I met my new next door neighbor on his lawn. After introducing ourselves, I asked him where he worked. He explained that he was working in the radiology department of a large local hospital. For some reason, I assumed, probably based on my own background, that he was a radiologist. He broke out in hilarious laughter, “If I was a radiologist, I would not be living here!” After a bit of light talk, I revealed that I was a neonatologist, or newborn baby doctor, at the Children’s Hospital; there was then a bit of an awkward silence. I wondered what he thought of me; I’m still not sure when I meet him occasionally on the lawn.

第一次见到我隔壁邻居，是在他家草坪上。彼此自我介绍后，我问他在哪里工作。他解释说，他在当地一家很大医院的放射科工作。出于某种原因，可能是因为我自己的背景，我以为他是一名放射科医生。他听了后爆发出一阵大笑，“如果我是一个放射科医生，我怎么可能会住在这里？！”我们又聊了一会，我告诉他，我是一个新生儿专家，是专为新生婴儿看病的医生，在儿童医院工作；然后，我们之间出现了短暂而尴尬的沉默。我不知道他对我的看法如何；即使后来我会在草坪上偶尔见到他，但是我还是不太清楚他怎么看我。

Indeed, ultimately, my wife and I lived 44 years in a place that my neighbor wasn’t impressed with, and we basically never moved from the only house that we have ever owned. It’s a nice house, even though the neighborhood apparently isn’t impressive! It’s really more than
adequate, with three bedrooms (sort of), a living room, and a functional basement. What more do you need?

事实上，我和妻子在同一个地方住了44年，尽管这个地方在我邻居的眼里，并不怎么起眼。我们只住过这一栋房子，从没有搬离过。即使我的邻居觉得这房子不怎么豪华，我觉得其实还是很不错的！对我们来说，这房子已经绰绰有余了，它有三间卧室（基本上），一个客厅和一个可使用的地下室。还需要什么呢？

My dad was a frugal person. He had been a surgeon, but became a general practitioner doctor. I’m sure he made enough money, since his clinic was often quite full, and he was a very nice friendly doctor, so many people liked to visit him. Plus, even though our family was technically Hakka in origin, we attended the large Swatow (Shantou) Chinese Church, and everyone there knew him, and were often his patients. And Swatow people were well known to be great businessmen, especially in the fine embroidery world. So I’m sure many of his patients were able to pay well!

我的父亲是个节俭的人。他以前是一名外科医生，最后却选择做了一名家庭医生。我可以肯定，他赚钱其实还是不少的，因为他的诊所里常常病人很多。他是一位非常友善的医生，所以很多病人都喜欢去他的诊所看病。另外，尽管我们家祖上是客家人，我们参加的却是一家很大的汕头中国教会。教会里的每个人都知道我父亲，很多还是他的病人。汕头人很会做生意，尤其是在刺绣精品领域。所以我敢肯定，他的许多病人都有足够的资金能够支付他的诊费！

But dad did not like to spend money on himself or his family, and we lived very simply, and quite differently from many of the rich doctor families that I knew of. But we were sent to the best schools, and life was certainly more than adequate. I don’t remember that we, the 3 sons, ever really complained about our situation, since it seemed quite normal. We never starved, for sure. However, on looking back, I’m pretty sure that my father’s example deeply imprinted on my thinking and life.

不过，我父亲并不喜欢把钱花在自己或家人身上，我们的生活很简单，与许多我认识的医生家庭相比，我们家的生活是很不一样的。可是，我们同样被送到最好的学校读书，而且在生活上也绰绰有余。我不记得我们家的三个男孩子曾经对我们生活的状况有所抱怨，因为对我们来说，这一切都显得很正常。我们肯定从来没有挨过饿。然而，回过头来看，我坚信，我父亲低调的榜样在我的思想和生活中烙下了深刻的印记。

