wonderful memories yet in Beijing, she did not find the white walls and black tiles of her dreams. Beijing had grey walls. This dream, which seemed at once to be close at hand, but at that time still far away, was always buried deep in her memory over all the years.

　　直到2011年，李金凤来到江苏，看到江南水乡的民居，她才惊喜地发现，“这里才是我孩提时梦中的中国——白墙黑瓦，就像宣纸上的水墨画一样。我爱上了南京，我爱上了江南！” 李金凤激动地说。

　　It was not until 31 years later that Li Jinfeng came to Jiangsu and found the white walled houses of the Jiangnan water towns. She felt elation at the discovery. "This is the dream of China I had when I was a child. White walls and black tiles, just like an ink painting on rice paper. I fell in love with Nanjing. I fell in love with Jiangnan!" Li Jinfeng said excitedly.

　　▲“白墙黑瓦，我的爱。”（2017年冬，拍摄于瞻园。）

　　李金凤对中国的感情甚至“传给”了下一代。女儿南京艺术学院毕业，儿子在南理工教英语，已经在这里娶妻生子。“所以，无论走到哪里，我总是盼着回到我们的大南京，因为这里有我的家人，有我童年的梦。”

　　Li Jinfeng's feelings for China have even been passed on to the next generation. Her daughter went to Nanjing University of the Arts to graduate, and her son taught English at NJUST. He married a lovely Nanjing girl and now has two gorgeous children. "So, no matter where I go, west or east, I always long to return to our 'great Nanjing'. My childhood dreams are here. My family is here."

　　谈及中国改革开放以来的变化，李金凤回忆：“1979年，我第一次来中国时，吃饭要粮票，穿衣要布票，有鸡蛋吃就很不错了。拿破仑曾说：当中国苏醒时，她将会让整个世界颤抖。早早地他就看到了中国的潜能。我就是等到了中国的苏醒，我一直相信中国的潜能。”

　　Talking about the changes since China's reform and opening up, Li Jinfeng said: "In 1979, when I first came to China, rationing was still in place and we had to use rice tickets and clothing tickets. When we got eggs, it was great!" 

　　李金凤说，现在的中国让世界惊艳。跟七十年代比，吃穿不愁，几乎家家都有小汽车，很多人每年都出国度假；现在大家关心的是，怎么样让孩子接受与世界接轨的教育，怎么样让世界了解中国。

　　Napoleon famously once made the comment "when China awakes, she will shake the world." "I waited long for that day and always believed in the potential of China. Now China does amaze our world." Today, in contrast with the 70s, China has no lack of food. Almost every family has a car in our towns and cities. Many people go abroad for vacations every year; and everyone worries about giving their children a good education, and how to give the world a better understanding of China.

　　▲2018年，李金凤与原北京语言学院的同学拍摄于南京明孝陵。

　　让李金凤欣喜的是，物质生活水平的提高，并没有冲淡历史和文化的传承。瞻园、明城墙都保护得很好，“触摸着明城墙，仿佛可以感受到这座城市的脉搏。”李金凤说，这才是中国文化的精华。

　　What makes Li Jinfeng happy is that the improvement of material living standards has not diminished the inheritance of history and culture. The Zhanyuan Garden and Ming Dynasty city walls of Nanjing are well protected. "If you feel with your fingertips the 600-year-old Ming Dynasty city wall, you can feel the pulse of the city - the very essence of Chinese culture," Li Jinfeng said.

　　在南京生活七年，她发现懂外语的人越来越多，一些小朋友见到她，都能开口说几句很棒的英语。她有时候会去朝天宫那边的江苏省昆剧院听昆曲，字幕都是中英文对照。“中国改革开放打开一扇门，不但跟外面的世界沟通，跟世界分享中国文化，更让世界惊艳。”

　　More and more people can speak to her in English now and many young children come up to her and say a few words in English which she always finds lovely. Sometimes, when she is able, she visits the theater next to the Chaotian Palace in Nanjing, to listen to Kunqu Opera. The subtitles are now in Chinese and English, sharing the beauty of the lines of Kunqu Opera. "The reform and opening up has opened a door and allowed not only China to make contact with the west but also have the opportunity to share the best of Chinese culture with the world."

　　李金凤以前在英国给非英语国家的学生教过英语。但是，她告诉记者：“能回到中国当老师，为中国人教授英文，才是我最珍惜的事。”

　　Li Jinfeng previously taught English to students from non-English speaking countries in the UK. However, she told reporters: "What I really treasure most of all, is that I finally had the opportunity in my life of returning to China and doing something which can help students communicate better with the world, as a teacher of English."

　　▲李金凤，拍摄于南京梅花山。

　　教学中，她发现国内一些教材，包括学习英语的公众号在语言上并不是特别地道，所以，她每节课都会额外准备一些学习材料。暑假回英国，她还会搜集一些多媒体资料，留意有没有新教材、新的教学方法。最近，李金凤申请了微信公众号“phoenix凤毛麟角”，发布一些英语学习资料，让学生在线收听纯正的英语。

　　In the course of teaching, she found that some domestic textbooks may contain some errors of grammar etc. So she tries each year to prepare additional study material for her lessons. When she returns to the UK during the summer vacation, she will also collect some multimedia materials to help make her classes more interesting and up to date. Recently, Li Jinfeng applied for a WeChat public account, and published some English learning materials, allowing students to listen to some recordings of poetry and her own translations of some Chinese poetry read in English.

　　▲学生写给李金凤的信。

　　当然，教学中她也遇到一些苦恼。“在英国，一个班只有二三十名学生。桌椅可移动，大家围成一个圈，能更好地交流，对提高口语水平很有帮助。可是在中国，一个班的学生多到四五十名，桌椅都是固定的，教学效果自然受到影响。”

　　Of course, she also encountered some problems in teaching. "In the UK, there are only 20 to 30 students in a class. The tables and chairs can be moved. For example, we can form groups or make a circle and have eye contact, much better for communication and practicing conversational English. In China, a class of students can go up to 40 or 50. Seating is fixed with the teacher on a pedestal, not the best environment for learning a language but we improvise."

　　她认为，要更好地介绍中国文化，还应该先明白对方的文化和语言，要学会怎么用最好的方法把中国文化最美的东西跟世界分享。李金凤说，她真心希望可以帮助中国学生学好英语，并激励他们承担起一个任务：把中国文化之美带给全世界。

　　However, she believes that to better introduce Chinese culture, we need to know how to present it to the world, so these skills require an understanding of foreign history and culture as well as language. Li Jinfeng said that she really hopes to help Chinese students learn English well, and inspire in them taking on the task of bringing the beauty of Chinese culture to the world.

　　11月，秋冬季节，李金凤还会像往年一样，去明孝陵石像路看银杏。满树挂黄、高大挺拔的银杏树，承载着百年风华，见证着春华秋实，“就像这南京城一样，虽是六朝古都，却依然朝气蓬勃。”