Min tibetanska barndom i Zorgay - Life and Culture on the Tibetan ...

tomorrow."
He instantly fell asleep. I was so disturbed by his
snoring that I could not sleep. I wanted to pat him to stop his
snoring, but I knew that at our age, it was really disturbing to be
awakened from a deep sleep, so I endured. My village, family,
<strong>and</strong> house were all wrapped in silence. I would have heard my
heart beating if Brother had not been snoring. I looked through
the window at the stars, shining as brightly as diamonds. I
wanted to bring them all into my bedroom <strong>and</strong> play with them
like toys. Suddenly my stomach rumbled a little <strong>and</strong> I farted so
loudly that it awakened <strong>and</strong> frightened Brother.
"Oh, thank the Three Jewels! It's only you farting," he
said, wiping sweat from his forehead.
I did not quite underst<strong>and</strong>. I was both scared <strong>and</strong>
embarrassed.
"What's the matter, Brother?" I asked innocently.
"Such a timely fart! I just now had a d...d...," <strong>and</strong>, unable
to finish, he broke into a fit of laughter.
Though I did not know what was going on, I laughed
with him stupidly. It was so strange: first he was frightened, but
now he was laughing. It was wonderful too, to laugh with
someone without knowing why. I asked, "What's wrong with
you, Brother?"
"Nothing! It's just that I was dreaming as you farted. I
dreamed I stole a necklace from a jewelry store to give to the
girl I played with today. Unfortunately, the storekeeper noticed,
<strong>and</strong> I ran as quickly as my short legs allowed. He chased me
<strong>and</strong> shouted, 'Stop where you are, or I'll shoot you! Then I heard
a bang, so I thought I had been shot to death. When I awoke, I
realized it was only my dream, <strong>and</strong> the bang was your fart." He
burst into laughter again, <strong>and</strong> I joined in.
The stars were shining brighter, as if they were also
laughing with us. Then we shrank back into our sheepskin quilt
<strong>and</strong> went to sleep, buried in joy.
▪26▪