Cain by Jose Saramago

Author:Jose Saramago [Saramago, José]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

10

CAIN HAS NO idea where he is, he can't tell if the donkey is taking him along one of the many roads of the past or along some narrow track in the future, or if, quite simply, he is trotting through some new present that has not, as yet, revealed itself. He looks at the parched earth, the thistles, the sparse scrub scorched by the sun, but parched earth, thistles and scrub are what one mainly sees in such barren places. There's not a road in sight, from here you could go anywhere or nowhere, as if the destinations were constantly shifting or had decided to wait for a better occasion to show themselves. The donkey is jogging steadily along, he seems to know where he's going, as if he were following a trail, or, rather, a confusing coming and going of tracks left by sandals, hooves or bare feet, that you have to study attentively if you want to avoid finding yourself going backward when you thought you were heading straight for the north star. In the past, cain has been a would-be farmer, as well as a treader of clay, but he is now a diligent tracker, who, even at moments of uncertainty, tries not to lose the thread of those who have preceded him, regardless of whether or not they ever found a place where they could stop and say to themselves, I've arrived. Cain doubtless has very sharp eyes, but not so sharp that he can recognize his own marks among the many other tracks, the hollow left by his heel or the slightly scuffed print of his weary feet. Cain has passed this way before. He will realize it when he suddenly spots the remains of the ruined house where he once sheltered from the rain and where he will not be able to shelter today because what was left of the roof has fallen in, all one can see now are fragments of crumbling walls, which, after another two or three winters, will merge forever with the earth from which they rose, earth to earth, dust to dust. From now on, the donkey will only go where he is told to, the days when he was the sole guide on this journey are over, or perhaps not, for left to his own devices, the memory of his former stable might be strong enough to lead him to the city that he left, who knows how many years before, carrying this man on his back. As for cain, he, naturally, has not forgotten the road to the palace. When he enters the palace, it will be in his power to change direction, to abandon the other presents awaiting him, both previous and future, and return to that familiar past for a day or two, possibly more, but not for all the remaining days of his life, for he has not yet met his fate, as we will see. Cain lightly touches the donkey's flanks with

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