Adam and Thomas

by Aharon Appelfeld

  “Thomas, you had a very bad dream,” said Adam, “but you resisted like a hero.”

  “I was trembling,” Thomas admitted.

  “In that situation, one against many, anyone, not just a boy, would have trembled. It’s important to say that you resisted like a hero and didn’t give in. Bravo. After a dream like that you deserve a good breakfast.”

  When he heard Adam’s words, Thomas’s eyes filled with tears.

  Chapter 14

  After eating raspberries and blueberries, they went out to explore the forest. Hunger was weakening them. After a short walk, they stopped and sat down. Thomas sank into reverie.

  “A penny for your thoughts, Thomas,” said Adam. “I was thinking about the dream I had. It won’t let go of me.”

  “Thomas, in that dream you were a guy who didn’t give in. Sure, you got whipped, but you didn’t surrender. You can be proud of yourself.”

  While they were walking, dizzy with hunger, before their eyes, between the trees, lay a meadow with a cow and a calf. The cow didn’t seem to be used to strangers, and she was surprised. But the calf wasn’t frightened. It looked at them with eyes full of wonder. The meadow was fenced in. After looking at it from all sides, Adam entered, patted the cow and the calf, and, without delay, started to milk the cow. He caught the milk in his cupped hand and drank. Right away he invited Thomas to join him in drinking. They drank the fresh milk sip by sip. If they had had a cup or bowl, they could have milked some more. But they were happy with what the morning had given them and withdrew into the forest.

  “There’s nothing like fresh milk,” said Adam.

  “I forgot. I have a thermos bottle in my pack. Let’s bring it and fill it with milk,” said Thomas.

  They didn’t hurry back. They looked around to see whether there were any suspicious creatures, and only after making certain there was no danger, they returned to their tree. Thomas climbed up to the nest and brought down the thermos bottle. They hurried back to the meadow.

  Adam milked the cow and filled the thermos bottle. If they hadn’t been afraid of the owner of the cow and the calf, they would have stayed and petted the dear creatures they had found.

  They went back to the tree, climbed up, and sipped the milk. With every sip, they felt the fresh milk slaking their thirst and satisfying their hunger. Without noticing, they fell asleep.

  When they woke up, toward evening, Thomas said, “I dreamed a strange dream. A white dream. Everything looked white: the trees, the streets, and the people.”

  “Were the people in a panic?” Adam asked.

  “No, everyone was standing there, bewildered.”

  “And were you white, too?”

  “I was apparently whiter than everyone. They all looked at me, and they were sure I was the one who had brought about that whitening.”

  “What did you say to them?”

  “I didn’t know what to say.”

  “You had that white dream because we drank that good, fresh milk. Grandma says, ‘A white dream is a good dream,’” said Adam.

  “Thanks for interpreting the dream,” said Thomas.

  Crouching and with caution, they went back to visit the cow and her calf. When they were close they saw that the grass was still there, but the cow and the calf were gone.

  Adam didn’t look worried. “The forest has a lot more presents for us.”

  “I see that you trust the forest,” said Thomas.

  “The forest is sometimes better than people,” said Adam.

  Thomas commented, “The forest always appears to us as a place where wild animals live.”

  “Don’t forget. Wild animals only attack when they’re hungry.”

  “That shows that people are worse than them,” said Thomas, speaking in his father’s words.

  Chapter 15

  The next day, when they went to see the cow and her calf, they found a little girl, dressed in peasant clothes, milking the cow. They clung to one of the trees and stared at her tensely.

  “She’s very short, but she’s sweet,” said Thomas.

  Adam, who had concentrated on her face and hands as she milked, discovered she was Mina, a girl from their class.

  Adam didn’t restrain himself but called out in a whisper, “Mina.”

  The girl didn’t respond to his call.

  “Are you sure it’s Mina?” Thomas asked fearfully. “I have no doubt.”

  “Mina. It’s Adam and Thomas. We live in the forest and we’re eating berries. If you could bring us some bread, we’d be very grateful,” Adam said to her.

  She didn’t respond to that call either. She kept milking. When the bucket was full, she quickly took it and the stool she had been sitting on and disappeared between the trees.

  “It’s Mina, without doubt,” Adam murmured. “She has changed a bit, but her expression hasn’t changed.”

  “How did you recognize her?”

  “I sat next to her in second grade. I remember the way she sat and the expression of her face.”

  “Strange. In the spring we were still in school, and now we’re all on our own,” Thomas said to himself.

  Indeed Mina was short and skinny, and she didn’t stand out in the class. She did all her homework seriously and diligently, but she didn’t attract attention or affection. They didn’t assign her tasks. She didn’t play in the school yard, and she didn’t have friends. At the time of the ghetto, she worked in the hospital with her mother. She helped wash and feed the patients. The patients were fond of her and called her the little angel. Mina floated from room to room. She brought medicine to this one and a bowl of soup to that one. After a while people heard that her mother had found a pair of peasants who were willing to hide her for money.

  “That’s Mina. I’m sure,” Adam muttered again.

