Chapter 9 little boy on the other side of the barbed wire

The walk along the barbed wire fence took longer than Bruno expected; it continued for miles and miles.Bruno walked and walked, and he looked back at his house from time to time. The house became smaller and smaller, and finally disappeared completely from sight.All the time he had seen no one; nor had he found any place to enter, and he began to feel dismayed that the expedition seemed to be a complete failure.Although the barbed wire grew endlessly, and the huts and chimneys gradually disappeared behind him, in fact, the barbed wire was nothing more than blocking him from an open space. After Bruno walked happily for an hour, he felt a little hungry. He thought that today's expedition was almost over, and he should go back.However, at this moment, a small dot appeared in the distance.Bruno narrowed his eyes, trying to see what it was.He remembered a book he had read about a man who got lost in the desert and could not find food or water for several days, so he began to hallucinate. He thought he saw great restaurants and huge fountains, But when he tried to eat and drink, everything disappeared, and all that was left was the sand.Bruno now wonders if the same thing happened to him.

He thought about it, but his footsteps brought him closer to the small spot in the distance step by step, and this small spot gradually turned into a small spot, and then slowly turned into a small piece.Soon, the small block turned into a shadow.But in the end, as Bruno moved closer, he realized that it was not a dot, not a patch, not a shadow, but a person. Actually, a little boy. The books Bruno had read told him that an explorer never knew what he might find.In the vast majority of cases, they discover things that already existed but were not known (such as the American continent).Other times, they find something that is worse than not found (such as a dead mouse behind a cupboard).

This little boy belongs to the first category of things, existing but unknown, waiting to be discovered. Bruno slowed down as he watched the dot turn into a speck, into a lump, into a shadow, into a boy.Although they were separated by a barbed wire fence, Bruno also knew that strangers should be treated with caution and approached carefully.He walked on, and soon they were face to face. "Hello," Bruno said. "Hello." said the little boy. The little boy was shorter than Bruno, and sat on the ground with a sad expression.He was wearing the same striped suit and striped hat as the man on the other side of the wire fence.He had no shoes or socks on, so his feet were dirty.He wears a star badge on his arm.

The first time Bruno approached the little boy, he was sitting cross-legged on the ground, staring at the dirt beneath him.After a while, he looked up, and Bruno saw his face.This is a very strange face.His skin was almost gray, but not any shade of gray Bruno had ever seen.He had big eyes, the color of caramel, and the white part was very white.When the little boy looked at him, Bruno could only see endless sadness in those eyes. Bruno had never seen a sadder, bony little boy in his life, and he thought he should talk to him. "I'm on an expedition," he said. "Really?" said the little boy.

"Yes, almost two hours." Strictly speaking, this is not true.Bruno walked for over an hour, but a little exaggeration, he thought, wouldn't hurt.It's not even a lie, and it makes him seem more adventurous. "Did you find anything?" the boy asked. "rare." "Not at all?" "Well, I found you." Bruno said after a while. He stared at the boy and wanted to ask him why he was so sad, but he hesitated because he thought it might be rash.He knew that sad people sometimes don't want to be disturbed; sometimes they say it themselves, sometimes they go on and on for months, but for now Bruno thought it best to keep silent and wait.He had made a discovery on this expedition, and since he was talking to the man on the other side of the wire, he should take advantage of it.

Bruno sat down on this side of the barbed wire, crossed his legs like a little boy, and he wished he had brought a little chocolate or a small snack with him to share with the boy. "I live on this side of the wire," Bruno said. "Really? I've seen the house, from a distance, but not you." "My room is on the second floor," Bruno said. "I can see the other side of the barbed wire from the room. By the way, my name is Bruno." "My name is Shmuel," said the little boy. Bruno blinked, but didn't hear clearly. "What did you say your name was?" he asked.

"Shimmer," said the little boy as if it were the most common name in the world, "what's your name?" "Bruno." Bruno replied. "I've never heard such a name," Himmel said. "I've never heard a name like yours either," Bruno said, "Shmuel." He thought for a moment, "Shmuel." He repeated, "I like the sound of it. Shmuel. It's like a gust of wind blows." "Bruno," Shmuel nodded happily, "yes, I think I like your name too. It's like having someone hug yourself to keep warm."

"I've never met a man named Himmel," Bruno said. "There are a lot of people named Himmel on this side of the barbed wire," said the little boy, "probably a thousand. I want to have a name that is unique to me." "I've never met a person named Bruno," Bruno said. Say, "Except for myself, of course. I think maybe this is unique." "You're lucky," Shmuel said. "I think so. How old are you?" he asked. Simul thought for a while, lowered his head and fiddled with his fingers, as if counting. "Nine years old," he said. "My birthday is April 15, 1934."

Bruno stared at him in surprise. "What did you say?" he asked. "I said my birthday was April 15, 1934." Bruno's eyes widened and his mouth opened into an "O". "I can't believe it," he said. "Why don't you believe it?" Himmel asked. "No," Bruno said, shaking his head quickly, "I'm not saying I don't believe you. I'm surprised, that's all. Because my birthday is also April 15th, 1934. We were born on the same day and month." Himmel thought for a while. "Then you're nine too," he said.

