Come Home, Did You Say?

我们是在2005年把家搬到中国的，合同期三年。与从前大多数移居海外的人们一样，我们是因为工作（具体说，是因为我的妻子白佩琪(Rebecca)的工作）才搬到中国的。当美国总部决定把我们召回时，我们就打点行装，含泪道别，然后登上飞机。这或许依然是大多数外派人员的共同经历，但当然不是他们的唯一出路。其中有些人希望长期留在海外，于是将这份外派的工作当作跳板；有些人对新家是如此迷恋，以至于在第一个任期结束后他们会想出新的办法留在那里；还有些人会以“当地雇员”的身份继续留在原来的公司──而这通常意味着更加开放的待遇也欠优厚的条件──而另一些人则会选择重新找工作或是自己创业。当我再次回到美国生活努力在美国老家立足的时候，我花了很多时间思考那些做出了以上那些选择的朋友们，他们做出了与我们截然不同的决定。他们拒绝了新的工作机会公司下达的回国或是转到其它地方工作的调令，为的是在新家扎根，有时这还冒着事业或经济上的风险。与全球各地日益增多的那些“半外派人员”──其中的许多人年轻单身而且相对来说无牵无挂──不同的是，这些冒险者的年纪普遍偏大，携妻带子举家来到海外，而且还享受着一整套的福利待遇。Matt Carberry卡伯里一家人在奥运会女篮冠军争夺赛现场首先进入我脑海的就是我们的朋友马特(Matt)和埃伦•卡伯里(Ellen Carberry)夫妇。七年前，因为埃伦被派往IBM北京公司工作，他们从美国马萨诸塞州的剑桥带着两个年幼的孩子一起搬到了北京。与我们──也与大多数我在北京认识的外派者──不同的是，埃伦并不是碰巧得到了在中国工作的机会。在中国生活是她很长时间以来的梦想。1983年，埃伦在菲律宾的一家难民营工作过九个月。那时，她就萌生了这样的想法。难民营里到处都是从越南老挝和柬埔寨的混乱中逃出来的人们。18年前，在和马特第一次约会的时候，他们就讨论过在国外把孩子们抚养长大的共同心愿。2002年到了北京之后，马特埃伦，还有他们的孩子──那时分别只有五岁和六岁的卢克(Luke)和克洛伊(Chloe)，很快便在那里安下了家。当三年后埃伦的任期结束时，他们一家人都感觉还没做好离开北京的准备，包括两个将北京──那里有他们的学校邻里，还有朋友──当作自己的家的孩子们。“当时，回美国继续为IBM公司工作是一个选择，但其实我们并没有认真考虑过这条路，”她说。埃伦很快开始着手找另外一份工作，并最终在红帽软件公司(Red Hat)任职，在那里她又干了三年。去年，在红帽公司的工作合同也即将到期，但马特和埃伦还是无意返回美国。“现在，孩子们在世界上一流的国际学校学习，我们居住的社区里有最有趣最勤勤恳恳脚踏实地的家庭，他们为公司卫生机构大使馆世界银行(World Bank)和世界上最好的报纸工作，”她说。“这些顶尖机构派出了他们最好最有能力的员工来发展中国业务──因此，这是我所能想象到的最有趣最有活力，也最令人愉快的社区和生活方式。”马特也深有同感。他说，“有趣的是，我发现这里的家庭都非常稳定。尽管这里的大多数人都是相对富裕的外派人员，但每个人都是靠着工作来谋生的。没有人对工作敷衍了事，或者花钱大手大脚。这里的人们有非常好的职业操守，而这正是我喜欢的。这里有‘第三种文化’──这种文化既不属于母国，也不完全是中国的──我能够接受这一点。”在中国的大公司工作了六年之后，埃伦把对绿色科技的信念和创业兴趣结合起来（她曾为几家初创公司工作，其中一家被IBM收购，她当年也因此加入IBM），与合作伙伴共同创立了The China Greentech Initiative。这家公司旨在推动绿色科技企业在中国的投资机会。马特也加入了一家大型的初创公司，成为China Horizon Investment Group的董事总经理。这家公司正准备在中国农村开办成千上万家商店，所出售的物品从大米到塑料制品无所不包。他俩所从事的这样令人大展拳脚的工作眼下在美国很难找到。还有另外一种外派人员。他们经常从一个地方被派到另一个地方，奔走于世界各地。马特告诉我，这种生活对他一向没有吸引力；他喜欢走到一地就扎下根来。他已经成为北京外派群体中的重要人物。他是孩子们所在的学校一家体育休闲组织和一家儿童慈善组织的董事。尽管他们非常热爱在北京的生活，但也有些事情不尽如人意：马特说，比如污染和缺少户外活动；埃伦则为远离家人而感到愧疚，尤其孩子们不能和祖父母在一起。来自英国的克里斯•巴克利(Chris Buckley)也是一位在北京工作了很长时间的外派人员。自从脱离原来的公司后，他发现了一条新的职业道路──生产销售手工制作的西藏藏毯。1995年，巴克利被宝洁公司(Proctor & Gamble)外派到中国广州工作。五年以后，他和同样也在宝洁工作的妻子虽然仍在为这家公司效力，但为了能够到北京工作，而不是被派往日本神户（他们之前曾经在神户工作过），他们的身份从外派人员变成了当地雇员。“虽然身份转换成当地雇员意味着福利和薪水都会降低，但对我来说这没什么，因为我觉得与在日本工作相比，在中国工作要有意思多了，”巴克利说。他今年48岁，没有孩子。“中国当时（现在同样如此）处在上升阶段，而日本似乎已经日益走向了漫长的衰退期。我还发现中国的年轻人更加渴望学习和提高自己，这让我在这里的工作更加有趣。”巴克利说，他在2001年的时候出于兴趣接管了一家小店，碰巧开始销售藏毯。“生意越来越好，几年之后我辞去了宝洁的工作。假如当初我没有成为本地雇员，那么我想我也不会有这样的转变，”他说，“外派协议让你生活在一个气泡里面，如果你辞职不干，那么就会失去房子汽车等等。而作为一个当地雇员，你可以过着独立的生活。”巴克利后来在拉萨开办了自己的毛毯加工厂，现在他还和西藏扶贫基金会(Tibet Poverty Alleviation Fund)建立了紧密的联系。Bill Russo拉索与女儿和儿子在朝阳剧场观看杂技表演后与演员合影眼下的经济形势让延长在中国的工作时间变得更有吸引力。今年48岁的比尔•拉索(Bill Russo)在克莱斯勒(Chrysler)工作了十五年后，最近辞掉了该公司东北亚地区副总裁的职务，为的是留在北京。“至少在我距离外派期满的一年以前，我就已经作出决定要留下来，但是底特律总部那边的问题让我毫不费力地做出了这个决定，”拉索说。他希望女儿能够像她的两个哥哥一样在北京读完中学。他正在考虑利用他对中国文化的了解成立一家咨询公司，为有意进军中国市场的公司提供服务。他认为中国市场今后的实力将会越来越强。在一两年前，他的客户毫无疑问地已经在他的公司门前排起了长队，但随着中国经济形势的变化，是否还能有这样的机会或许存在变数。尽管拉索急于想找一份新工作，但他很享受现在不那么疲于奔命也摆脱了外派包袱的生活。“呆在北京感觉很好，我不用因为工作关系到处出差了，”他说，“我现在每天都在学中文，坐出租车公交车或是骑着自行车在城里逛来逛去。过去的几个月，我亲身感受到而且也开始喜欢上了北京当地人的生活方式。”拉索说，虽然有朝一日他肯定会回美国，但他并不急于回去，也没有为此设定时间表。“我只是觉得，这里还有那么多的东西等待我去体验，这个时候回美国，不论是从职业发展还是从我的内心来讲，都不是一个成熟的决定，”他说。马特和埃伦同样没有设想过他们在北京的生活什么时候会结束，而且他们明白，正是因为自己不再是外派人员，没有了外派任务，所以何时回国并不是完全由他们自己说了算。“因为我们一直生活在中国，我慢慢学会了去感激生活中的每一天，而且对接下来要发生的事情保持一种开放的心态，”埃伦说。“我们现在能够生活在北京，是因为中国政府欢迎支持我们。尽管我们努力想要控制自己的生活，但我们明白，一切并不完全由我们说了算。”Alan Paul（编者按：本文作者Alan Paul是《吉他世界》(Guitar World)的高级编辑，同时也为美国篮球杂志《灌篮》(Slam)撰写文章。因妻子工作需要，他于2005年举家从美国新泽西州迁往中国。2008年底，外派工作结束，Alan Paul一家返回新泽西。他的电子邮件是expatlife@dowjones.com。）