  They were sitting near the brook, looking at the shimmering water in silence.

  “The brook is a living thing,” said Adam. “Do you mean that the brook gives us life?”

  “Not exactly. It’s good to observe its shining motion. Your eyes love to look at water, and it gives the heart joy.”

  “Strange,” said Thomas. “What’s so strange?”

  “We have to learn from everything, my father says. What can be learned from water?”

  “It’s hard for me to explain. If it makes you happy to look at the flowing water, it will make you happy to look at a sleeping dog,” said Adam, and they both laughed.

  Chapter 16

  After that Adam began to steal in and milk the cow. The fresh milk nourished them. Every day they practiced running in a crouch, finding hiding places, and climbing trees. Thomas was glad to be running with Adam. If they hadn’t been weak, they would have exercised more. The raspberries and blueberries and the bit of milk did nourish them, but not enough. “Bread, bread,” Thomas called out from time to time, and they both laughed.

  They saw Mina milking the cow again. Adam called to her in a whisper, “Mina, Adam and Thomas are here. If you bring us some bread, we’ll be very grateful.”

  Mina didn’t respond.

  Mina’s father died when she was five, and her mother worked as a housekeeper. They were poor, but her mother made sure that poverty didn’t shame them. She dressed Mina in nice clothes and bought her notebooks and textbooks.

  “Are you certain it’s Mina?” Thomas asked repeatedly.

  “I’m 100 percent sure.”

  Still wondering how they could get solid food, they returned to the meadow and hid behind a tree near the edge to get as close as they could to Mina. Then they looked down and found half a loaf of bread and a piece of cheese wrapped in an old newspaper.

  “I wasn’t wrong,” Adam called out.

  They sat down by the brook. Adam cut a slice of bread and a piece of cheese for each of them with his jackknife, and they could barely belie
ve their eyes.

  They wanted to rejoice, but they were afraid. The long days of hunger had weakened them. The fresh bread they gobbled down stuck between their throats and their stomachs and hurt them.

  “In the future we’ll eat more slowly,” said Thomas.

  They drank water from the brook. The water washed down the bread, and the pain passed.

  “Someone is watching over us,” said Adam. “Do you mean that God is watching over us?” Adam was silent. Tears filled his eyes.

  The next evening, when Mina came to milk the cow, Adam approached the tree closest to her and called out in a whisper, “Thank you, Mina. We hadn’t eaten bread for many days.”

  This time, too, Mina didn’t respond. After she finished milking, she took the stool and the pail and disappeared.

  Adam and Thomas watched her in amazement. She had changed in a short time. She hadn’t grown taller, but her face and her body were fuller. When she milked, she looked like a peasant girl.

  “Those changes didn’t come easily to her,” said Adam.

  “How do you know?”

  “Changing isn’t a simple matter. It takes determination. You have to alter all the movements your body is used to. You have to block your thoughts and speak in a language that isn’t yours. Lucky for us we’re in the forest and not with Diana, where we were supposed to hide, or who knows where. At Diana’s we would have been different creatures, swineherds, or who knows what. We’re suffering from hunger, but we’re still who we were. We have the forest and the brook, and we’re speaking the language we’re used to.” Adam spoke at length and with emotion.

  “Mina has changed, but apparently not in her soul. She took the risk of bringing us bread. You have to admire her courage,” said Thomas.

  “That’s true. If it sounded like I was looking down on her for changing, I apologize,” said Adam.

  Every few days she left them a hunk of bread or a piece of corn pie. Once she left them a big red tomato.

  “God sent Mina to us to rescue us from hunger,” said Adam.

  “Does the messenger know she’s a messenger, or does she do it without knowing?” Thomas spoke in his father’s words.

  “You’re great at phrasing things,” said Adam.

  “I have to be careful. Sometimes Mom and Dad speak from my mouth,” said Thomas, laughing.

  Chapter 17

  In the middle of the night, while they were wondering what they could do and where they could turn and how they could get another coat or a blanket to warm the nest, they heard a moan of pain. Adam and Thomas quickly climbed down from the tree and ran toward the sound of the groaning. Not far from the tree lay a man, breathing heavily.

  Adam leaned over the man on the ground and said, “My name is Adam. Where does it hurt?”

  “I’m weak. They’ve been running after me for two days. I’m exhausted.”

  “We have a little fresh milk and some bread.”

  “I’m thirsty. If you have water, that will save me.”

  “Drink some milk, and later we’ll bring you water.”

  The two boys lifted the man’s head, and he took a sip and then another. “Now we’ll go and fetch you some water.

  “Thanks, boys, thanks, angels.”

  They raced to the stream, rinsed out the thermos and filled it with water. The man drank and drank. He opened his eyes and said, “Angel children. Where are you from? Who sent you to save me?”

  “My name is Adam, and my friend’s name is Thomas. We’ve been hiding in the forest since the beginning of the summer.”

  “Did you hear my voice?”

  “We heard it clearly. We have a nest in the top of a tall tree. You can hear things well from there. How are the people in the ghetto?”

  “The ghetto has been liquidated.”

