Norman Bethune—A Man Who Devotes His Life to Belief
诺尔曼·白求恩——为信仰而战
Norman Bethune's story started in Gravenhurst， Ontario， a small town 100 miles north of Toronto. Norman's grandfather， had been one of the founding doctors of the medical faculty of Trinity College， Toronto.
From an early age， Norman was independent and curious； it was often difficult for him to stay within the confines set by his parents. In 1911， Norman interrupted his studies at the University of Toronto to work at Frontier College setting up classes for immigrant workers. In 1928， Bethune moved to Montreal. For five years， he was the First Surgical Assistant to Dr. Edward Archibald， Canada's pioneering thoracic surgeon. In 1935， he set up a free clinic. Later that summer， he attended the International Physiological Conference in the Soviet Union and used this opportunity to examine socialized medicine. The next year he joined the Communist Party.
During the summer of 1936， the Spanish Civil War broke out. Supported by the military might of Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany， Francisco Franco led a rebellion against the democratically elected government of Spain. Like many others Bethune felt that democracy was threatened unless the military dictatorship was stopped. In September， 1936， he volunteered to go to Spain under the auspices of The Committee to Aid Spanish Democracy.
That summer， however， the Japanese forces invaded China， beginning the Second Sino-Japanese War. Bethune felt that in China another military dictatorship was on the march. “Spain and China，” he wrote， “are part of the same battle. I am going to China because that is where the need is the greatest.”
On January 8， 1938， Bethune left Canada for the last time， accompanied only by Jean Ewen， a Canadian nurse， and 5000 worth of medical supplies. He traveled to Hankow， the provisional capital， where Communist representative Chou En-lai offered him an escort to the Communist headquarters at Yenan， some 500 miles northwest. The night he arrived， he was received by Mao Tse-tung—Chairman of the Chinese Communist Party. Mao invited him to stay and supervise the Eighth Route Army Border Hospital. A month later， Bethune decided that he would be more effective at the front， where he could treat the wounded immediately.
On May 1， he left Yenan for the mountain ranges of the Chin-Ch'a-Chi Border Region， 200 miles north， where the fighting was the fiercest. However， he was appalled by the unsanitary conditions he found there. The wounded， brought back from the front days or weeks before， lay huddled just under thin blankets， their dressings unchanged， their wounds gangrenous. For many， amputation was the only treatment. Refusing to rest after five days of tortuous travel， Bethune set to work immediately.
In this area of 13，000，000 people， Bethune was one of the few qualified doctors. Realizing that those he trained could train others in turn， he threw his energies into teaching. He set up classes in the fundamentals of first aid， sanitation， and basic surgery. He wrote and illustrated manuals， which were translated and mimeographed for distribution； his goal was to graduate doctors in one year， nurses in six months.
Within a time， the name Pai Ch'iu-en became legendary. “Attack！ Pai Ch'ui-en is with us！” became the soldier's battle cry. Tales were told of this extraordinary foreigner who was undaunted by hardship， who gave his clothes， his food， and even his own blood to the wounded. Bethune， in turn， responded to the fervor of the Chinese， “It is true I am tired，” he wrote to a friend in Canada， “but I don't think I have been so happy for a long time and I am needed.”
Near the end of October， while operating on a wounded soldier， Bethune accidentally cut his finger because there were no rubber gloves. At the time， his wound did not seem important—it had happened before without mishap. But this time infection set in， a virulent form of blood poisoning. Even while he was dying， he refused to stop working. Norman Bethune died in the early hours of November 12， 1939.
When Chairman Mao heard of his death， he wrote “In Memory of Norman Bethune”. As one of Mao's most famous essays， it is required reading in China and Bethune is revered as the ideal of selfless devotion to duty. His picture appears on posters， books， and postage stamps. Sometimes only a fragment of a sentence from Mao's essay is enough to identify him： “Without thought of self.” In Canada， his birthplace， the former Presbyterian manse in Gravenhurst， where his story began， was acquired by the federal government in 1973， and officially opened in 1976 as a Canadian memorial.
“It is true I am tired， but I don't think I have been so happy for a long time and I am needed.”
