Chapter 41

    With that, she gathered her blanket around her elbows and asc.ended the lily-white stairs like abride. Outside, snow solidified¹ itself into graceful² forms. The peace of winter stars seemedpermanent. Fingering a ribbon and smelling skin, Stamp Paid approached 124 again. "My marrowis tired," he thought. "I been tired all my days, bone-tired, but now it's in the marrow³. Must bewhat Baby Suggs felt when she lay down and thought about color for the rest of her life." Whenshe told him what her aim was, he thought she was ashamed and too shamed to say so. Herauthority in the pulpit, her dance in the Clearing, her powerful Call (she didn't deliver sermons orpreach — insisting she was too ignorant for that — she called and the hearing heard) — all thathad been mocked and rebuked⁴ by the bloodspill in her backyard. God puzzled her and she was tooashamed of Him to say so. Instead she told Stamp she was going to bed to think about the colors ofthings. He tried to dissuade⁵ her. Sethe was in jail with her nursing baby, the one he had saved. Hersons were holding hands in the yard, terrified of letting go. Strangers and familiars were stoppingby to hear how it went one more time, and suddenly Baby declared peace. She just up and quit. Bythe time Sethe was released she had exhausted⁶ blue and was well on her way to yellow.

　　At first he would see her in the yard occasionally, or delivering food to the jail, or shoes in town.

　　Then less and less. He believed then that shame put her in the bed. Now, eight years after hercontentious funeral and eighteen years after the Misery⁷, he changed his mind. Her marrow wastired and it was a testimony⁸ to the heart that fed it that it took eight years to meet finally the colorshe was hankering after. The onslaught of her fatigue⁹, like his, was sudden, but lasted for years.

　　After sixty years of losing children to the people who chewed up her life and spit it out like a fishbone; after five years of freedom given to her by her last child, who bought her future with his, exchanged it, so to speak, so she could have one whether he did or not — to lose him too; toacquire a daughter and grandchildren and see that daughter slay¹⁰ the children (or try to); to belongto a community of other free Negroes — to love and be loved by them, to counsel and becounseled, protect and be protected, feed and be fed — and then to have that community step backand hold itself at a distance — -well, it could wear out even a Baby Suggs, holy. "Listen here,girl," he told her, "you can't quit the Word. It's given to you to speak. You can't quit the Word, Idon't care what all happen to you."They were standing¹¹ in Richmond Street, ankle deep in leaves. Lamps lit the downstairs windowsof spacious¹² houses and made the early evening look darker than it was. The odor of burning leaveswas brilliant. Quite by chance, as he pocketed a penny tip for a delivery, he had glanced across thestreet and recognized the skipping woman as his old friend. He had not seen her in weeks. Quicklyhe crossed the street, scuffing¹³ red leaves as he went. When he stopped her with a greeting, shereturned it with a face knocked clean of interest. She could have been a plate. A carpetbag full ofshoes in her hand, she waited for him to begin, lead or share a conversation. If there had beensadness in her eyes he would have understood it; but indifference¹⁴ lodged¹⁵ where sadness shouldhave been.

　　"You missed the Clearing three Saturdays running," he told her. She turned her head away andscanned the houses along the street. "Folks came," he said.

　　"Folks come; folks go," she answered.

　　"Here, let me carry that." He tried to take her bag from her but she wouldn't let him.

　　"I got a delivery someplace long in here," she said. "Name of Tucker.""Yonder," he said. "Twin chestnuts¹⁶ in the yard. Sick, too."They walked a bit, his pace slowed to accommodate her skip.

　　"Well?""Well, what?""Saturday coming. You going to Call or what?""If I call them and they come, what on earth I'm going to say?""Say the Word!" He checked his shout too late. Two whitemen burning leaves turned their heads inhis direction. Bending low he whispered into her ear, "The Word. The Word.""That's one other thing took away from me," she said, and that was when he exhorted¹⁷ her, pleadedwith her not to quit, no matter what. The Word had been given to her and she had to speak it. Had to.

　　They had reached the twin chestnuts and the white house that stood behind them.

　　"See what I mean?" he said. "Big trees like that, both of em together ain't got the leaves of a youngbirch." "I see what you mean," she said, but she peered instead at the white house.

　　"You got to do it," he said. "You got to. Can't nobody Call like you. You have to be there.""What I have to do is get in my bed and lay down. I want to fix on something harmless in thisworld.""What world you talking about? Ain't nothing harmless down here.""Yes it is. Blue. That don't hurt nobody. Yellow neither.""You getting in the bed to think about yellow?""I likes yellow.""Then what? When you get through with blue and yellow, then what?""Can't say. It's something can't be planned.""You blaming God," he said. "That's what you doing.""No, Stamp. I ain't.""You saying the whitefolks won? That what you saying?""I'm saying they came in my yard.""You saying nothing counts.""I'm saying they came in my yard.""Sethe's the one did it.""And if she hadn't?""You saying God give up? Nothing left for us but pour out our own blood?""I'm saying they came in my yard.""You punishing Him, ain't you.""Not like He punish me.""You can't do that, Baby. It ain't right.""Was a time I knew what that was.""You still know.""What I know is what I see: a nigger woman hauling shoes." "Aw, Baby." He licked his lipssearching with his tongue for the words that would turn her around, lighten her load. "We have tobe steady. 'These things too will pass.' What you looking for? A miracle?""No," she said. "I'm looking for what I was put here to look for: the back door," and skipped rightto it. They didn't let her in. They took the shoes from her as she stood on the steps and she restedher hip¹⁸ on the railing while the whitewoman went looking for the dime¹⁹.