  “Where were the people sent?”

  “To Poland.”

  “Have they gotten there?” Thomas asked cautiously.

  “I assume so.”

  While they were talking, they heard shots. The man raised his head and called out, “Run away, boys. I’ll look for a hiding place.” When Adam and Thomas didn’t move, he called out, “Quickly, quickly. You can’t stay near me.”

  They returned to the tree in a crouch.The shooting continued, but they were glad they had managed to help the man who was running away. They were still worried about him. Who knew whether he had found a hiding place, whether he would hold out. They forgot about their own concerns. The image of the fugitive didn’t leave their sight.

  With the last darkness the shooting subsided. They were in no hurry to come down. They listened. They didn’t leave the tree until first light. They trotted to the stream in a crouch, washed their faces, and drank.

  They still had bread and some cheese.

  “Adam, do you believe that God will reveal himself to us soon?” Thomas asked.

  “I don’t expect so. I expect my mom and dad to return to me,” Adam surprised him.

  “I thought that a believer would expect God to reveal himself.”

  “Grandfather says, ‘God dwells everywhere.’ Whoever looks for God can find him anywhere—with people, with animals, and even in some inanimate things.”

  “Does God also dwell in evil people?”

  “Evil people have driven him out of themselves.”

  “I didn’t know,” said Thomas. “Does your grandfather speak to you sometimes?”

  “Grandfather isn’t talkative. He’s the silent type.”

  While they were wondering what to do and where to go, they saw a dog in the distance, sniffing intently, going from tree to tree and sticking his nose among the bushes. Suddenly he raised his head and started running toward them.

  It was Miro, Miro and none other.

  Adam knelt, spread his arms, hugged Miro, and his voice choked. Miro looked neglected. His fur was matted and his face was thin. Adam overcame his muteness and asked, “How did you find me?” He pressed his face against Miro’s, kissed him, and pressed him to his chest.

  Thomas was stunned. He had never seen such love for animals.

  “This is my Miro, all mine.” Adam pressed him against his body again. “He sleeps in my room and in the winter he curls up on my blanket. How could I live without you? How’s Mom? How are my grandparents?” Miro let out a thin whine and shrank into Adam’s arms.

  Thomas roused himself from his amazement and asked, “How did he find you?”

  “With Miro, anything is possible,”Adam answered. “Did he ever find you before?”

  “Mom once lost her wallet with money in it and was very upset. Miro saw she was upset and went out to look for the wallet, without anyone asking him to. Many hours passed, and he didn’t come back. We were afraid something had happened to him. Later that evening he came back with the wallet in his mouth. Miro is a marvelous creature. Can’t you see in him that he’s marvelous?” Adam spoke excitedly.

  Chapter 18

  They couldn’t believe how much their lives had changed. Adam washed Miro, filled his palm with water, and put it to his mouth. Miro was thirsty and drank till the last drop.

  “Thomas and I live in the forest now. I haven’t heard from Mom since we parted. I assume she’s hiding along with my grandparents. You certainly know more than I do.”

  Miro looked at him with his big eyes, let out a few soft barks, and Adam sensed that Miro was moved by their meeting and it was hard for him to talk now.

  Miro was a smart dog. He knew what was happening in the house, who was sad and who was sick. If one of Adam’s grandparents were sick, he would sit by the bed and sympathize with his pain. On holidays he rejoiced with everyone.

  “What happened to you, Miro, since I left you?”

  Thomas asked cautiously, “Can I pet Miro?”

  “Certainly. Now he belongs to both of us.” Thomas
bent down on his knees and stroked Miro. Miro looked at him as if to say, I’m Adam’s friend. I can’t be your friend, too.

  Even though Thomas didn’t understand the language of animals, he understood that Miro was entirely devoted to Adam now. There was no room in his soul for another boy.

  Adam noticed that Thomas’s feelings were hurt, and he said, “Don’t worry. He’ll be your friend, too.”

  “I’m deaf and dumb with animals,” said Thomas.

  “You’re wrong, Thomas. In a little while you’ll be talking to him the way I do.”

  Adam carried Miro up into the nest, and that night all three of them slept there. They had a feeling that Miro brought a message from home with him. But for now he hadn’t found the right little barks to express his message.

  The next day Adam sensed that Miro was ready to tell him something. Miro raced from place to place restlessly, whining with little barks. Adam hugged him and whispered in his ears, “Tell me, dear, what you want to say to me. I’m listening.”

  At last Miro pulled at his collar with his hind leg again and again with nervous movements that Adam had never seen him make.

  Adam took the collar off Miro’s neck, and he found a letter folded up inside it.

  Adam dear, pardon me. I couldn’t come to you as I had promised. If you haven’t gotten to Diana’s yet, don’t delay. Go to her. Give her the gold jewelry I sewed in your coat and tell her that I’ll come soon and give her more. You know Diana. She’s got a temper, but she’s not a bad woman. I believe she’ll hide you. But if for some reason she refuses to hide you, go to her cousin, Christina. She’s a widow who lives near that poplar grove, and I’m sure she’ll hide you.