"Yes. Weird?" "Strange," said Shmuel, "because there are many Shmuel here, but I've never met a Shmuel of my own nature." "We're twins," Bruno said. "Kind of like." Himmel agreed. Bruno was suddenly very happy.Carl, Daniel and Martin popped into his mind, the best friends of his life, and he remembered how many wonderful times they had spent together in Berlin.But in "Getting Out Together", how alone he is. "Do you have many friends?" Bruno asked, tilting his head for an answer. "Oh, yes," Shmuel said, "well, sort of."

Bruno frowned.He hoped Shmuel would say no, so they would have one more thing in common. "Where are close friends?" he asked. "Well, not too intimate," Himmel said, "but we have a lot of guys—boys my age, I mean—over here. But we fight a lot. That's why I've come here. Myself Stay awhile." "How unfair," Bruno said, "I'm locked up here with no one to talk to, no one to play with, and you have dozens of friends with whom you can play every day. I'm going to tell my father Say." "Where are you from?" Shmuel asked, squinting at Bruno curiously. "Berlin." "where is that?" Bruno opened his mouth to answer, but he didn't know. "In Germany, of course," he said, "are you not German?" "No, I'm Polish," Himmel said. Bruno frowned: "Then why do you speak German?" "Because you greeted me in German, so I answered in German. Do you speak Polish?" "No," Bruno smiled sheepishly, "I don't know anyone who can speak both languages. Especially with kids our age." "My mother is a teacher at our school, she teaches German," explains Himmel, "and she also speaks French, Italian, English. She is very smart. I don't speak French and Italian yet, but she has said Will teach me English in the future, because I may need it." "Poland," Bruno said carefully with the tip of his tongue. "It's not as good as Germany, is it?" Himmel frowned. "Why not as good as Germany?" he asked. "Well, because Germany is the most powerful country in the world," Bruno replied, remembering hearing his father and grandfather often say, "We are supreme." Himmel stared at him, but said nothing.Bruno desperately wanted to deflect the subject, because even if the words came from his own mouth, he didn't think they were entirely true.What's more, the last thing he wants to see now is that Simul feels unfriendly. "So, where is Poland?" Bruno asked after a moment of silence between the two. "Well, in Europe," Himmel said. Bruno tried to remember the countries he had recently learned about in Mr. Leeds' geography class. "Have you ever heard of Denmark?" he asked. "No." Himmel said. "I think Poland should be in Denmark," Bruno said, trying to look smart but getting more confused, "because that's miles away," he confirmed. Simul stared at him for a while, opened his mouth twice but closed it again, as if looking for the right words to express. "But this is Poland," he said finally. "Really?" Bruno asked. "Yes. Denmark is far from Poland and Germany." Bruno frowned.He has heard of these countries, but his mind is confused. "Well, yes," he said, "but it's all connected, isn't it? Distance, I mean." He hoped to change the subject, he already knew that he was completely wrong, and he must take a good geography class in the future. "I've never been to Berlin," Himmel said. "I don't think I've been to Poland before I came here," Bruno said, which is true. "If, well, this is Poland." "I can assure you," Shmuel said quietly. "Although, it's not pretty here." "It's not pretty." "Where I used to live was much prettier than here." "It won't be as pretty as Berlin either," Bruno said. "In Berlin we have a big house, five floors if you count the basement and the attic with windows. There are nice streets, shops, greengrocers, and a lot of cafés. But if you really go, I wouldn't recommend walking around town on a Saturday afternoon because it's so crowded. But it used to be much better than this." "What do you mean?" Himmel asked. "Well, it used to be peaceful," Bruno explained, not wanting to talk about the change, "and I could lie in bed and read. But then it was noisy, and there was a bit of panic, and at night we had to turn all the lights off. " "I live in a better place than Berlin," said Himmel, who has never been to Berlin. "Everyone is friendly there, we have a lot of people in our family, and the food is much better." "Well, it looks like we can't get together," Bruno said, not wanting to have an argument with his new friend. "Okay," Himmel said. "Do you like adventure?" Bruno asked after a while. "I've never really explored," Himmel admits. "When I grow up, I'm going to be an explorer," Bruno said, nodding his head rapidly. "Right now, all I can do is read more books about explorers, so that when I become an explorer, Explorers will not make the mistakes they made." Himmel frowned. "What kind of mistake?" he asked. "Oh, countless mistakes," Bruno explained. "One of the important things about exploration is that you know if what you find is worthwhile. There are things that exist, but are not known. Waiting to be discovered. Like the American continent. There are things that are better left undiscovered. Like a dead mouse behind a cupboard." "I guess I'm in the first category," Himmel said. "Yes." Bruno replied, "I think you are. Can I ask you something?" After a while, Bruno asked. "Okay," Himmel said. Bruno thought for a moment.He wants to phrase his question appropriately. "Why are there so many people on the other side of the barbed wire?" he asked. "What are you doing there?"