不会说话的歌手

Every year at this time, the peasants began their long religious pilgrimage to Geed-leh, to visit the church there, and to pray for God’s help. They walked or rode in wagons; they crowded the roads leading to the holy town, for Geed-leh was famous in Poland as a place where God did miracles. The cool autumn days also brought many beggars to Geed-leh. The peasants gave away more of their money on such a religious holiday as this. Some of the beggars were blind, some had no feet or arms. Some were very old and seemed like lost children looking for their mothers.

There was one among them who was called "the Mute Singer". He was given this name because he could not speak. There was a time when he was able to sing, while playing his guitar. But he lost his voice. Now he played the guitar and sang, but no sounds came from his throat. His lips just moved with the music.

The Mute Singer was a tall, strange-looking man. His face and hands were brown, like the color of copper. He had white hair and a white beard: he looked like one of the wise men you read about in the Bible.

Early one morning I saw the Mute Singer washing himself at the river. He smiled and touched the ground with his hand, meaning that I should sit down. Then, he pointed his finger straight up, to tell me that he had a surprise for me.

Suddenly, he put his hand into the water and rubbed two of his fingers together, making a strange sound, exactly like the sound of a croaking frog. He did it many times, then he lightly hit the top of the weater, sending little ripples of waves across the water to the other side.

Suddenly, everything around us seemed to be moving. I could not believe that it was real. Thousands of frogs came racing toward us, jumping, and swimming...under the water and on top of the water. I began to shake with excitement.

The frogs crowded around us, I could see their heads and eyes showing above the top of the water.