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PART ONE

The boy's na as the boy arrived with his herd at an abandoned church The roof had fallen in long ago, and an enorrown on the spot where the sacristy had once stood

He decided to spend the night there He saw to it that all the sheep entered through the ruined gate, and then laid so away during the night There were no wolves in the region, but once an aniht, and the boy had had to spend the entire next day searching for it

He swept the floor with his jacket and lay down, using the book he had just finished reading as a pillow He told hi thicker books: they lasted longer, and made more comfortable pillows

It was still dark when he awoke, and, looking up, he could see the stars through the half-destroyed roof

I wanted to sleep a little longer, he thought He had had the saain he had awakened before it ended

He arose and, taking up his crook, began to awaken the sheep that still slept He had noticed that, as soon as he awoke, an to stir It was as if soy bound his life to that of the sheep, hoh the countryside in search of food and water "They are so used toabout that for a moment, he realized that it could be the other way around: that it was he who had become accustomed to their schedule

But there were certain of theer to awaken The boy prodded the each by name He had always believed that the sheep were able to understand what he said So there were times when he read them parts of his books that had made an impression on him, or when he would tell them of the loneliness or the happiness of a shepherd in the fields Sos he had seen in the villages they passed

But for the past few days he had spoken to thehter of a e they would reach in about four days He had been to the village only once, the year before The oods shop, and he always demanded that the sheep be sheared in his presence, so that he would not be cheated A friend had told the boy about the shop, and he had taken his sheep there

"I need to sell some wool," the boy told the merchant

The shop was busy, and the man asked the shepherd to wait until the afternoon So the boy sat on the steps of the shop and took a book fro

"I didn't know shepherds kne to read," said a girl's voice behind him

The girl was typical of the region of Andalusia, with flowing black hair, and eyes that vaguely recalled the Moorish conquerors

"Well, usually I learnthe two hours that they talked, she told hihter, and spoke of life in the village, where each day was like all the others The shepherd told her of the Andalusian countryside, and related the news from the other tohere he had stopped It was a pleasant change fro to his sheep

"How did you learn to read?" the girl asked at one point

"Like everybody learns," he said "In school"

"Well, if you kno to read, why are you just a shepherd?"

The boyto her question He was sure the girl would never understand He went on telling stories about his travels, and her bright, Moorish eyes ith fear and surprise As the ti that the day would never end, that her father would stay busy and keep hi so he had never experienced before: the desire to live in one place forever With the girl with the raven hair, his days would never be the saain

But finally the merchant appeared, and asked the boy to shear four sheep He paid for the wool and asked the shepherd to co year

And noas only four days before he would be back in that sae He was excited, and at the saotten hi their wool

"It doesn't irls in other places"

But in his heart he knew that it did matter And he knew that shepherds, like sea salesmen, always found a tohere there was soet the joys of carefree wandering

The day was dawning, and the shepherd urged his sheep in the direction of the sun They never have to ht Maybe that's why they always stay close to me

The only things that concerned the sheep were food and water As long as the boy kne to find the best pastures in Andalusia, they would be his friends Yes, their days were all the saly endless hours between sunrise and dusk; and they had never read a book in their young lives, and didn't understand when the boy told thehts of the cities They were content with just food and water, and, in exchange, they generously gave of their wool, their company, and--once in a while--their meat

If I became a monster today, and decided to kill them, one by one, they would becohtered, thought the boy They trust otten how to rely on their own instincts, because I lead them to nourishment

The boy was surprised at his thoughts Maybe the church, with the syca from within, had been haunted It had caused hi hier toward his faithful companions He drank a bit froht before, and he gathered his jacket closer to his body He knew that a few hours froreat that he would not be able to lead his flock across the fields It was the ti the suhtfall, and all that tiht to coht, he remembered that, because he had the jacket, he had withstood the cold of the dawn

We have to be prepared for change, he thought, and he was grateful for the jacket's weight and warmth

The jacket had a purpose, and so did the boy His purpose in life was to travel, and, after two years of walking the Andalusian terrain, he knew all the cities of the region He was planning, on this visit, to explain to the girl hoas that a simple shepherd kne to read That he had attended a seminary until he was sixteen His parents had wanted him to become a priest, and thereby a source of pride for a simple farm family They worked hard just to have food and water, like the sheep He had studied Latin, Spanish, and theology But ever since he had been a child, he had wanted to know the world, and this wasabout man's sins One afternoon, on a visit to his fae to tell his father that he didn't want to become a priest That he wanted to travel

"People froe, son," said his father "They cos, but when they leave they are basically the same people they hen they arrived They cli that the past was better than e have now They have blond hair, or dark skin, but basically they're the same as t

he people who live right here"

"But I'd like to see the castles in the tohere they live," the boy explained

"Those people, when they see our land, say that they would like to live here forever," his father continued

"Well, I'd like to see their land, and see how they live," said his son

"The people who come here have a lot of money to spend, so they can afford to travel," his father said "Ast us, the only ones who travel are the shepherds"

"Well, then I'll be a shepherd!"

His father said no ave his son a pouch that held three ancient Spanish gold coins

"I found these one day in the fields I wanted them to be a part of your inheritance But use them to buy your flock Take to the fields, and someday you'll learn that our countryside is the best, and our women the most beautiful"

And he gave the boy his blessing The boy could see in his father's gaze a desire to be able, himself, to travel the world--a desire that was still alive, despite his father's having had to bury it, over dozens of years, under the burden of struggling for water to drink, food to eat, and the saht of his life

The horizon was tinged with red, and suddenly the sun appeared The boy thought back to that conversation with his father, and felt happy; he had already seen many castles and met many women (but none the equal of the one aited him several days hence) He owned a jacket, a book that he could trade for another, and a flock of sheep But, most important, he was able every day to live out his dream If he were to tire of the Andalusian fields, he could sell his sheep and go to sea By the tih of the sea, he would already have known other cities, other women, and other chances to be happy I couldn't have found God in the seht, as he looked at the sunrise

Whenever he could, he sought out a new road to travel He had never been to that ruined church before, in spite of having traveled through those parts e and inexhaustible; he had only to allow his sheep to set the route for a while, and he would discover other interesting things The proble a new road every day They don't see that the fields are new and the seasons change All they think about is food and water