第10章 The Old Mans Return[第1頁/共8頁]

“Thanks,”the boy said.

“How is he?”one of the fishermen shouted.

“I'll get another knife and have the spring ground.How many days of heavy brisa have we?”

“What's that?”she asked a waiter and pointed to the long backbone of the great fish that was now just garbage waiting to go out with the tide.

“I will have everything in order,”the boy said.“ You get your hands well old man.”

Finally the old man woke.

“I didn't either,”her male companion said.

“You must get well fast for there is much that I can learn and you can teach me everything.How much did you suffer?”

“The ocean is very big and a skiff is small and hard to see,”the old man said.He noticed how pleasant it was to have someone to talk to instead of speaking only to himself and to the sea.“I missed you,”he said.“What did you catch?”

“What will your family say?”

“Pedrico is looking after the skiff and the gear.What do you want done with the head?”

“Of course.With coast guard and with planes.”

He unstepped the mast and furled the sail and tied it. Then he shouldered the mast and started to climb.It was then he knew the depth of his tiredness.He stopped for a moment and looked back and saw in the reflection from the street light the great tail of the fish standing up well behind the skiff's stern.He saw the white naked line of his backbone and the dark mass of the head with the projecting bill and all the nakedness between.