阿爾弗雷德·諾貝爾（Alfred Nobel）：一個意外讀到自己訃聞的男人

作為一位橫跨近一世紀的智者，93歲的華倫·巴菲特（Warren Buffett）寫給股東的「告別信」已經被廣泛分享，信中涵蓋了許多不同的重點。建議所有追求智慧的人，靜心地完整閱讀一次他的原文。

在這封信中，我想分享的諾貝爾的一個小故事。

一個意外讀到自己訃聞的男人

阿爾弗雷德·諾貝爾（Alfred Nobel）是著名的瑞典化學家、工程師和發明家，同時也是諾貝爾獎的創辦人。

阿爾弗雷德·諾貝爾最著名的發明，是1867年問世的矽藻土炸藥（Dynamite）。這項發明為採礦、築路和土木工程帶來了革命性的進步，但它同時也使戰爭的破壞力增加革命性的進步。

憑藉炸藥和其他軍火的製造與銷售，諾貝爾積累了驚人的巨大財富。就像現在的俄烏戰爭、以色列哈瑪斯戰爭、台灣有事即日本有事都讓軍火商荷包滿滿。

關鍵性的故事發生在1888年。當時，諾貝爾的哥哥盧德維格（Ludvig Nobel）在法國坎城逝世。有一家法國報紙誤將兩人搞錯，刊登了弟弟阿爾弗雷德的訃聞。

那篇震驚世人的新聞，標題寫著：

「死亡商人已死。」 （Le marchand de la mort est mort）

新聞報導的內文以譴責的語氣總結諾貝爾的一生，毫不留情地指出他「透過發明比以往更快殺死更多人的方法來致富」。

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當諾貝爾讀到這篇「來自未來的評價」時，他感到無比的震驚和沮喪。他一生自視為科學家和實業家，甚至是一位抱持和平主義理想的人。他天真地相信炸藥的發明會讓戰爭變得過於可怕，以至於沒有國家敢發動戰爭，進而促進永久的和平。

反觀現在，美國總統川普，於 2025年10月30日宣布「美國要重啟核武試驗」，人人都知道戰爭很可怕，大家都知道核武會造成大量的人口死亡，掌權者往往更重視的是國家利益或個人的權力。

回到諾貝爾讀新聞的情境，從新聞取得的訊息是：在世人的眼中，他的名字將永遠與死亡、毀滅和貪婪的財富劃上等號。

這份意外的訃聞，如同一記當頭棒喝，讓他從財富的積累中猛然驚醒。他決定用自己餘生的時間和全部的財富，來徹底改寫世人對他的定義和記憶。

在他生命的最後幾年，諾貝爾重新立下遺囑，設立一系列獎項，每年頒發給在物理學、化學、生理學或醫學、文學以及和平領域為「人類帶來最大福祉」的人，這便是日後舉世聞名的「諾貝爾獎」。今天，當我們聽到「諾貝爾」這個名字時，我們聯想到的是人類精神的最高成就與對和平的追求，而不是帶來殺戮的炸藥。

諾貝爾獲得了一個極其罕有且純屬偶然的機會：一個預覽自己人生終局評價的機會。這個機會給了他改變人生軌跡的強大動力。

巴菲特接著寫下這句劃時代的忠告：

「不要指望報社搞錯一次：先決定你希望自己的訃聞怎麼寫，然後活出配得上那份訃聞的人生。」

(Don’t count on a newsroom mix-up: Decide what you would like your obituary to say and live the life to deserve it.)

obituary /əˈbiCHəˌwerē/ :
a notice of a death, especially in a newspaper, typically including a brief biography of the deceased person.

諾貝爾的故事告訴我們，當生命走到盡頭，你的訃聞，寫的不是你的資產淨值，而是別人究竟怎樣看待你、你的行為對世界產生了什麼樣的影響。

然而，我們大多數人，都不會有諾貝爾那樣「幸運」地獲得預覽人生的機會。因此，我們應該要定期問自己那個終極問題：

「如果我明天就離開，我的家人、朋友、同事會如何記得我？他們會訴說一個怎樣的故事？這個故事，是我想要的嗎？」

巴菲特的這封信，與其說是寫給股東的財富總結，不如說是一封寫給每一個在人生旅途上奮力前行的人的人生導師信，提醒我們：透過死亡來反思，努力活成自己真實期待的樣子。你有想成為怎麼的人嗎？

「你的推」的意思是你最喜歡、最支持的對象，這個詞源自日語「推し」（おし），意指「推薦」或「支持」的人、事、物。這個詞彙最初用於追星文化，但現在已擴展到指代虛構角色、書籍、商品等各種你喜歡並願意推薦給他人的事物。

