Chapter 3 3

Nine months have passed.All the rabbis came to an agreement.Letters came and went.I didn't expect that such a thing would require so much knowledge. Elka also raised another child during this time.This time it was a girl.On the Sabbath I went to the synagogue to pray that God would bless her.They called me to the Pentateuch and I named the child after my mother-in-law - may she rest in peace.The jesters and talkatives of the town came to the bakery and gave me a bad rap.All Flampol was in high spirits because of my troubles and sorrows, but I resolved to always believe what I was told.What good is it if you don't believe it?If you don't trust your wife today, you won't trust God tomorrow.

There was an apprentice in our shop who was her neighbour, and I asked him to bring her a loaf of bread or cornbread every day.Or a piece of cake, or some rolls or toast, and whenever I can, a pudding, a slice of cake, or a wedding fruit roll—whatever I can get my hands on.The Apprentice was a kind lad, and several times he added things himself.He used to piss me off a lot, pulling my nose and poking my ribs, but after he got to my house he became nice and friendly. "Well, Gimpel," he said to me, "you have a very respectable little wife, and two beautiful children, and you don't deserve them."

"But people say she has something to do," I said. "Oh, they just love to talk," he said. "There's nothing else for them to do but talk nonsense. You don't pay attention to it, just like you don't pay attention to how cold it is in winter." One day the rabbi sent for me, and he said, "Gimpel, you must be mistaken about your wife?" I said, "I'm sure." "Oh, but watch out! You saw it with your own eyes." "It must be a shadow," I said. "What shadow?" "I think it's the shadow of a beam."

"Then you can go home. You have to thank Rabbi Iannov, who found obscure information in Maimonides' works in your favour." I took the rabbi's hand and kissed it. I'm going to run home right away.It's no small thing to be separated from your wife and children for such a long time.Then I thought about it, now I'd better go back to work and go home at night.I don't tell anyone, but in my heart this day is a holiday.Women routinely make fun of me, make fun of me, they do it every day.But I thought to myself: You talkative people, go ahead and talk nonsense.Already the truth is out, like oil floating on water.Maimonides said it was right, so it is right!

In the evening, I covered the dough to let it ferment, took my share of bread and a small bag of flour, and walked home.The moon is very round and the stars are twinkling. I don't know what makes people feel creepy.I hurried forward, and there was a long shadow in front of me.It is winter and it has just snowed.I wanted to sing a song, but it was getting late and I didn't want to wake the residents.So I wanted to whistle, but I remembered an old saying: You don't whistle at night, it will draw the spirits out.So I walked as quietly as possible. When I got to the yard of those Christians, the dogs inside started barking at me.But I thought: Call it out, call out your teeth!What are you, but dogs!And I am a human being, the husband of a beautiful wife, and the father of two promising children.

As I approached my wife's house, my heart began beating violently, like the heart of a criminal.I am not afraid of anything, but my heart is beating!Jump!Hey, can't go back.I quietly lifted the latch and went into the house.Elka was fast asleep.I look at the baby's cradle, the shutters are closed, but the moonlight filters in through the cracks.I saw the face of the newborn baby and as soon as I saw her, I fell in love with her, every part of her. Then, I approached the bed.All I saw was the apprentice sleeping next to Elka.The moonlight suddenly disappeared.The room was dark.I was shivering, and my teeth were chattering.The bread fell from my hand and my wife woke up and asked, "Who is it?"

I murmured, "It's me." "Gimpel?" she asked. "Why are you here? I suppose you're forbidden to come here." "The rabbi said it all," I replied, shaking like a fever. "Listen, Gimpel," she said, "go out into the shed and see if the sheep is all right, I'm afraid he's sick." I forgot to mention, we have a goat.When I hear the goat is sick, I go out into the yard and this female goat is a nice little creature.I have a human affection for it.I hesitated and walked to the sheep shed, opened the small door, and the goat stood upright with its four corners.I felt him all over, tugged at his horns, checked his udders, and couldn't find anything wrong with him, maybe he had eaten too much bark. "Good night, Kid," I said, "Take care." The little herd answered with a "baa," as if thanking me for my kindness.

When I returned to the room, the apprentice was gone. "Where is the boy?" I asked. "What boy?" my wife replied. "What do you mean?" I said. "Apprentice. You slept with him just now." "I dreamed of fairies to-night and last night," she said, "and they will appear and kill you, body and soul! A demon has possessed you and dazzled you." She cried: "You nasty brute! You idiot! You ghost! You savage! Get out of here, or I'll have the whole town of Frampole out of bed!" Before I could move a step, her brother jumped out from behind the stove and punched me in the back of the head.I thought he had broken my neck.I felt like something was broken in me, so I said, "Don't fight. People will blame me for attracting ghosts and ghosts." That's what she was trying to do. "No one wants to touch my baked bread anymore."

Anyway, I managed to calm her down. "Well," she said, "that's enough, lie down and let the wheels crush you." Next morning I called the apprentice aside. "Listen to me, little brother!" I said.I debunked him. "What did you say?" He kept his eyes on me like I'd fallen off a roof or something. "I swear," he said, "you'd better see an herbalist or a witch doctor. I'm afraid you're out of your head, but I'll keep it from you." And so it went. Long story short, my wife and I lived for 20 years.She raised six children for me, four girls and two boys.All sorts of things happened, but I neither heard nor saw them.I trust her and that's the end of it.A rabbi recently said to me, "Faith itself is good, and it is written that a good man lives by his faith."

My wife suddenly fell ill.It started as a little thing.There is a small tumor on the breast.But obviously she is not destined to live long, she has no life span.I spent a lot of money on her.I forgot to mention that at this time, I opened my own bakery.He was a rich man in Frampole, too.The witch doctor came every day, as did all the witch doctors in the neighborhood.They decided to use leeches to suck blood, and then tried cupping.They even brought in a doctor from Lublin, but it was too late.Before she died, she called me to her bedside and said, "Forgive me, Gimpel." I said, "What's there to forgive? You're a good, faithful wife."

"Oh, Gimpel!" she said, "how ugly I feel when I think how I have lied to you all these years. I want to go clean to my God, so I must tell you these children None of it is yours." Her words baffled me as much as slapped me in the face. "Which one are they from?" I asked. "I don't know," she said, "I've got a whole bunch of . . . but none of the kids are yours." When she finished, her head fell to the side, her eyes lost their luster, and El Card thus ended his life.A smile remained on her pale lips. I think she was dead, as if saying, "I lied to Gimpel, and that's the meaning of my short life."