Away in southern Thailand, my wife’s father was also a physician, one of the few doctors in his small town. He was also very popular, and was active in the main Haadyai Chinese Church, and undoubtedly could have accumulated a fortune, if he had so wanted to. The town had a lively Hakka community, and father, Dr Wen, was the first and only western medicine doctor for years. But he was also very frugal and lived in a simple house above the clinic. My wife grew up in such a circumstance, and undoubtedly also inherited his conscientious attitude and lifestyle.
远在泰国南部，我妻子的父亲也是一名医生，他是当地小镇上仅有的几位医生之一。他很受欢迎，并且在当地主要的合艾中国教会中很活跃。如果他愿意的话，无疑可以为自己积攒一笔财富。镇上有一个很活跃的客家族群，而我的岳父温医生，长期以来是小镇上第一位也是唯一的一位西医。但他也很节俭，就居住在自己诊所上面的简单房子里。我的妻子在这样的环境下长大，无疑也继承了父亲兢兢业业的生活态度和方式。

Both of these fathers, one a deacon in church and the other an elder of the church, respectively, were very well known to be generous in helping out family members and others that were less fortunate. In those days it was common to mail money back to the ancestral village to help support the many relatives back home. Especially at a time when China was quite poor, I’m sure that these monies given away must have been really helpful.

这两位父亲，一个是教会的执事，一个是教会的长老，在帮助家庭成员和其他人的需要方面是出名的慷慨。那时候，寄钱回老家用以帮助支持家里的亲戚们是很普遍的事。特别是在当时，中国大陆非常贫困，我相信，那些钱对当时的人来说一定是很有帮助的。

In fact, one of my cousins to this day credits my father with sending support through very complicated channels to him when he was growing up in Shantou and studying in medical school, during a very difficult and turbulent time in China’s history. Today, he is a very successful medical practitioner in Hong Kong, and every time I go through the city, he insists on inviting me to a wonderful lunch or dinner, as a deep expression of gratitude for what my father did. Obviously I enjoy the sophisticated Hong Kong food, but more importantly, it brings back very warm memories and stories of a father that I easily forgot. My cousin sometimes seemed to know my father better than I do, especially since I left home for a greater part of my life. Asian fathers always seem stern and a bit remote to their children, especially frugal fathers, and it often takes a dose of reality like this to wake up the Asian child!

事实上，一直到今天，我的一位表兄弟都对我的父亲充满感激，因为从他在汕头长大直到医学院毕业，在中国历史上一个非常艰难和动荡的时期，我的父亲通过非常繁杂的渠道，在经济上给予了他无私的帮助。如今，他是香港一位非常成功的医生，我每次路过香港的时候，他都会请我去吃一顿美妙的午餐或晚餐，以表达对我父亲的感激。我的确很享受香港的美食，但更重要的是，这为我带来对父亲非常温馨却又时常忘却的回忆。因为我一生中绝大部分的时间离家在外，我的表弟有时显得似乎比我更了解我的父亲。亚洲的父亲们常常会表现得很严肃，与自己的孩子有距离感，尤其是相对节俭的父辈。而亚洲的孩子们往往需要被现实提醒，才会意识到他们的父辈是怎样的一类人！

Watching our own children grow up, it seems that the heritage has passed on. I find that our son and daughter are really frugal in many respects, to my admiration and inner joy. I have often wondered what roles many different factors have contributed. Was it even the ancient Hakka traditions of frugality? Hakkas were a migrant population, apparently from the central northern plains of China, who migrated to many parts of the country, including the southern provinces. They were always marginalized by society, and often not welcome in the towns and cities. Hence they were relegated to the hilly areas where farming was a lot more difficult.

看着我自己的孩子慢慢长大，我发现从我父辈那里来的精神已经传承了下去。让我感到万分欣慰和喜悦的是，我们的儿子和女儿在许多方面真的很节俭。我经常在想是哪些不同的因素使他们养成了这样良好的习惯。是古老的客家族节俭的传统吗？客家人是一个外来族人口，应该是从中国中北部平原迁徙到全国各地，包括南方各省。他们总是被社会边缘化，在乡镇和城市中常常不受欢迎。因此，他们被迫移居到耕种相对艰难的丘陵地带生活。

The word Hakka means “stranger people” or “guest people,” kejia in modern Mandarin pinyin. Which means that the Hakkas do not have a town, city, county, or province named as Hakka, since they are always considered to be outsiders, and functionally a minority. They truly do not have a recognized homeland. But this apparently has led to a very resilient hard-working tribal group that were, and are, known especially for their frugality. In particular, the women were particularly hard-working and careful with money. And so I have personally found out!