「我推的孩子」為什麼叫我推？

「推」（推し）在日本偶像業界是指「（粉絲）所推薦的人」，而本作的標題有「轉生為我所『推』的偶像的孩子」的意思，指的是本作的主角阿奎亞和露比。

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2025年11月11日，巴菲特（Warren Buffett）發布了任內最後一封告別信，長達60年的波克夏－巴菲特（Berkshire-Buffett）時代正式劃下句點。我們將這封最後的股東信進行逐段對照翻譯，供各位讀者收藏參閱。

英文原文 (English Original)	中文翻譯
To My Fellow Shareholders:	致我的全體股東們：
I will no longer be writing Berkshire’s annual report or talking endlessly at the annual meeting. As the British would say, I’m “going quiet.”	我將不再撰寫波克夏的年度報告，也不會在股東大會上沒完沒了地發言。用英國人的說法，我要「靜默退場」了。
Sort of.	算是吧。
Greg Abel will become the boss at yearend. He is a great manager, a tireless worker and an honest communicator. Wish him an extended tenure.	格雷格·阿貝爾（Greg Abel）將於年底接任公司的掌舵者。他是一位出色的經理人、不知疲倦的工作者，也是一位真誠的溝通者。祝願他任期順利長久。
I will continue talking to you and my children about Berkshire via my annual Thanksgiving message. Berkshire’s individual shareholders are a very special group who are unusually generous in sharing their gains with others less fortunate. I enjoy the chance to keep in touch with you. Indulge me this year as I first reminisce a bit. After that, I will discuss the plans for distribution of my Berkshire shares. Finally, I will offer a few business and personal observations.	我將繼續透過每年的感恩節訊息，與各位及我的孩子們談論波克夏。波克夏的個人股東們是一群非常特別的人，他們慷慨地將自身獲利分享給那些較不順遂的人。我很珍惜能與大家保持聯繫的機會。今年，請容許我先回憶一些往事。接著，我會討論我的波克夏股份分配計畫。最後，我會分享一些關於商業和人生的觀察心得。
As Thanksgiving approaches, I’m grateful and surprised by my luck in being alive at 95. When I was young, this outcome did not look like a good bet. Early on, I nearly died.	隨著感恩節將近，我心懷感激，也驚訝於自己能活到 95 歲的好運氣。在我年輕時，這種結果看起來可不是一個「好賭注」。事實上，我差點在很早的時候就沒命了。
It was 1938 and Omaha hospitals were then thought of by its citizens as either Catholic or Protestant, a classification that seemed natural at the time.	那是 1938 年，當時奧馬哈的居民習慣將醫院分為天主教或新教——這種分類在當時看來非常自然。
Our family doctor, Harley Hotz, was a friendly Catholic who made house calls toting a black bag. Dr. Hotz called me Skipper and never charged much for his visits. When I experienced a bad bellyache in 1938, Dr. Hotz came by and, after probing a bit, told me I would be OK in the morning.	我們的家庭醫生哈利·霍茨（Harley Hotz）是一位和藹的天主教徒，總是提著一個黑包上門看診。霍茨醫生叫我「小船長」（Skipper），而且看診費從來不多收。1938 年，我得了嚴重的腹痛，霍茨醫生來看過後，稍微檢查了一下，告訴我隔天早上就會沒事。
He then went home, had dinner and played a little bridge. Dr. Hotz couldn’t, however, get my somewhat peculiar symptoms out of his mind and later that night he dispatched me to St. Catherine’s Hospital for an emergency appendectomy.	他接著回家吃了晚餐，還打了一會兒橋牌。不過，霍茨醫生始終放不下我那些有點奇怪的症狀，當晚稍晚就立刻把我送去聖凱瑟琳醫院（St. Catherine’s Hospital）進行緊急闌尾切除手術。
During the next three weeks, I felt like I was in a nunnery, and began enjoying my new “podium.” I liked to talk – yes, even then – and the nuns embraced me.	接下來的三週，我就像住在修道院一樣，甚至開始享受我的新「演講台」。我喜歡講話——是的，即使在那時——修女們也很歡迎我。
To top things off, Miss Madsen, my third-grade teacher, told my 30 classmates to each write me a letter. I probably threw away the letters from the boys but read and reread those from the girls; hospitalization had its rewards.	更棒的是，我的三年級老師馬德森小姐（Miss Madsen）叫班上 30 個同學每人寫一封信給我。我大概把男生的信都丟了，但把女生的信讀了一遍又一遍；住院有時候也是有「好處」的。
The highlight of my recovery – which actually was dicey for much of the first week – was a gift from my wonderful Aunt Edie. She brought me a very professional-looking fingerprinting set, and I promptly fingerprinted all of my attending nuns. (I was probably the first Protestant kid they had seen at St. Catherine’s and they didn’t know what to expect.)	我康復期間最難忘的時刻——其實第一週的大部分時間都險象環生——是我親愛的姨媽艾迪（Aunt Edie）送給我的禮物。她帶了一套看起來非常專業的指紋採集工具。我立刻給我所有照顧我的修女都按了指紋。（我可能是聖凱瑟琳醫院見過的第一個新教小孩，她們對我也很陌生。）
