95岁纽约老人，一开口说的竟是青海方言？他表示：“一个人一生只能有一个故乡，我的故乡就是青海湟源”

在中国西北的青海省湟源县，有一首传唱至今的童谣：

“美国洋人大鼻子，好吃中国的酿皮子。又调辣子又调醋，辣子抹了一鼻子……”

实际上，童谣里说的“大鼻子”先生真实存在，在当地还很有名。他叫柏大卫，95岁，出生在纽约。

David V. Plymire, the 95-year-old New York-born American who is the real "big-nosed" American in a regional nursery rhyme, has become a local celebrity in Huangyuan county, Qinghai province, through decades of quiet, practical help.

一个纽约出生的美国人，怎么就成了青海童谣里的“男一号”？

在湟源的美国孩子

丹噶尔古城（今青海湟源），曾经是历史上有名的“环海商都”。

驼铃声响，商贾云集，作为去往青海牧区和新疆、西藏的重要节点，清末民初，丹噶尔古城吸引英、美、德、俄等国商人来此设立洋行，一时间格外繁盛。

1932年，柏大卫刚满周岁，便随父亲柏立美远渡重洋，在丹噶尔古城南侧修建起一座二层砖木小楼，从此与这片异乡土地结下不解之缘。几年之后，柏大卫的妹妹柏美安也在这里出生。

David first arrived in Huangyuan in 1932, just after his first birthday, with his father Victor G. Plymire. His sister Mary Ann Plymire was later born in the town. 

The family settled in DanGar Ancient Town, once a bustling commercial hub. During the late Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) and China's republican era (1912-49), camel caravans would pass through, and British, American, German, and Russian traders opened offices there.

柏大卫平日在家中讲英语，走出家门，便操着一口流利的湟源方言，和街坊邻里、同龄孩童打成一片。

幼年时期的柏大卫和妹妹柏美安在湟源。（资料照片）

“美国洋人大鼻子，好吃中国的酿皮子。又调辣子又调醋，辣子抹了一鼻子……”这便是当时湟源百姓为柏大卫随口编出来的童谣，字里行间满是邻里之间的亲昵戏谑。

David, as a boy, spoke English at home and fluent Huangyuan dialect outside. He mixed with neighbors and children his age. 

The verse locals recited ran: "The big-nosed American loves Chinese niangpizi (cold noodles made from wheat flour). He adds chili and vinegar, and gets chili all over his nose…" The teasing was affectionate, a sign that the foreign child had been accepted into the neighborhood.

他的父亲柏立美，在湟源人眼中也是个“自家人”。

大家都说柏立美谦和诚恳，尊重当地民族风俗，刻苦学习汉语和藏语，利用掌握的西医知识免费为各族民众诊治。

除义诊之外，他还向普通民众传授缝制毡靴、毡帽、刺绣等手工技艺，靠着海外募集而来的经费，帮助当地人掌握谋生的本事。

His father left a deep impression. Locals remember Victor as modest and sincere, and being respectful of ethnic customs. 

He learned Chinese and Tibetan, used his knowledge of Western medicine to treat people free of charge, and taught villagers how to make felt boots and hats, as well as how to embroider. With funds raised overseas, Victor helped them learn skills to earn a living. 

在湟源生活了17年后，18岁的柏大卫跟着家人回到了美国。走出南城壕石板小巷的那一刻，他不会想到，再次踏回这片土地是38年之后……

After 17 years of living in Huangyuan, the family returned to the United States. David would not set foot in the town again for 38 years. 

离开之后，故乡仍在

远赴美国定居后，柏大卫的心里，装的始终是遥远的湟源。

在美国，没人跟他说湟源话。为了不让乡音褪去，他每天对着镜子，自己跟自己说上几遍，“不然时间长就忘了”。

“一个人一生只能有一个故乡，我的故乡就是湟源。”这句话，柏大卫常常挂在嘴边。父亲柏立美晚年依旧日夜惦念湟源，离世前叮嘱儿子，如果将来有机会回到那里，一定要尽力帮助那里的乡亲。

In the United States, no one spoke the Huangyuan dialect. To keep the sounds from fading, David practiced in front of a mirror. "A person can have only one hometown in life," he often said, "Mine is Huangyuan." 