诺尔曼·白求恩的故事开始于安大略湖畔的格雷文赫斯特，一个距离多伦多北部一百英里远的小镇。白求恩的祖父曾是创建多伦多三一学院医学系的医生之一。
白求恩自幼性格独立，对事物充满好奇，很难循规蹈矩。1911年，白求恩中断了他在多伦多大学的学业，跑到边疆学院为移民过来的工人开班授课。1928年，白求恩搬到了蒙特利尔居住，并在那里为加拿大胸外科先驱爱德华·阿奇博尔德博士担任了五年的第一外科助手。1935年，白求恩开起了一家免费门诊。那年夏末，他参加了在苏联举办的国际生理学大会，并且利用那次机会考察了那里的公共医疗制度。第二年，白求恩便加入了共产党。
1936年夏天，西班牙爆发了内战。在意大利法西斯和纳粹德国的武力支持下，弗朗西斯·弗朗哥掀起了一场反对西班牙民主选举政府的叛乱。和很多人的想法一致，白求恩感到民主已受到了威胁，因此必须停止这种军事独裁。1936年的9月，在“援助西班牙民主委员会”的支持下，白求恩志愿来到了西班牙。
然而那个夏天，日本入侵中国，开始了第二次中日战争。白求恩感到另一股军事独裁正在向中国进发。“西班牙和中国”，他写道，“战斗实质是相同的。我将赶赴中国，因为那里最需要帮助。”
1938年的1月8日，白求恩离开了加拿大，而那是永别。随行的仅有一位加拿大护士琼·爱雯以及价值五千美元的医疗用品。白求恩来到了当时的临时首都汉口，共产党代表周恩来在汉口接待了他们并护送他们到了共产党位于延安的总部，那里距离汉口西北部五百英里。白求恩到达延安的当天晚上就受到了中国共产党主席毛泽东的接见。毛主席邀请白求恩留下并指导八路军边疆医院。一个月过后，白求恩决定赶赴前线，因为在那里他的医疗工作会更有效，救治更及时。
5月1日，白求恩离开延安赶赴距离延安北部二百英里外的晋察冀边区的山区地带，那里的战事十分激烈。然而那里糟糕的卫生条件让白求恩大为震惊。几天或是几周前从前线抬回来的伤员仅裹着薄薄的毯子挤成一团，没换衣服，伤口也腐烂了。很多人只能被截肢。五天辗转不眠的视察过后，白求恩立即投入到工作之中。
在这个有着一千三百万人口的地区，白求恩是仅有的几名有行医资格的医生之一。当他意识到他培训的人能够转而去培训他人这一情形时，白求恩开始投身到教学。他开班讲授急救、卫生设施、基础外科的基本常识。白求恩还编写了手册并在其中做了图解。这些手册被翻译成了汉语，经过大量油印后传播开来。白求恩的目标是花一年时间培养医生，六个月培养护士。
一时间，白求恩的名字成了一个神话。“冲啊！白求恩大夫在我们这儿！”成了战士们的战斗口号。关于这位杰出的外国人的故事流传开来。他有着面对困难大无畏的精神，为伤员捐赠衣服、食物，甚至为伤员输入自己的鲜血。面对中国人民的这种热情，白求恩也做出了他的回应，“事实上我很疲惫，”他在给加拿大一位友人的信中这样写道，“但是，很长时间以来我从未这样开心过，这里的人们需要我。”
10月末的时候，由于没有医用橡胶手套，白求恩在给一位伤员进行手术时意外地划破了手指。当时他的伤口看上去并不严重，再说以前也发生过类似的情况也没恶化。但是，这次却开始感染，变成了病毒性败血病。即便在生命垂危的情况下，白求恩仍然坚持工作。诺尔曼·白求恩大夫最终于1939年11月12日凌晨病逝。
毛主席听闻白求恩过世的消息后，挥笔写下了《纪念白求恩》这篇最为著名的散文之一。该文在全国范围内，推广必读。白求恩对工作无私奉献是为世人所敬仰之楷模。他的画像印在了海报上、书籍上以及邮票上。有时，毛主席文章中的一个句子片断便足以评价白求恩，那便是“忘我”。在加拿大，白求恩的出生地，他人生故事开始的地方，位于格雷文赫斯特的前长老会牧师宅邸于1973年由联邦政府收得，并于1976年作为加拿大博物馆正式对外开放。
“事实上我很疲惫，但是很长时间以来，我从未这么开心过，这里的人们需要我。”
译者感言
诺尔曼·白求恩是一位永远感动中国的加拿大友人；一位为自己的信仰而献出宝贵生命的共产主义战士；一位为挽救他人生命而奋战到最后一刻的白衣天使。他的灵魂如同他的职业一样圣洁、高尚。为了实现自己的共产主义理想，为了让全世界的人们能够共享民主，白求恩毅然舍弃了祖国的高薪聘请，来到了西班牙和中国，用他精湛的医术为自己的信仰燃烧一份光热。在西班牙的马德里，白求恩发明了输血技术与世界上第一个流动血库，这成为了世界医疗史和输血史上一大里程碑。而在中国，这个最终承载了他的灵魂与躯体的国度，白求恩战斗到了生命的最后一刻。在最后的日子里，白求恩写了一封饱含深情的遗嘱，正是这封让“钢铁将军”聂荣臻泪流满面的信承载了白求恩最终的夙愿。在信中，除了交待工作，白求恩还将自己有用的物品馈赠给了身边所有的人。“感人心者，莫先于情”，白求恩正是以其对信仰的真挚情感和献身精神而名垂青史，为人们世代颂扬。