My theory – totally nutty, of course – was that someday a nun would go bad and the FBI would find that they had neglected to fingerprint nuns. The FBI and its director, J. Edgar Hoover, had become revered by Americans in the 1930s, and I envisioned Mr. Hoover, himself, coming to Omaha to inspect my invaluable collection.	我當時的理論——當然非常荒唐——是：萬一哪天有個修女變壞了，聯邦調查局（FBI）發現他們竟然疏忽了修女的指紋採集，那時胡佛局長（J. Edgar Hoover）就會親自來奧馬哈檢查我的無價收藏。
I further fantasized that J. Edgar and I would quickly identify and apprehend the wayward nun. National fame seemed certain.	我還幻想著胡佛和我會迅速鎖定並逮捕那位誤入歧途的修女。名揚全國似乎指日可待。
Obviously, my fantasy never materialized. But, ironically, some years later it became clear that I should have fingerprinted J. Edgar himself as he became disgraced for misusing his post.	顯然，我的幻想從未實現。但諷刺的是，幾年後我才明白，其實我該給胡佛本人按指紋——他最終因為濫用職權而身敗名裂。
Well, that was Omaha in the 1930s, when a sled, a bicycle, a baseball glove and an electric train were coveted by me and my friends.	這就是上世紀三十年代的奧馬哈——那時我和朋友們最渴望擁有的東西，是雪橇、自行車、棒球手套，還有一列電動小火車。
Let’s look at a few other kids from that era, who grew up very nearby and greatly influenced my life but of whom I was for long unaware.	接下來，讓我談談那個年代幾個也在附近長大、後來深刻影響了我人生的孩子——儘管我當時對他們一無所知。
I’ll begin with Charlie Munger, my best pal for 64 years. In the 1930s, Charlie lived a block away from the house I have owned and occupied since 1958.	先從查理·芒格（Charlie Munger）說起——他是我長達 64 年的摯友。在 1930 年代，查理就住在我自 1958 年買下並一直居住的房子，僅隔一個街區。
Early on, I missed befriending Charlie by a whisker. Charlie, 6⅔ years older than I, worked in the summer of 1940 at my grandfather’s grocery store, earning $2 for a 10-hour day. (Thrift runs deep in Buffett blood.)	當年我與他結識的機會幾乎是擦肩而過。查理比我大六歲又八個月，1940 年夏天在我祖父的雜貨店打工，工作 10 小時賺 2 美元。（節儉的基因在巴菲特家族血液裡根深蒂固。）
The following year I did similar work at the store, but I never met Charlie until 1959 when he was 35 and I was 28.	第二年我也在那家店做過類似的工作，但直到 1959 年我們才第一次見面，那時他 35 歲，我 28 歲。
After serving in World War II, Charlie graduated from Harvard Law and then moved permanently to California. Charlie, however, forever talked of his early years in Omaha as formative.	查理服完二戰兵役後，從哈佛法學院畢業，隨後永久搬到加州定居。然而，他始終將早年在奧馬哈的經歷視為塑造他一生的關鍵時期。
For more than 60 years, Charlie had a huge impact on me and could not have been a better teacher and protective “big brother.” We had differences but never had an argument. “I told you so” was not in his vocabulary.	六十多年來，查理對我的影響極為深遠，他是最棒的老師，也是最會保護人的「大哥」。我們雖然有意見不合的時候，但從未吵過架。「我早就跟你說過了」這句話從不在他的詞彙裡。
In 1958, I bought my first and only home. Of course, it was in Omaha, located about two miles from where I grew up (loosely defined), less than two blocks from my in-laws, about six blocks from the Buffett grocery store and a 6–7-minute drive from the office building where I have worked for 64 years.	1958 年，我買下了人生中第一棟也是唯一一棟房子。當然，它在奧馬哈，離我長大的地方（大致範圍）約兩英里，離岳父母家不到兩個街區，距巴菲特雜貨店約六個街區，離我工作了 64 年的辦公大樓開車只要六到七分鐘。
Let’s move on to another Omahan, Stan Lipsey. Stan sold the Omaha Sun Newspapers (weeklies) to Berkshire in 1968 and a decade later moved to Buffalo at my request.	接下來講另一位奧馬哈人——斯坦·利普西（Stan Lipsey）。1968 年，斯坦將《奧馬哈太陽報》（週報）賣給波克夏。十年後，他應我的要求搬到了布法羅。
The Buffalo Evening News, owned by a Berkshire affiliate, was then locked in a battle to the death with its morning competitor who published Buffalo’s only Sunday paper. And we were losing.	當時波克夏旗下的《布法羅晚報》（Buffalo Evening News）正與一家發行布法羅唯一周日報紙的晨報競爭對手展開一場「你死我活」的報業大戰——而我們正處於劣勢。