We went to China in 2005 with a three-year commitment. Like most traditional expats, we arrived for a job (in our case my wife Rebecca's) and when the home office called us back, we packed our bags, said tearful good byes and climbed on a plane. This is still probably the most common path taken by expats, but it is certainly not the only one.Some expats have a vision of remaining abroad for long periods and use their initial job offer as a springboard; others find themselves so enamored of their new home that when the first posting ends they find a new way to make it work; some remain with their employer as a 'local hire' -- usually meaning open-ended and less cushy terms -- while others seek new jobs or start their own businesses.As I resettle and struggle to find my footing back home, I have spent a lot of time thinking about some friends who made these types of decisions, which were radically different than our own. They turned down new jobs, transfers or recalls to stake roots in their adopted home, sometimes with potential risk to their career or finances. Unlike those in the growing group of 'halfpats' world-wide, many of whom are young, single, and comparatively nimble, these risk takers are older and have gone abroad with families and full-package assignments.The first people that came to my mind were our friends Matt and Ellen Carberry. They arrived in Beijing from Cambridge, Mass., seven years ago, moving for her job with IBM, with two young children in tow. Unlike us -- and most expats I know in Beijing -- Ellen did not just happen to receive a job in China. Living there had been a long-time goal, hatched in 1983 when she worked nine months in a refugee camp in the Philippines filled with people fleeing chaos in Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia. She and Matt had discussed their mutual interest in raising children abroad on their very first date 18 years ago.They and their children -- Luke and Chloe, then ages five and six -- quickly settled into life in Beijing after arriving in 2002. When her assignment ended three years later, none of them felt ready to leave, including the children who knew Beijing -- their school, their neighborhood, their friends -- as their home.'Going back to the U.S. for a job with IBM was an option but not one we seriously considered,' she says. Instead, Ellen immediately began looking for another job, landing at Red Hat, where she worked for three years. With the end of that job in sight last year, Matt and Ellen were still not interested in returning to the U.S. 'The children are in one of the best international schools in the world and we live amidst a community of some of the most interesting, committed and down-to-earth families working for businesses, health organizations, embassies, the World Bank and the world's best newspapers,' she says. 'These leading organizations have sent their best and brightest to define their growth in China -- so it is one of the most interesting, dynamic and enjoyable communities and lifestyles I could possibly imagine.'Matt echoes this sentiment and adds, 'Interestingly, I find the family units here very stable. Despite the fact that most are relatively well-off expats, everyone is working for a living. No one is skating through their work and sweeping up cash. There is a very healthy work ethic, which I like. It is the 'third culture' -- neither home country nor pure China -- and I am fine with that.'After six years working for large companies in China, Ellen combined her belief in green technology with entrepreneurial interests (she had worked for several startups, including one which was bought by IBM, leading to her employment there) to co-found The China Greentech Initiative, which promotes investment in green-technology business opportunities in China. Matt is also involved in a large-scale start-up business, as a managing director at China Horizon Investment Group, which looks to open thousands of stores in rural China selling everything form rice to plastics. The type of ambitious work they are both doing seems difficult to come by in the U.S. right now.There is another subset of expats, who move constantly from one assignment to another, making their way around the world. Matt Carberry told me that this never appealed to him; he likes to put down roots, and has become a pillar of the Beijing