The Blue Bird for Children: The Wonderful Adventures of Tyltyl and Mytyl in Search of HappinessMaeterlinck, Maurice
General
The Blue Bird for Children: The Wonderful Adventures of Tyltyl and Mytyl in Search of Happiness
Maeterlinck, Maurice
Children -- Juvenile fiction; Children's stories
Tyltyl left him to his meditations; he was eager to know as many more
of the Children as he could. He was introduced to the discoverer of a
new sun, to the inventor of a new joy, to the hero who was to wipe out
injustice from the earth and to the wiseacre who was to conquer
Death.... There were such lots and lots of them that it would take
days and days to name them all. Our friend was rather tired and was
beginning to feel bored, when his attention was suddenly aroused by
hearing a Child's voice calling him:
"Tyltyl!... Tyltyl!... How are you, Tyltyl, how are you?..."
A little Blue Child came running up from the back of the hall, pushing
his way through the crowd. He was fair and slim and bright-eyed and
had a great look of Mytyl.
"How do you know my name?" asked Tyltyl.
"It's not surprising," said the Blue Child, "considering that I shall
be your brother!"
This time, the Live Children were absolutely amazed. What an
extraordinary meeting! They must certainly tell Mummy as soon as they
got back! How astonished they would be at home!
While they were making these reflections, the Child went on to
explain:
"I am coming to you next year, on Palm Sunday," he said.
And he put a thousand questions to his big brother: was it comfortable
at home? Was the food good? Was Daddy very severe? And Mummy?
"Oh, Mummy is so kind!" said the little ones.
And they asked him questions in their turn: what was he going to do on
earth? What was he bringing?
"I am bringing three illnesses," said the little brother. "Scarlatina,
whooping-cough and measles...."
"Oh, that's all, is it?" cried Tyltyl.
He shook his head, with evident disappointment, while the other
continued:
"After that, I shall leave you!"
"It will hardly be worth while coming!" said Tyltyl, feeling rather
vexed.
"We can't pick and choose!" said the little brother, pettishly.
They would perhaps have quarrelled, without waiting till they were on
earth, if they had not suddenly been parted by a swarm of Blue
Children who were hurrying to meet somebody. At the same time, there
was a great noise, as if thousands of invisible doors were being
opened at the end of the galleries.
"What's the matter?" asked Tyltyl.
"It's Time," said one of the Blue Children. "He's going to open the
doors."
And the excitement increased on every side. The Children left their
machines and their labours; those who were asleep woke up; and every
eye was eagerly and anxiously turned to the great opal doors at the
back, while every mouth repeated the same name. The word, "Time!
Time!" was heard all around; and the great mysterious noise kept on.
Tyltyl was dying to know what it meant. At last, he caught a little
Child by the skirt of his dress and asked him.
"Let me be," said the Child, very uneasily. "I'm in a hurry: it may be
my turn to-day.... It is the Dawn rising. This is the hour when the
Children who are to be born to-day go down to earth.... You shall
see.... Time is drawing the bolts...."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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