客家人这个词的意思是“陌生人”或“外来客”。这意味着客家人没有一个属于自己以“客家”为名的镇、市、县或省，因为他们一直被认为是外地人和少数族类。他们也确实没有一个公认的家园。但是，这显然也使客家族人成为一个非常有韧性、勤劳的群体，他们尤其以节俭闻名。特别是客家族的妇女们，她们特别地勤劳，花钱节俭。在这方面，我自己深有体会！

In our situation, the grandparents on both sides became Christians in the ancestral Hakka villages, and imbibed many biblical principles about avoiding greediness and power, and to always remember to help the poor and the needy. I like to think that our ancestral Hakka and Christian principles together have been tremendously impactful down the generations, for which we are always grateful. It is humbling that who we are has come from all kinds of influences, some apparent, and many either forgotten or unrecognized: I hope to be able to remember well, and to be truly grateful.

对于我们两家而言，我们双方的祖辈在各自的客家村落成为了基督徒，在有关避免贪婪和权力的侵蚀，尽力帮助贫困和有需要的人等很多圣经原则方面，为下一代留下了丰富的遗产。我认为，我们的客家祖先和基督教的原则为后来的几代人留下了深厚的影响。为此，我们始终心存感激。是来自各方面的因素，使我们成为了今天这样的人。有一些因素可能很明显，还有许多也许已经被遗忘或无法识别了。我希望自己能够尽力记得，做到真正的心存感恩。

For example, we recognized early on in our career, that there would be a danger, after my internship, residency, and fellowship training, when I became a practicing real doctor, that my salary would go up and up. So we decided as a family to cap our salary by ourselves, and basically live a truly simple life; we would either give away the rest, or reserve it for an early retirement time when we could then have the freedom to serve God fully, without worrying about support. This was indeed what we did, and looking back, it seems like an excellent decision.

举例来说，在我的职业生涯中，很早就意识到将会遇到的一个诱惑就是，在经过实习医师、住院医师、专业医师的训练后，我将成为一名真正的执业医生，我的薪水也会逐年上涨。因此，作为一个家庭整体，我们决定在开销上设立一个上限，也就是说真正地过一种简单的生活；多余出来的钱，我们要么奉献，要么存下为提前退休做准备，这样可以解除后顾之忧，早些全时间来事奉神。我们也的确这么去行了，现在回过头来看，这似乎是一个很明智的决定。

For years we had a financial advisor, who was a professor at the University; he reviewed our financial situation regularly, and often emphatically remarked, “it is not your income that is producing good financial results, it is that you have a great wife who spends prudently.” So, indeed after we decided to take early retirement at age 54 years, we have been financially adequate, to be able to do the many things that God has opened the doors for us to do.

多年来，我们家有一个理财顾问，是一位在大学教书的教授；他定期查验我们的财务状况，并经常强调说，“你的财务状况这么好不是因为你的收入多，而是因为你有一位花钱节制的妻子。”也是因此，从我们决定在54岁那年提前退休至今，在财政上，我们从来没有感觉到过缺乏。在许多时候，我们还能够顺应神的带领，在祂的事工上有份。

To our own amazement, we could even start a small foundation called Heritage Youth For All Nations YFAN Foundation, to encourage young people to serve in the mission field of the nations. Indeed, living simply throughout our lives has given us fantastic meaningful opportunities and experiences, for which we are always immensely grateful. Good family traditions and Godly upbringing are a great combination!

让我们自己感到吃惊的是，我们甚至有能力可以启动一个小规模的基金，我们称之为“万国青年基金”YFAN, Youth for All Nations，以鼓励年轻人参与全球的福音事工。事实上，简朴生活本身已经给了我们足够的的生活体验和意义，为此我们总是非常感恩。优良的家庭传统和虔诚的成长经历结合在一起，对每个人都是非常有益的！