Stan eventually built our new Sunday product, and for some years our paper – formerly hemorrhaging cash – earned over 100% annually (pre-tax) on our $33 million investment. This was important money to Berkshire in the early 1980s.	最終，斯坦成功打造了我們新的周日報紙，讓那份原本虧損慘重的報紙，在隨後幾年為我們 3,300 萬美元的投資帶來每年超過 100% 的稅前回報。這筆錢對 1980 年代初期的波克夏來說至關重要。
Stan grew up about five blocks from my home. One of Stan’s neighbors was Walter Scott, Jr. Walter, you will remember, brought MidAmerican Energy to Berkshire in 1999.	斯坦從小住在離我家約五個街區的地方。斯坦的一位鄰居是小華特·斯科特（Walter Scott, Jr.）。各位應該記得，是他於 1999 年將中美能源公司（MidAmerican Energy）帶進了波克夏。
He was also a valued Berkshire director until his death in 2021 and a very close friend. Walter was Nebraska’s philanthropic leader for decades and both Omaha and the state carries his imprint.	他一直是波克夏的重要董事，直到 2021 年去世，也是我非常親近的朋友。數十年來，華特一直是內布拉斯加州的慈善領袖，奧馬哈和整個州都留下了他的印記。
Walter attended Benson High School, which I was scheduled to attend as well – until my dad surprised everyone in 1942 by beating a four-term incumbent in a Congressional race. Life is full of surprises.	華特就讀於本森高中（Benson High School），我本來也預計要上那所學校——直到我父親在 1942 年的一場國會選舉中，意外擊敗一位連任四屆的在任議員。人生充滿驚喜。
Wait, there’s more.	等等，還有更多故事。
In 1959, Don Keough and his young family lived in a home located directly across the street from my house and about 100 yards away from where the Munger family had lived.	1959 年，唐·基歐（Don Keough）和他年輕的家人就住在我家對面，離芒格一家曾住過的地方不到 100 碼。
Don was then a coffee salesman but was destined to become president of Coca-Cola as well as a devoted director of Berkshire.	那時，唐還是個賣咖啡的業務員，但他註定後來會成為可口可樂（Coca-Cola）的總裁，同時也是波克夏最忠實的董事之一。
When I met Don, he was earning $12,000 a year while he and his wife Mickie were raising five children, all destined for Catholic schools (with tuition requirements).	我認識唐的時候，他年薪 12,000 美元，他和妻子米奇（Mickie）正在撫養五個孩子——全都要上學費昂貴的天主教學校。
Our families became fast friends. Don came from a farm in northwest Iowa and graduated from Omaha’s Creighton University. Early on, he married Mickie, an Omaha girl. After joining Coke, Don went on to become legendary around the globe.	我們兩家很快就成了好朋友。唐來自愛荷華州西北部的一個農場，畢業於奧馬哈的克瑞頓大學（Creighton University）。他很早就娶了奧馬哈女孩米奇。加入可口可樂後，唐成為享譽全球的傳奇人物。
In 1985, when Don was president of Coke, the company launched its ill-fated New Coke.	1985 年，當唐·基歐擔任可口可樂總裁時，公司推出了命運多舛的「新可樂」（New Coke）。
Don made a famous speech in which he apologized to the public and reinstated “Old” Coke.	唐發表了一場著名的演講，向公眾致歉並宣布恢復「原版可口可樂」（Old Coke）。
This change of heart took place after Don explained that Coke incoming mail addressed to “Supreme Idiot” was promptly delivered to his desk.	他的「轉念」是源於一件趣事：當時公司收到大量寫給「超級白痴」的郵件，這些信件全都立刻被送到了他的辦公桌上。
His “withdrawal” speech is a classic and can be viewed on YouTube. He cheerfully acknowledged that, in truth, the Coca-Cola product belonged to the public and not to the company. Sales subsequently soared.	那場「撤回聲明」的演講已成為經典，可以在 YouTube 上觀看。唐坦然承認：可口可樂這項產品，事實上是屬於公眾的，而不是公司。隨後，銷量迅速飆升。
You can watch Don on CharlieRose.com in a wonderful interview. (Tom Murphy and Kay Graham have a couple of gems as well.)	你可以在 CharlieRose.com 上觀看他精彩的訪談。（湯姆·墨菲（Tom Murphy）和 凱·格雷厄姆（Kay Graham）也各有幾段珍貴的影片。）
Like Charlie Munger, Don forever remained a Midwestern boy, enthusiastic, friendly and American to the core.	和查理·芒格一樣，唐永遠保持著中西部男孩的熱情、友善與純粹的美國精神。