1 solidified   

（使）成为固体，（使）变硬，（使）变得坚固( solidify的过去式和过去分词 )； 使团结一致； 充实，巩固； 具体化

参考例句：

• Her attitudes solidified through privilege and habit. 由于特权和习惯使然，她的看法变得越来越难以改变。
• When threatened, he fires spheres of solidified air from his launcher! 当危险来临，他就会发射它的弹药！

2 graceful   

adj.优美的，优雅的；得体的

参考例句：

• His movements on the parallel bars were very graceful.他的双杠动作可帅了!
• The ballet dancer is so graceful.芭蕾舞演员的姿态是如此的优美。

3 marrow   

n.骨髓；精华；活力

参考例句：

• It was so cold that he felt frozen to the marrow. 天气太冷了，他感到寒冷刺骨。
• He was tired to the marrow of his bones.他真是累得筋疲力尽了。

4 rebuked   

责难或指责( rebuke的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The company was publicly rebuked for having neglected safety procedures. 公司因忽略了安全规程而受到公开批评。
• The teacher rebuked the boy for throwing paper on the floor. 老师指责这个男孩将纸丢在地板上。

5 dissuade   

v.劝阻，阻止

参考例句：

• You'd better dissuade him from doing that.你最好劝阻他别那样干。
• I tried to dissuade her from investing her money in stocks and shares.我曾设法劝她不要投资于股票交易。

6 exhausted   

adj.极其疲惫的，精疲力尽的

参考例句：

• It was a long haul home and we arrived exhausted.搬运回家的这段路程特别长，到家时我们已筋疲力尽。
• Jenny was exhausted by the hustle of city life.珍妮被城市生活的忙乱弄得筋疲力尽。

7 misery   

n.痛苦，苦恼，苦难；悲惨的境遇，贫苦

参考例句：

• Business depression usually causes misery among the working class.商业不景气常使工薪阶层受苦。
• He has rescued me from the mire of misery.他把我从苦海里救了出来。

8 testimony   

n.证词；见证，证明

参考例句：

• The testimony given by him is dubious.他所作的证据是可疑的。
• He was called in to bear testimony to what the police officer said.他被传入为警官所说的话作证。

9 fatigue   

n.疲劳，劳累

参考例句：

• The old lady can't bear the fatigue of a long journey.这位老妇人不能忍受长途旅行的疲劳。
• I have got over my weakness and fatigue.我已从虚弱和疲劳中恢复过来了。

10 slay   

v.杀死，宰杀，杀戮

参考例句：

• He intended to slay his father's murderer.他意图杀死杀父仇人。
• She has ordered me to slay you.她命令我把你杀了。

11 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

12 spacious   

adj.广阔的，宽敞的

参考例句：

• Our yard is spacious enough for a swimming pool.我们的院子很宽敞，足够建一座游泳池。
• The room is bright and spacious.这房间很豁亮。

13 scuffing   

n.刮[磨，擦，划]伤v.使磨损( scuff的现在分词 )；拖着脚走

参考例句：

• The rest of us started giggling, scuffing our feet on the floor. 全班的同学都在笑，把地板擦得很响。 来自汉英文学 - 中国现代小说
• Wade edged closer to him, scuffing one foot and looking unhappy. 韦德向他靠近些，一只脚在地板上擦来擦去，显得很不高兴。 来自飘（部分）

14 indifference   

n.不感兴趣，不关心，冷淡，不在乎

参考例句：

• I was disappointed by his indifference more than somewhat.他的漠不关心使我很失望。
• He feigned indifference to criticism of his work.他假装毫不在意别人批评他的作品。

15 lodged   

v.存放( lodge的过去式和过去分词 )；暂住；埋入；（权利、权威等）归属

参考例句：

• The certificate will have to be lodged at the registry. 证书必须存放在登记处。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Our neighbours lodged a complaint against us with the police. 我们的邻居向警方控告我们。 来自《简明英汉词典》

16 chestnuts   

n.栗子( chestnut的名词复数 )；栗色；栗树；栗色马

参考例句：

• A man in the street was selling bags of hot chestnuts. 街上有个男人在卖一包包热栗子。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Talk of chestnuts loosened the tongue of this inarticulate young man. 因为栗子，正苦无话可说的年青人，得到同情他的人了。 来自汉英文学 - 中国现代小说

17 exhorted   

v.劝告，劝说( exhort的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The party leader exhorted his members to start preparing for government. 该党领袖敦促党员着手准备筹建政府。
• He exhorted his elder. 他规劝长辈。 来自《简明英汉词典》

18 hip   

n.臀部，髋；屋脊

参考例句：

• The thigh bone is connected to the hip bone.股骨连着髋骨。
• The new coats blouse gracefully above the hip line.新外套在臀围线上优美地打着褶皱。

19 dime   

n.（指美国、加拿大的钱币）一角

参考例句：

• A dime is a tenth of a dollar.一角银币是十分之一美元。
• The liberty torch is on the back of the dime.自由火炬在一角硬币的反面。