Chapter two: Jewels in the sky.
After she left, I went about my work. Night time came very quickly, and I prepared for the evening.
I brought the flocks of sheep to the fields that were close to where I slept.
As I was finishing my chores, I heard a voice come from below near my dwelling. My master's daughter had returned and she was shaking, cold, and wet.
In a trembling voice, she said, “On the way to the lowlands, there is the river as you know. Well, the water from the storm has flooded the river. I tried to get across, but I feared I would drown. I didn't know what to do. I knew I could not get across the river. So I just returned here. ”
She was in a terrible situation.
I thought, “No one will come here searching for her. And I cannot leave the flocks to take her home. ”
I was very worried. I didn't know what to do. It wasn't right for her to spend the night on the mountain.
But then I thought, “The nights in july are short. It is only one night. ”
I very quickly lit a fire so that she could dry her feet and dress.
I also prepared some food and milk.
But she was not interested in eating or getting dry.
She burst into tears and I almost felt like crying, too.
It was completely dark outside now. There was not even a hint of sunset left in the sky.
I urged my master's daughter to go into the dwelling and rest.
I put down a new sheepskin for her to rest on.
We said goodnight, and I went outside. I sat down in the front door entrance.
I tried to think of things other than the young lady who was resting in my house. I felt proud that I had been given the great responsibility of watching over such a precious person.
She was more valuable than any of the creatures that I was entrusted to watch over.
I was happy, and I thought, “The stars look more beautiful than ever tonight. ”
Just as I finished my thought, the young lady appeared behind me.
“I cannot sleep,” she told me.
“The animals are quite noisy outside. I think that I would like to sit by the fire. ” she sat down by the fire, and I gave her the goatskin which I had wrapped around me.
I stirred the embers of the fire, and it quickly became very warm.
We sat by the fire in silence.
It was a much more beautiful night because a beautiful star sat beside me.
That night, every creature seemed to come alive.
Perhaps they wanted to witness the beautiful star, too.
The frogs and the insects sang so much louder.
The light of the fire shone even more brilliantly in the pond.
There was an unmistakable freshness to the night.
Perhaps it was because of the storm. But I wanted to believe it was because the master's daughter was there with me that night.
I looked at her, and I noticed that she was shivering.
Some noises in the night frightened her, and she moved closer to me.
In the distant sky, we saw the most beautiful shooting star.
It darted through the sky and quickly vanished.
“What was that? ” The young lady asked me.
“It is a soul which has just been taken to heaven,” I told her.
“You are very different from other young men,” she said.
“I am sure I am just like other ordinary men. But my life is very different here. I live very closely to the stars. I know more about what happens up there than I do about what happens on the plains. ”
The young lady looked at me with her head in her hand.
The goatskin was wrapped around her. She looked like a divine shepherd! “There is another one,” she exclaimed, pointing to another shooting star. “I have never seen so many beautiful stars in my life. Do you know the names of the stars? ”
“Indeed I do, mistress! ” I replied.
“Look up there! Can you see that? That is the milky way. And look at that. Let's imagine that is France!
You can see that it goes all the way to Spain. Many military men have used the stars to help them find their way to battle.
Jacques de Galice is one such man. The milky way helped him find his way during the war with the Buckwheats! ” I continued to tell her about the stars.
“Look over there! Can you see that group of stars?
That is the Tank of Hearts. If you look closely, you can see that it looks like it has four axles.
Then, just in front of it, there are three stars. Can you see them? They are The Three Animals.
And over there is the rake. Many people also know it as Orion or The Three Kings.
For people who live alone in the mountains like me, we use it as a clock. Right now, I can tell that it is already midnight. ”
“Look over there. That is the south. You can see a group of stars. Some people call it Jean de Milan. Others know it as the torch of the stars. Many shepherds tell a story about those stars.
In the story, Jean de Milan, together with The Three Kings and the star known as the Pleiades are invited to the wedding of a friend, who is also a star. However, the Pleiades leaves the wedding very quickly.
You can see that path there in the sky. That is the high way and the Pleiades followed that path.
The Three Kings caught up to the Pleiades by going along the low way.
Jean de Milan was very lazy.
It had fallen asleep and was left at the wedding. When it woke up, it was extremely angry and threw a stick at The Three Kings. Because of that, The Three Kings are also known as the Stick of Jean de Milan.
They are all beautiful stars. However, the Evening Star is the most beautiful.
It is the first star to come out at night. It is a shepherd's friend in the sky,” I said.
“Shepherds also have another name for that glorious star. The name is Maguelonne. It means the one who pursues Saturn and weds him every seven years. ”
“The stars can marry! ” She exclaimed.
“Yes, they certainly can,” I replied.
Just as I was about to explain this to her, I felt something on my shoulder. I turned and saw her.
She had laid her head upon my shoulder. In the cool breeze, the ribbons and the lace in her hair danced and it was the most enchanting sight.
She fell asleep on my shoulder, and we stayed like that until the first rays of dawn appeared.
I wanted that night to last forever.
The memory of it is one of my greatest treasures.
She slept, and the night was still except for a faint breeze.
The stars sparkled in the sky, and I imagined that the most magnificent one had lost her way in the sky and was now resting on my shoulder