Finally, Ajit Jain, born and raised in India, as well as Greg Abel, our Canadian CEO-to-be, each lived in Omaha for several years late in the 20th Century.	最後，出生並成長於印度的阿吉特·賈因（Ajit Jain），以及我們來自加拿大的未來執行長格雷格·阿貝爾（Greg Abel），都在 20 世紀末在奧馬哈居住過幾年。
Indeed, in the 1990s, Greg lived only a few blocks away from me on Farnam Street, though we never met at the time.	事實上，在 1990 年代，格雷格就住在離我家僅幾個街區之外的法納姆街（Farnam Street），但當時我們從未見過面。
Can it be that there is some magic ingredient in Omaha’s water?	難道奧馬哈的水裡真的有某種神奇的成分嗎？
I lived a few teenage years in Washington, DC (when my dad was in Congress) and in 1954 I took what I thought would be a permanent job in Manhattan.	我在青少年時期曾在華盛頓特區住過幾年（當時我父親是國會議員），1954 年我在曼哈頓找到了一份我以為會做一輩子的工作。
There I was treated wonderfully by Ben Graham and Jerry Newman and made many life-long friends. New York had unique assets – and still does.	在那裡，我得到了本·格雷厄姆（Ben Graham）和傑瑞·紐曼（Jerry Newman）的悉心指導與關照，也結識了許多終生好友。紐約擁有獨特的資產——當時如此，現在亦然。
Nevertheless, in 1956, after only 1½ years, I returned to Omaha, never to wander again.	然而，1956 年，僅工作一年半後，我決定回到奧馬哈，此後就再也沒有離開過。
Subsequently, my three children, as well as several grandchildren, were raised in Omaha. My children always attended public schools (graduating from the same high school that educated my dad, my first wife Susie, as well as Charlie, Stan Lipsey, Irv and Ron Blumkin, and Jack Ringwalt, who founded National Indemnity and sold it to Berkshire in 1967).	之後，我的三個孩子和幾個孫輩都在奧馬哈長大。我的孩子們一直都上公立學校——他們高中畢業於與我父親、我的第一任妻子蘇茜、以及查理、斯坦·利普西、布魯姆金兄弟（內布拉斯加家具賣場的功臣）和傑克·林格沃尔特（National Indemnity 創辦人，1967 年賣給波克夏）相同的學校。
Our country has many great companies, great schools, great medical facilities and each definitely has its own special advantages along with talented people.	我們國家有許多優秀的公司、學校和醫療機構，每一處都有其獨特優勢和傑出人才。
But I feel very lucky to have had the good fortune to make many lifelong friends, to meet both of my wives, to receive a great start in education at public schools, to meet many interesting and friendly adult Omahans when I was very young, and to make a wide variety of friends in the Nebraska National Guard. In short, Nebraska has been home.	但我覺得自己非常幸運：能結識一生摯友，遇到兩任妻子，從公立教育中獲得良好啟蒙；年幼時就接觸到奧馬哈那些有趣又友善的成年人，還在內布拉斯加國民警衛隊交了各式各樣的朋友。簡而言之，內布拉斯加就是我的家。
Looking back I feel that both Berkshire and I did better because of our base in Omaha than if I had resided anywhere else. The center of the United States was a very good place to be born, to raise a family, and to build a business. Through dumb luck, I drew a ridiculously long straw at birth.	回首過往，我深信我和波克夏都因為扎根在奧馬哈而走得更好。如果我居住在其他任何地方，都不會有如此成就。美國的地理中心是一個極佳的出生地、定居地和創業地。靠著「傻瓜般的運氣」，我在出生時就抽到了那根「超長的幸運籤」。
Now let’s move on to my advanced age.	現在，來談談我的高齡階段。
My genes haven’t been particularly helpful – the family’s all-time record for longevity (admittedly family records get fuzzy as you work backwards) was 92 until I came along.	我的基因並不算特別優異——在我出現之前，我們家族最長壽的紀錄是 92 歲（雖然越往前追溯，家族紀錄就越模糊）。
But I have had wise, friendly and dedicated Omaha doctors, starting with Harley Hotz, and continuing to this day.	但我一生中都有睿智、友善且敬業的奧馬哈醫生照顧我——從哈利·霍茨（Harley Hotz）開始，一直到今天。
At least three times, my life has been saved, each with doctors based within a few miles from my home. (I have given up fingerprinting nurses, however. You can get away with many eccentricities at 95 . . . . . but there are limits.)	至少有三次，我的生命是被住在離我家幾英里內的醫生救回來的。（不過，我已經放棄給護士按指紋了。你在 95 歲時可以做很多古怪的事……但總歸還是有限度的。）
Those who reach old age need a huge dose of good luck, daily escaping banana peels, natural disasters, drunk or distracted drivers, lightning strikes, you name it.	能活到老年的人，都需要巨大的好運——每天都要躲過香蕉皮、天災、酒駕、分心駕駛、雷擊等各種意外。
