石舟

Once a beautiful Chippewa maiden died on the day she was to have married a brave， young warrior. He was very brave， but this sorrow was almost too great for him to bear. He sat down at the door of his cabin and would not go hunting with the other Indians.

All that he could think of was the dead maiden， and he wished and wished that he could go to the Land of Souls， where he knew she now lived. But he did not know where this land was. All that the old people could tell him was that it lay to the south. So， after grieving for many days， he made up his mind to try to find it. He put some food in a bag， gathered up his arrows and bow， and calling his dog to him， started off. On he went for many days， and everything looked the same as in the land he had left—forests， hills， and valleys， with snow lying thick on the ground and in the trees. Then gradually the snow began to vanish， and as he went on he saw trees with leaves budding on them， and could hear the songs of birds. At the end of a few more days， he had reached the southern land， where all is warm and bright. There he saw a narrow path leading through a forest and up a hill.

He followed this path， and at the top of the hill found a cabin. At the door of the cabin stood an Indian， dressed in a robe of bearskins. He was a very old man， but his eyes were bright and soft.

“Come in， my grandson，” he said. “I have been expecting you. The maiden whom you seek passed here a few days ago. You may follow her and enter the Land of Souls， but you must leave your body behind with me. My cabin is the gateway into that beautiful land， and you do not need your body there， nor your arrows， nor your bow. Leave them with me and I shall keep them safe for you. Look over there！ Do you see that deep gorge and the beautiful plain beyond？ That is the Land of Souls， and the one you seek is already there.”

Suddenly the young man felt himself grow very light， and his feet began to run as though they were winged. Everything looked the same to him， only more beautiful， and the little animals did not seem afraid. They seemed to know that he would not kill them. As he went on swiftly through the forest， he noticed that the trees did not stop him. He seemed to pass right through them， and he saw then that they were only images of trees.

At last he came to a beautiful lake， whose waters were clear and sparkling. In the centre of this lake was an island， with green grass and flowers and birds. Then， to his joy， he noticed a canoe tied to the shore of the lake. It was made of shining， white stone and had paddles that shone， also. He climbed in and pushed away from the shore， and， to his surprise， he saw the maiden whom he loved， in a canoe exactly like his， floating beside him. They kept close together and began to cross the lake. Its waves seemed to be rising， and at a distance looked ready to swallow them up. But when the huge waves drew close， they passed by and left them unharmed， and the maiden and her lover saw that they were only the shapes of waves. But another thing frightened them. It was the clearness of the water， for as they looked down， they could see the bodies of people who had been drowned. And in the water all along， there were men and women of all ages struggling and sinking in the waves. Only the canoes of the little children floated on in safety.

At last their canoes reached the shore of the island， and jumping out， they roamed joyfully over the soft grass. They felt that the very air was food， and thought only of pleasant things. For there was nothing that was sad here in this land， no cold winds， no hunger—only brightness and joy.

As the warrior wandered by the maidens side， he heard the voice of the Master of Life speaking to him. “Go back，” he said，“to the land you came from. Your work is not completed yet. Go back and be a good man， and do all the work that I send to you. You must leave the spirit whom you love， but she shall wait here for you， for she is accepted， and shall always remain young and happy. When your work is finished， I shall call you also from the land of hunger and tears， to come to this beautiful Land of Souls.”

So the young man said farewell to the maiden， and getting into the canoe， he was carried across the lake. In a few minutes， he was at the cabin of the old man. The Indian smiled when he saw him.

“Enter， my grandson，” he said， “and you will find your body inside.”

The young man obeyed， and when he came out he felt as when he had first arrived. But his heart was brave now. The Indian smiled again at him.

“I see how brave and strong you are，” he said， “and my message to you is， always remain cheerful and brighten every sad life that you see.”

The young man promised to obey the message， and， with one long look at the Land of Souls， he turned and began his journey towards his home.

