Adam and Thomas

Chapter 9

Thomas awoke in alarm.

“What’s the matter, Thomas?” Adam came to him. “I was late for school.”

“You had a bad dream. We don’t go to school anymore. We live in the forest.”

Adam showed him the cherries, and Thomas was enthusiastic. “What great cherries.” They sat and ate, enjoying the sweet taste of the black fruit.

“Where did you find the cherry tree?”

“Right nearby.”

“Adam, you have an unusual ability to discover things.”

“I love to find new things.”

“New things don’t come to me, because I’m nearsighted.”

You know how to sleep and dream, Adam wanted to say, but he didn’t, to avoid hurting his feelings.

Adam noticed that Thomas had stopped asking why his mother was late, but when evening fell, Thomas said softly, “Now the pupils in our class are at home doing homework. Only we two are abandoned in the forest.”

Adam sensed that the word “abandoned” was dripping with sorrow and yearning, so he asked, “Why did you say ‘abandoned’?”

“What should I have said? Do you have a better word?”

“We have been sent to learn directly from nature and to grow up.”

“Did our mothers bring us to the forest so we’d grow up?” asked Thomas in a tone that embarrassed Adam slightly.

“That idea just occurred to me now,” said Adam, laughing.

“As far as I know, you don’t start growing up at the age of nine,” said Thomas.

Then they went up to the nest.

“Our nest is well cushioned,” said Adam.

“True. It makes you want to sleep,” Thomas agreed.

The forest air and fatigue wrapped around the two boys, and they fell asleep.

Thomas dreamed that his mother was sitting on his bed and reading to him from Demian, a book by Hermann Hesse. His mother’s voice, before he fell asleep, was soft and calm, and the story appealed to him. Suddenly Thomas thought to ask his mother, “Why did you send me to the forest? Did you send me so I would grow up?” His mother was upset by his question. “I had no choice. I was afraid they would snatch you up.” “Where are they sending the children and the old people?” “Why do you ask?” “There are various rumors. When will the war be over?” “I don’t know. The moment it’s over, I’ll come and get you. You have to be patient.”

Thomas woke up very early, before sunrise. Adam was still asleep. The clear dream became even brighter, and he saw his mother before his eyes.

Adam woke up and asked, “Why aren’t you asleep?”

“I had a dream, and I guess it woke me up.”

“A good dream?”

“Mom promised she’ll come as soon as the war is over,” Thomas told him.

“When will the war be over?” Adam asked.

“She didn’t tell me in so many words. Dreams always hint, but they never explain.”