But Lady Luck is fickle and – no other term fits – wildly unfair.	但是「幸運女神」反覆無常——沒有比這更貼切的詞了——她極度不公平。
In many cases, our leaders and the rich have received far more than their share of luck – which, too often, the recipients prefer not to acknowledge.	很多時候，我們的領袖和富人們分得了遠超應有份額的好運——而這些受惠者往往不願意承認。
Dynastic inheritors have achieved lifetime financial independence the moment they emerged from the womb, while others have arrived, facing a hell-hole during their early life or, worse, disabling physical or mental infirmities that rob them of what I have taken for granted.	那些繼承了家族財富的人，一出生就終身財務獨立；而另一些人從一開始就面對地獄般的處境，甚至被身體或精神的缺陷剝奪了我視為理所當然的一切。
In many heavily-populated parts of the world, I would likely have had a miserable life and my sisters would have had one even worse.	在世界上許多人口稠密的地區，如果我出生在那裡，我的人生很可能會非常悲慘，而我姐妹們的處境甚至會更糟。
I was born in 1930 healthy, reasonably intelligent, white, male and in America. Wow! Thank you, Lady Luck.	我生於 1930 年——身體健康，智商不錯，是個白人男性，而且生在美國。哇！謝謝妳，幸運女神。
My sisters had equal intelligence and better personalities than I but faced a much different outlook. Lady Luck continued to drop by during much of my life, but she has better things to do than work with those in their 90s. Luck has its limits.	我的姐妹們同樣聰明，性格比我更好，但她們面對的世界與我截然不同。「幸運女神」在我人生的大部分時間裡持續造訪，但她還有更重要的事情要做，不會永遠守在九十多歲的老人身邊。運氣，終究有其極限。
Father Time, to the contrary, now finds me more interesting as I age. And he is undefeated; for him, everyone ends up on his score card as “wins.”	而「時間老人」（Father Time）恰恰相反——我越老，他對我越感興趣。他是從未輸過的；對他而言，每個人最終都被記在他的「勝場」裡。
When balance, sight, hearing and memory are all on a persistently downward slope, you know Father Time is in the neighborhood.	當平衡感、視力、聽力、記憶力都在持續地走下坡路時，你就知道，「時間老人」已經來到你家門口了。
I was late in becoming old – its onset materially varies – but once it appears, it is not to be denied.	我「變老」的時間比多數人晚——衰老的降臨因人而異——但一旦它出現，就無法拒絕。
To my surprise, I generally feel good. Though I move slowly and read with increasing difficulty, I am at the office five days a week where I work with wonderful people.	令我驚訝的是，我總體感覺還不錯。雖然我行動緩慢，閱讀也越來越吃力，但我依然每週五天在辦公室，與一群優秀的人共事。
Occasionally, I get a useful idea or am approached with an offer we might not otherwise have received. Because of Berkshire’s size and because of market levels, ideas are few – but not zero.	偶爾，我還是會有一些有用的新想法，或者有人帶著我們原本可能遇不到的合作機會上門。由於波克夏的規模龐大以及當前的市場情況，這類機會不多——但並非沒有。
My unexpected longevity, however, has unavoidable consequences of major importance to my family and the achievement of my charitable objectives. Let’s explore them.	然而，我出乎意料的長壽，對我的家族與慈善目標的實現，帶來了極為重要、不可避免的影響。讓我們來探討一下。
What Comes Next	接下來會發生什麼
My children are all above normal retirement age, having reached 72, 70 and 67.	我的三個孩子都已經超過了一般的退休年齡——分別是 72 歲、70 歲和 67 歲。
It would be a mistake to wager that all three – now at their peak in many respects – will enjoy my exceptional luck in delayed aging.	若認為他們三人——目前在許多方面都處於巔峰狀態——也能像我一樣享有延緩衰老的特殊好運，那就錯了。
To improve the probability that they will dispose of what will essentially be my entire estate before alternate trustees replace them, I need to step up the pace of lifetime gifts to their three foundations.	為了提高他們在我指定的備用受託人接任前，能處理完我幾乎所有遺產的可能性，我必須加快向他們三家基金會的生前捐贈速度。
My children are now at their prime in respect to experience and wisdom but have yet to enter old age. That “honeymoon” period will not last forever.	他們現在正處於經驗與智慧最成熟的黃金時期，但還未步入老年。這段「蜜月期」不會永遠持續。