從前有個美麗的齊佩瓦族女子，就在她要嫁給一個勇敢的年輕戰(zhàn)士的那天，她去世了。戰(zhàn)士很勇敢，但這巨大的悲傷幾乎使他崩潰。他在自家小屋門前坐著，無心與其他印第安人外出打獵。

他腦海中全是那死去的女子，他非常希望可以去靈魂之國，他知道她現(xiàn)在就在那兒。但他不知道那個國度在何處。老人們能告知他的就是那個國度在南方。因此，他悲傷地度過了許多天后，決定設法尋找那個國度。他裝好食物，帶上弓箭，叫上他的狗，出發(fā)了。他連續(xù)走了很多天，但周圍看起來與他離開的地方無異——森林、山、峽谷，地面上和樹上都積了厚厚的一層雪。漸漸地，積雪開始不見了，他繼續(xù)前行，看到樹上長著嫩葉，還聽到小鳥的歌聲。幾天后，他到了南方，那里溫暖而明亮。他在那兒看到一條穿過森林延伸到山上的小路。

他沿著小路前行，在山頂上發(fā)現(xiàn)了一個小屋。一個印第安人站在小屋門前，穿著一件熊毛皮做的長袍。他雖然很老了，但眼睛明亮，眼神柔和。

“進來吧，小伙子，”他說?！拔乙恢痹诘饶惆　Ｄ銓ふ业呐訋滋烨敖?jīng)過這兒。你可以跟隨她進入靈魂之國，但你必須把你的肉身留給我。我的小屋是通往那個美麗國度的入口，在那兒你不需要肉身，也不需要弓箭。把這些東西放在我這兒，我會替你好好保管的?？茨沁叄憧吹侥莻€深深的峽谷和旁邊那個美麗的平原了嗎？那就是靈魂之國，你要找的人已經(jīng)在那兒了。”

突然，這個年輕人感覺自己變得很輕盈，他的雙腳跑起來就像長了翅膀一樣。一切事物看起來沒什么特別，只是更美麗了，小動物似乎也不怕人。它們好像知道他不會殺它們。他快速穿過森林時發(fā)現(xiàn)，樹木并沒有阻擋他前進。他似乎是直接穿過去的，當下，他意識到那只是樹的影像。

最后，他來到了一個美麗的湖邊，湖水清澈，波光粼粼。在湖中心有一個小島嶼，上面有綠草、鮮花和小鳥。突然，他高興地發(fā)現(xiàn)了湖邊停著一艘小舟，小舟是由閃亮的白色石頭做成的，船槳也是閃閃發(fā)亮的。他爬上小舟，把小舟從岸邊推開，他此時驚喜地發(fā)現(xiàn)，那個他深愛的姑娘在另一艘同樣的小舟上，在他旁邊漂浮著。他們向彼此靠近，開始渡過湖泊。浪花似乎正在升高，從遠處看，好像要淹沒他們。但當巨浪靠近他們時，巨浪從他們身邊飄過，并沒有傷害他們，姑娘和她的愛人明白過來，那只是浪花的影像。但另一驚嚇向他們襲來。那就是清澈見底的湖水，他們向下看時，看到被淹死的人的尸體。湖水中到處可見大大小小的男人、女人在掙扎中往下沉。只有小孩子的小舟安全地漂浮著。

終于，他們到達了岸邊，跳出小舟，歡快地在柔軟的草地上漫步。他們感覺到空氣就是他們的食物，想的都是快樂的事情。因為那里沒有悲傷，沒有寒風、饑餓——只有光明和歡樂。

戰(zhàn)士在姑娘身邊漫步時，他聽到了生命之神在對他說話。“回去吧，”他說，“回到你出發(fā)的地方。你的工作還沒有完成?；厝ズ笞鰝€好人，完成我交給你的工作，你必須離開你深愛的靈魂，但她會在這兒等你的，因為她已經(jīng)被接納了，她會永遠年輕快樂。你完成你的工作后，我也會把你從饑餓和淚水的國度召到這美麗的靈魂之國?！?/p>

于是，年輕人跟女子告別，回到小舟上，小舟把他送回了湖對岸。幾分鐘后，他就到了那位老人家的小屋，這個印第安人看到他后朝他微笑。

“進來吧，小伙子，”他說，“你的身體在屋里?！?/p>

年輕人聽從老人的話，他走出小屋后感覺身體和來時一樣，但現(xiàn)在他的心變勇敢了。印第安人又對他笑了笑。

“我看到了你的勇敢和堅強，”他說，“我要對你說的是：無論你遭遇多悲慘的生活，你都要一直快樂、樂觀?！?/p>

年輕人答應老人牢記他的話，他遠眺靈魂之國后轉(zhuǎn)身上路，返回他的家鄉(xiāng)。