His father also missed the town and, before his death, told his son to help the people there if he ever had the chance.

资料视频截图

直到1987年，阔别38年后，柏大卫终于如愿重返青海。

他想为家乡做点实事。湟源县卫生局原局长李林回忆：“他走访多地，把目光首先投向了紧缺先进设备的医院。”

In 1987, David finally returned. The visit turned nostalgia into action. Li Lin, a former director of the Huangyuan County Health Bureau, recalled that David visited many places and first focused on the hospital's shortage of advanced equipment.

1989年3月，他和妹妹柏美安用15万港币在香港买来一台当时县级医院最缺的B超检测仪。没有快递、没有物流，柏大卫就带着机器乘坐飞机，从香港到西安，再从西安到湟源。

In March 1989, David and his sister bought an ultrasound scanner in Hong Kong for HK$150,000, then among the equipment county hospitals most lacked. With no courier or logistics network, he carried it by air from Hong Kong to Xi'an and on to Huangyuan.

前后数十年，经柏大卫多方筹措，共有30余件医疗设备落地湟源县人民医院，总价值600万元。在那个年代，湟源普通职工年收入不足万元，这批医疗物资，对于一座高原县城医院而言，十分重要。

湟源县人民医院院史馆内展出的柏大卫捐赠物资清单。图源：西海都市报

除医疗帮扶之外，柏大卫还发挥语言优势，牵线搭建英语教师对外交流渠道，助力当地教育发展。

Over the years, more than 30 pieces of medical equipment worth 6 million yuan arrived at the Huangyuan County People's Hospital. At a time when an ordinary worker in Huangyuan earned less than 10,000 yuan a year, the supplies mattered enormously to a hospital on the plateau. 

David also used his language skills to open channels of exchange for local English teachers.

1998年，湟源县人民政府授予柏大卫“湟源县荣誉公民”称号。2003年，青海省人民政府授予他“青海省荣誉公民”称号。2013年，湟源县举办首届“最美湟源人”评选，柏大卫以高票当选第一位外籍“最美湟源人”。

柏大卫的妹妹柏美安，一生惦念自己出生的这片高原，生前留下遗愿，希望离世后能够归葬湟源。

2016年，家人遵从她的心愿，将她的骨灰从海外带回，安葬在湟源北山坡墓地。这里，也安息着柏立美早年逝去的第一任妻子和长子，还有民国时期天花疫病中离世的普通百姓。

His sister never stopped thinking of the town where she was born, even asking to be buried there. 

In 2016, her family brought her ashes from abroad and laid them to rest in the Beishan cemetery. Nearby rest the first wife of David's father and eldest son, who died early, as well as ordinary people who died in a smallpox epidemic during China's republican era. 

一场跨越山海的连线

如今，95岁的柏大卫已无力承受漫长的跨洋飞行。但身在大洋彼岸，他的心却从未离开湟源。

今年9月，在湟源县人民医院组织了一场跨越山海的视频连线，原本计划40分钟的会面，最后足足聊了一个多小时。

隔着屏幕，柏大卫思路清晰，能够准确叫出每一位老朋友的名字，细数多年前相处的一桩桩往事。

Long trans-Pacific flights are now beyond David, but his attention has not left Huangyuan.

In September, the Huangyuan County People's Hospital arranged a video call with David. Planned for 40 minutes, it ran for more than an hour. On screen, he clearly recalled the names of old friends and recounted one memory after another.

隔着万顷太平洋，一边是垂暮的老人，一边是念念不忘的故土。

柏大卫的故事告诉人们，民间绵延的牵挂与善意，不会因为距离而消散。凝聚中美两国人民情谊的，始终是一颗颗普通人真诚的心。

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