很多年前，有一位学大提琴的年轻人去向20世纪最伟大的大提琴家卡萨尔斯讨教：我怎样才能成为一名优秀的大提琴家？卡萨尔斯面对雄心勃勃的年轻人，意味深长地回答：先成为优秀而大写的人，然后成为一名优秀而大写的音乐人，再然后就会成为一名优秀的大提琴家。 (翻译备注: “大写” 在这里的意思是有品格, 做人堂堂正正)
Many years ago, a young man learning cello went to Casals, the greatest cellist in the 20th century, for advice: how can I become an excellent cellist? Seeing such an ambitious young man standing in front, Casals answered emotionally: you should first learn to be an excellent and good-virtue man, then learn to be an excellent and good-virtue musician, and finally become an excellent and good-virtue cellist.

听到这个故事的时候，我还年少，对老人回答中所透露出的含义理解不多。然而，在以后的工作生涯中，随着采访接触的人越来越多，这个回答在我脑海中便越印越深。
When I first learnt this story, I was still too young to interpret the essence of Casals’ remarks. But now, with my treating with more and more people in my work, his remarks become increasingly impressive in my mind.

在采访北大教授季羡林的时候，我听到一个关于他的真实故事。有一年秋天，北大新学期开学，一个外地来的学子背着大包小包走进了校园，实在太累了，就把包放在路边。这时正好一位老人走来，年轻学子就拜托老人替自己看一下包，自己则轻装去办理手续。老人爽快地答应了。近一个小时过去，学子归来，老人还在尽职尽责地看守着。学子谢过老人，两人分别。几日后北大举行开学典礼，这位年轻的学子惊讶地发现，主席台上就座的北大副校长季羡林，正是那一天替自己看行李的老人。
When I interviewed Ji Xianlin, a renowned professor in Peking University, he told me one of his true stories. In the autumn of one year, a new semester began and a student from other province was carrying tons of luggage on campus. After a while, he felt very tired and put his luggage by the road. At that moment, an old man was walking towards him. The student asked the old man to help him take care of his luggage for a while and he went to deal with the admission formalities. The old man promised without the least hesitation. After almost one hour, the student came back and saw the old man still keeping an eye on his luggage responsibly. He thanked the old man sincerely and they parted later. After several days, the school was holding the opening ceremony and the student astonishingly found that the vice-president of Peking University, Ji Xianlin, was exactly the old man who helped him take care of his luggage!

我不知道这位学子当时是一种怎样的心情，但我听过这个故事之后却强烈地感觉到：人格才是最高的学位。后来，我又在医院采访了世纪老人冰心。我问她：您现在最关心的是什么？老人的回答简单而感人：是老年病人的状况。
I cannot imagine how the student felt at that time, but for myself, after hearing this story, I strongly felt that good personality is the highest degree in our lives. Later, I had the chance to interview the almost century-old famous writer in China, Bing Xin. I asked her, “What is the greatest concern you are having now?” She gave me a simple but deeply touching answer, “The condition of the sick old people.”

当时的冰心已接近自己人生的终点，而这位在“五.四运动”中走上文学之路的老人，对芸芸众生的关爱之情历经80年的岁月而仍然未老。这又该是怎样的一种传统！
At that time, Bing Xin was approaching the end of life, but this old lady, who had been working hard in literature writing after the “May Fourth Movement” (the first anti-imperialist, cultural, and political movement taking place on May 4th, 1919), had not reduced the least of her love and concern towards the people. What a great virtue it is!

冰心的身躯并不强壮，然而她这生却用自己当笔，拿岁月当稿纸，写下了一篇关于爱是一种力量的文章，在离去之后给我们留下了一个伟大的背影。
Bing Xin was not physically sound, but she set herself as an example by composing numerous real moving stories that are diffusing fragrance of love, leaving us a grand profile after she went to the Heaven.

当你有机会和经过“五.四”或受过“五.四”影响的老人接触，你就知道，历史和传统其实一直离我们很近。这些世纪老人身上所独具的人格魅力是不是也该作为一种传统被我们延续下去呢？
If you have chances to communicate with those old people who have gone through the “May Fourth Movement” or who have been affected by this movement, you will perceive that history and tradition are very close to us indeed. Those sparking virtues and personalities embodied by these people should be well worth our learning and inheriting from generation to generation.

不久前，我在北大又听到一个有关季先生的清新而感人的新故事。一批刚刚走进校园的年轻人，相约去看季羡林先生，走到门口，却开始犹豫，他们怕冒失地打扰了先生，最后决定每人用竹子在季老家门口的地上留下问候的话语，然后才满意地离去。
Before long, I heard another fresh and touching story about Ji Xianlin in Peking University. A group of freshmen made an appointment to visit Ji. But when they got Ji’s house, they felt worried that their visit might disturb his work. Finally, all of them used a bamboo stick to write their best wishes to Ji on the ground by the door and then left satisfactorily.

这该是怎样美丽的一幅画面！在季老家不远，是北大的伯雅塔在未名湖中留下的投影，而在季老家门口的问候语中，是不是也有先生的人格魅力在学子心中留下的投影呢？
What a beautiful picture it is! Not far from Ji’s home is the famous Weiming Lake in Peking University, and the Boya Pagoda standing by the lake was mirrored by the water. Those wishes from students also reflected the grand profile of Ji embedded in students’ hearts.

听多了这样的故事，便常常觉得自己像只气球，仿佛飞得很高，仔细一看却是被浮云托着；外表看上去也还饱满，但肚子里却是空空。这样想着就不免有些担心：这样怎么能走更长的路呢？于是，“渴望老年”四个字，对于我就不再是幻想中的白发苍苍或身份证上改成60岁，而是如何在自己还年轻的时候，能吸取优秀老人身上所具有的种种优秀品质。于是，我也更加知道了卡萨尔斯回答中所具有的深义。怎样才能成为一个优秀的主持人呢？心中有个声音在回答：先成为一个优秀的人，然后成为一个优秀的新闻人，再然后就会成为一名优秀的节目主持人。
Having heard so many stories like this, I just feel I am like a balloon, which is seemingly flying high but is actually upheld by the cloud, and which is seemingly “full” but actually very “empty”. Then I could not help feeling concerned: how can I go better in the long way of my life in the future? Then I would no longer yearn for getting old to accumulate experience, but yearn for learning all the virtues and great personalities in those great minds. So now, I think I have a far better understanding of Casals’ remarks. For me, how can I become a super host in CCTV? The answer echoing in my heart is: you should first learn to be an excellent and good-virtue man, then learn to be an excellent and good-virtue journalist, and finally become an excellent and good-virtue host of TV programs!

（作者: 白岩松 译者: 爱尔兰都柏林大学 赖小琪）