Fortunately, a course correction is easy to execute. There is, however, one additional factor to consider: I would like to keep a significant amount of “A” shares until Berkshire shareholders develop the comfort with Greg that Charlie and I long enjoyed.	幸運的是，這個調整很容易執行。不過，還有一個額外的因素需要考量：我希望繼續持有相當數量的 A 股股票，直到波克夏的股東們對格雷格（Greg Abel）產生像當年信任我與查理一樣的信心。
That level of confidence shouldn’t take long. My children are already 100% behind Greg as are the Berkshire directors.	這種信任的建立不應該花太久時間。我的孩子們和波克夏的董事會成員一樣，已百分之百支持格雷格。
All three children now have the maturity, brains, energy and instincts to disburse a large fortune.	我的三個孩子現在都具備了足夠的成熟度、智慧、精力與直覺來管理並分配這筆巨額財富。
They will also have the advantage of being above ground when I am long gone and, if necessary, can adopt policies both anticipatory and reactive to federal tax policies or other developments affecting philanthropy.	當我離世後，他們仍在世，這使他們擁有優勢，可以根據聯邦稅務政策或其他影響慈善事業的發展，做出前瞻性或應對性的決策。
Ruling from the grave does not have a great record, and I have never had an urge to do so.	「從墳墓裡發號施令」的做法從來沒有好結果，我也從未有過這種衝動。
Fortunately, all three children received a dominant dosage of their genes from their mother. As the decades have passed, I have also become a better model for their thinking and behavior. I will never, however, achieve parity with their mother.	幸運的是，三個孩子主要繼承了他們母親的優良基因。隨著數十年過去，我也逐漸成為他們思想與行為上更好的榜樣，但我永遠無法與他們母親相提並論。
My children have three alternate trustees in case of any premature deaths or disabilities. The alternates are not ranked or tied to a specific child. All three are exceptional humans and wise in the ways of the world. They have no conflicting motives.	我還為他們指定了三位備用受託人，以防任何意外早逝或失能。這三位備用受託人不分等級，也不專屬於哪一個孩子。他們都是傑出的人，通達世事，而且沒有利益衝突的動機。
I have assured my children that they do not need to perform miracles nor fear failures or disappointments.	我已經向孩子們保證，他們不必創造奇蹟，也不必害怕失敗或失望。
These are inevitable, and I have made my share.	這些都是無可避免的，我自己也犯過不少錯。
They simply need to improve somewhat upon what generally is achieved by government activities and/or private philanthropy, recognizing these other methods of redistribution of wealth have shortcomings as well.	他們只需要比政府或一般私人慈善事業所達成的成果做得稍微好一點，同時也要理解這些財富再分配的方法本身也有其不足之處。
If my children simply do a decent job, they can be certain that their mother and I would be pleased.	只要我的孩子們能做得盡職盡責，他們就能確定，他們母親和我也會感到欣慰。
Their instincts are good and they each have had years of practice with very small sums initially that have been irregularly increased to more than $500 million annually.	他們的直覺很好，而且都經過了多年的實踐：最初從非常小的金額開始，逐步增加，如今每年已能管理超過 5 億美元的捐贈。
All three like working long hours to help others, each in their own way.	他們三人都喜歡長時間工作來幫助他人，只是方式各不相同。
The acceleration of my lifetime gifts to my children’s foundations in no way reflects any change in my views about Berkshire’s prospects.	我加速對孩子基金會的生前捐贈，絕不代表我對波克夏前景的看法有任何改變。
Greg Abel has more than met the high expectations I had for him when I first thought he should be Berkshire’s next CEO.	格雷格·阿貝爾完全超越了我當初認為他應成為波克夏下一任執行長時所設下的高標準期望。
He understands many of our businesses and personnel far better than I now do, and he is a very fast learner about matters many CEOs don’t even consider.	他對我們許多業務和員工的了解，已遠超過現在的我，而且對於許多執行長根本不會考慮的領域，他學習得非常快。
I can’t think of a CEO, consultant, academic, or government official I’d choose over Greg to handle your savings and mine.	無論是執行長、顧問、學者或政府官員，我想不出有任何人比格雷格更適合管理你我的儲蓄與資產。
In aggregate, Berkshire’s businesses have moderately better-than-average prospects, led by a few non-correlated and sizable gems.	總體而言，波克夏旗下業務的前景略優於平均水平，由幾顆不相關但規模龐大的「寶石」業務領銜。
