Two Shepherds

Tamburas play so that love comes to young girls: if love is there and Dimitri comes, they’ll hand Milena to him…

"Tate…" little Viktor walked boldly into his father’s study, clambered up onto the great oaken desk and settled himself atop an enormous leather-bound tome like a little king on a throne. Father Anatoly Krum tried to scowl at his son, but found it was like scowling at his wife: utterly futile, so the young priest gave up the attempt.

"So, Little Khan. What counsel may I give you today?" Viktor’s solemn little face was scrunched up under the pressure of a very deep thought. "Tate, Auntie Rusha and Auntie Rada and Mama were singing a song…"

"Oh?"

"A man falled in love with a lady --"

"Fell, sino moj. A man fell in love…"

"And she falled -- fell, too, and then they had a war, which all the people are dead and then the song is finished." Poor little Viktor! He fought to name the demon with which he struggled. Finally he whispered, "Did you fell in love with Mama?"

Smiling, Father Anatoly gathered his small son into his arms. "Fall. No." he said. "So there will be no war, Little Khan, don’t worry." But Viktor was not comforted, and he bit his lip hard to stop the unmanly tears.

"I’ll tell you a song, shall I? Two shepherds stand on the top of the mountain, beautiful Janka stands in the valley. Whichever shall reach her first and kiss her cheek shall have her.

"One shepherd sets off down the path, walking as swiftly as he can, and as he walks, he thinks to himself what a fine thing it would be to have a beautiful wife if she is clever and hardworking as well.

"The second shepherd sees the beautiful Janka in a dream and so he couldn’t wait to reach her by the mountain path. An old woman sings a song, ‘Love gives you wings’. He hears it, and so he leaps from the mountain peak to fly to his beloved.

"Now, sino moj, which shepherd do you suppose won the beautiful Janka for his wife?" But Viktor could see that his father’s eyes were twinkling, so he said nothing as his father went on with the story.

"Not the first shepherd, for he thought ‘What fool of a woman would marry a shepherd who leaves his sheep?’ So he went back up the mountain and gathered the two flocks together.

"Not the second shepherd, though he reached beautiful Janka first, because of course the old woman was joking. Love is not a bird, to have wings to give young lovers! So you may say that he fell into love, and love was a long way down.

"But when the priest came to read the prayers over the dead body, beautiful Janka’s mother said to him, ‘Marry my daughter, take her to your big house in the city’"

Viktor clapped his hands, giggling happily. "Oh, Tate, you very silly! That’s not a real song!"

"Oh, but it is, Little Khan. I made it up just for you, and as I am a scholar, you may be sure that it is not only a real song, but a very fine song." He picked up a gadulka and drew the bow across it, teasing forth a trickle of notes. "Now, we must find some music…" The sound of the gadulka hung for a moment on the air, until it was found and swept away by a wave of Valja Sokolova’s hearty laughter.

So late in the night as little Viktor slept, maiko and tatko, Valja and Anatoly, sat in the moon-drenched orchard, in the perfume of the plum blossoms, singing their song. Her voice, which was high and cool as fresh water from a mountain stream, wove round his strong, low drone like a young girl wraps her arms around her first lover.