expat community, serving on the boards of his kids' school, a sports recreation group and a kids' charity.Still, as much as they love life in Beijing, there are things that make them pause: Matt points to the pollution and lack of an outdoor life; Ellen feels guilty about living so far away from their families, especially separating kids from their grandparents.Chris Buckley is another long-time Beijing expat who found a new calling -- making and selling hand-made Tibetan rugs -- since jumping off the corporate mother ship. The Englishman arrived in Guangzhou, China, working for Proctor & Gamble in 1995. Five years later, he and his wife, also working for P&G, changed their status from expats to local hires to relocate to Beijing rather than return to Kobe, Japan, where they were previously posted.'It was an easy decision to localize, despite the reduction in benefits and salary, because I found China to be a much more interesting place to work than Japan,' says Mr. Buckley, who is 48 and has no children. 'The former was (and still is) on an upward curve, whereas Japan seemed to be settling into a long decline. I also found the younger Chinese employees much more eager to learn and improve, which made working here more fun.'Mr. Buckley says he got into selling Tibetan carpets by accident, taking over a small store as an intended hobby in 2001. 'The business grew and I quit P&G a few years later. I don't think I would have made that transition had I not localized first,' he says. 'Expat deals are like living in a bubble, and if you quit from one of those you lose your house, car, etc. As a local you have an independent existence.'Mr. Buckley eventually opened his own carpet worskshop in Lhasa and is currently working closely with the Tibet Poverty Alleviation Fund.The current economic climate is making an extended expat stay more appealing to some. Bill Russo recently left Chrysler, where he worked for 15 years, most recently as the vice-president responsible for Chrysler's business in Northeast Asia, to remain in Beijing.'At least a year before my assignment ended I decided I wanted to stay here, but the problems back in Detroit made the decision fairly black and white,' says Mr. Russo 48, who wanted to allow his daughter to finish high school in Beijing as her two brothers did. He is considering channeling his experience with Chinese culture into a new consultancy for companies looking to enter the Chinese market, which he believes will continue to gain strength. A year or two ago, he would doubtlessly have clients lining up at his door, but with China's changing economic picture such opportunity may be less certain.While Mr. Russo is anxious to get a new job, he is currently enjoying a less harried existence and living without an expat package. 'It has been nice to be here without the constant travel pressure associated with my job,' he says. 'I'm studying Chinese daily, and get around town using taxis, buses and bicycles. The past few months have given me the experience of and appreciation for the Beijing local lifestyle.'He says that while he will 'certainly migrate back' to the U.S. some day, he is in no hurry and on no timetable. 'I just felt that going back now, when there is so much more to experience here -- both professionally and personally, would have been premature,' he says.The Carberrys likewise have no concrete vision for when their time in China will end, and acknowledge that, just because they are no longer on an expat assignment, the decision isn't entirely up to them. 'Since we've been in China, I've grown to live by appreciating one day at a time, and always keeping an open mind about what will happen next,' says Ellen. 'We're living in Beijing at the invitation and sponsorship of the government and thus, while we try to control our lives, one realizes that you're not in full control.'Alan Paul