However, a decade or two from now, there will be many companies that have done better than Berkshire; our size takes its toll.	然而，在未來一、二十年內，將會有許多公司表現超越波克夏；畢竟，我們龐大的規模本身是一種負擔。
Berkshire has less chance of a devastating disaster than any business I know.	波克夏遭遇毀滅性災難的機率，比我所知道的任何公司都低。
And Berkshire has a more shareholder-conscious management and board than almost any company I’ve seen.	而波克夏的管理層和董事會對股東權益的重視程度，也勝過我所見過的幾乎所有公司。
Finally, Berkshire will always be managed in a manner that will make its existence an asset to the United States and eschew activities that would lead it to become a supplicant.	最後，波克夏將永遠以一種方式經營，使其存在成為美國的資產，並避免從事任何會導致公司向政府乞求協助的行為。
Over time, our managers should grow quite wealthy – they have important responsibilities – but they do not crave dynastic or ostentatious wealth.	隨著時間推移，我們的經理人們理應會變得相當富有——這是他們重要職責的回報——但他們並不貪戀世襲或炫耀式的財富。
Our stock price will move capriciously, occasionally falling 50% or so as has happened three times in 60 years under present management.	我們的股價會任性地波動，偶爾會下跌約 50% 左右，就像在現任管理層主導的 60 年裡曾發生過三次那樣。
Don’t despair; America will come back and so will Berkshire shares.	不要絕望；美國會復甦，波克夏的股價也會回升。
A Few Final Thoughts	一些最後的省思
One perhaps self-serving observation. I’m happy to say I feel better about the second half of my life than the first.	一個也許聽起來有點自戀的觀察：我很高興地說，我對人生的後半段感覺比前半段更好。
My advice: Don’t beat yourself up over past mistakes – learn at least a little from them and move on. It is never too late to improve.	我的建議是：不要為了過去的錯誤而苛責自己——至少從中學到一些教訓，然後繼續前行。隨時開始變得更好都不嫌晚。
Get the right heroes and copy them. You can start with Tom Murphy; he was the best.	找到正確的榜樣，然後模仿他們。你可以從湯姆·墨菲（Tom Murphy）開始——他是最出色的。
Remember Alfred Nobel, later of Nobel Prize fame, who – reportedly – read his own obituary that was mistakenly printed when his brother died and a newspaper got mixed up.	記得阿爾弗雷德·諾貝爾（Alfred Nobel）嗎？據說，當他兄弟去世時，報紙搞錯了人，誤刊登了他的訃告，他親眼讀到了自己的訃聞。
He was horrified at what he read and realized he should change his behavior.	他對自己在報紙上讀到的「名聲」感到震驚，並意識到自己必須改變行為。
Don’t count on a newsroom mix-up: Decide what you would like your obituary to say and live the life to deserve it.	不要指望新聞編輯室會出這種烏龍：想清楚你希望你的訃告寫些什麼，然後過一種配得上那篇文字的人生。
Greatness does not come about through accumulating great amounts of money, publicity or power. When you help someone in any of thousands of ways, you help the world.	偉大並不是透過累積巨額財富、名氣或權力來實現的。當你以數千種方式中的任何一種幫助他人時，你就是在幫助這個世界。
Kindness is costless but also priceless. Whether you are religious or not, it’s hard to beat The Golden Rule as a guide to behavior.	善良是無須成本的，但同時也是無價的。無論你是否信仰宗教，「己所不欲，勿施於人」（黃金法則）都是最難以超越的行為準則。
I write this as one who has been thoughtless countless times and made many mistakes but also became very lucky in learning from some wonderful friends how to behave better (still a long way from perfect, however).	我寫下這些話時，心知自己曾有無數次欠缺體諒、犯下許多錯誤，但我也非常幸運地從一些傑出的朋友身上學到了如何表現得更好（雖然離完美還差得很遠）。
Keep in mind that the cleaning lady is as much a human being as the Chairman.	永遠要記住，清潔阿姨與董事長一樣，都是值得尊重的人。
I wish all who read this a very happy Thanksgiving. Yes, even the jerks; it’s never too late to change.	祝所有讀到這封信的人感恩節快樂。是的，即使是那些「渾蛋」也一樣——隨時做出改變都不嫌晚。
Remember to thank America for maximizing your opportunities. But it is – inevitably – capricious and sometimes venal in distributing its rewards.	記得感謝美國——它極大地拓展了你的機會。但它在分配回報時，也難免會任性，有時甚至是腐敗的。
Choose your heroes very carefully and then emulate them. You will never be perfect, but you can always be better.	非常謹慎地選擇你的榜樣，然後效法他們。你永遠無法達到完美，但你總可以變得更好。