寻找星星

阳城

Charlie could not remember how many times he had heard his grandpa tellthis story：

“Everyones soul，”said Grandpa，“is like a fidgety1 bug. It is always lookingabout， trying to be happier and more content. Have you noticed that？ All thiswanting to laugh， to have a good time， to be happy... These things are a sure signthat the soul is forever searching. Souls dont have legs， but they need a way toget from one place to another so that they can keep looking. Thats why they livein a body， like yours or mine.”

“Do they ever run away？”Charlie would always ask.

“Yes， of course！ ”said Grandpa.“Souls spend very little time inthe body after they realize that the best place to be is heaven2. So，right from the time when were very small， our souls only think ofgoing to heaven， of how to get there.”

“And how do they get to heaven？”Charlie would ask“. Do theyfly there？”

“Well， of course！ ”Grandpa would say， smiling. “Thats whythey have to change vehicles3. When a star comes by on its way toheaven， the soul makes a great leap4 right onto it， leaving the bodyhere on Earth， discarded5.”

“Discarded？ So it doesnt move any more？”asked Charlie.

查理已经记不清听爷爷讲过多少次这个故事了：

“每个人的灵魂，”爷爷说，“就像一只焦噪不安的虫子。它总是四处张望，试图变得更快乐、更满足。你注意到了嗎？所有这一切想笑，想玩得开心，想快乐……这些都是灵魂永远在寻找的明确信号。灵魂没有腿，但它们需要一种方式从一个地方到另一个地方，以便于它们可以继续寻找。这就是为什么它们生活在一个躯体里，就像你的或我的一样。”

“它们会逃跑吗？”查理总是会问。

“是的，当然！”爷爷说，“当灵魂意识到最好的地方就是天堂之后，它们在身体里停留的时间就极少了。所以，从我们很小的时候开始，我们的灵魂就只想着上天堂，想着如何去天堂。”

“它们怎么上天堂？”查理会问，“它们是飞到那里吗？”

“嗯，当然！”爷爷会笑着说，“这就是为什么它们必须更换交通工具。当一颗星星在前往天堂的路上经过时，灵魂会纵身一跃，直接跳上那颗星星，把肉体丢弃在地球上。”

“丢弃？所以它不再动了？”查理问。

“Exactly， not even a wiggle6，”said Grandpa. “Here we say someone has died，and it makes us sad， because our souls are what give life to our bodies， and they arewhat make us love other people. But remember I said they are like fidgety bugs， andthats why， when they see their star shooting off to heaven， they leave without theslightest worry or hesitation7. Now， many souls take a long time to find their star. Imean， look at me， and how old I am！ My soul has been searching for its star for somany years， and still hasnt had any luck. But some souls， like those of the bestchildren or the best parents， know better how to findtheir star. And thats why they find it， leap onto it，and leave us so soon.”

“And do I have a soul too？”asked Charlie.“Isit searching for its star？”

“Sure， Charlie，”said Grandpa. “You are yoursoul. And the day you find your star youll forget allabout us here. Youll be on your way to heaven tohave a great time with all the souls who are already there.”

Satisfied with these words， Charlie always left his grandpa alone and wenthappily down to the river. There he used to sit looking up at the sky， searching forsome little star.

And on the day his grandpa died， thanks to this explanation8， Charlie criedonly a little bit. He was sad that he wouldnt see his grandpa again， nor hear hisstories， but he was happy that finally Grandpas soul had been lucky enough to findits star after such a long time.

“确切地说，一动也不动。”爷爷说，“这里我们说有人死了，这让我们感到悲伤，因为我们的灵魂赋予了我们的身体以生命，是它们让我们爱其他人。但请记住，我说过它们就像焦躁不安的虫子，这就是为什么当它们看到它们的星星冲向天堂时，它们会毫无担心或犹豫地离开。现在，许多灵魂需要很长时间才能找到它们的星星。我是说，看看我，我有多大了！我的灵魂这么多年一直在寻找它的星星，但是运气不好。但有些灵魂，比如最好的孩子的灵魂或最好的父母的灵魂，更了解如何找到他们的星星。这就是为什么他们找到它，跳上它，这么快就离开我们的原因。”

“我也有灵魂吗？”查理问，“它在寻找它的星星吗？”

“当然，查理。”爷爷说，“你是你的灵魂。当你找到你的星星的那一天，你会忘记我们这里的一切。你将踏上去天堂的路，与所有已经在那里的灵魂共度美好时光。”

听完这些让人很满意的话后，查理便不再理会爷爷，然后兴高采烈地下河去了。他常常坐在那里仰望天空，寻找某个小星星。

在爷爷去世的那天，由于这个解释，查理只哭了一小会儿。他为再也见不到爷爷，听不到他的故事而伤心，但他很高兴，因为爷爷的灵魂在这么久之后终于有幸找到了它的星星。