The Fox and the Child (Le renard et l'enfant)

nEraNga

'My story started one day, by chance, on the way to school.

'I remember it only too well. I was just 10 years old.

'Lt was the first time I had seen a fox so close.

'And he hadn't heard me.

'He stayed there and I watched him.'

Don't be afraid, Fox. Don't be afraid.

Fox?

'My heart was beating flat out.

'He was so cute.

'For a moment, I thought I might be able to touch him.

'Throughout the day at school,

'I could only think of the fox at the big beech tree.

'On my return to the place where we met,

'I was sure I'd find him again.

'I'd decided that I would try and tame this fox.

'At that point, I had no idea that it was the beginning of a great adventure.'

'As autumn advanced, my fox was not to be found.

'My walks had become an obsession.

'I found the forest more and more mysterious

'now I knew that my fox lived there.'

'Then one evening, I was struck by how small I was in the midst of all that nature.

'I spent my days learning to read, write and add up,

'and yet I was still unable to find the slightest trace of my fox.

'However, he had to be there, somewhere right under my nose.'

'The snow that night had acted like a magic powder.

'All was there to be seen,

'the paw prints of rabbits, deer and badgers.

'And then, there in front of me,

'my fox's tracks.'

Paw by paw and step by step, who is it that went this way?

Paw by paw and step by step, will my little finger say?

On his way, the rabbit leaps, with his feet together

Spiky hedgehog crosses hands in any weather

A mark of three twigs in the snow, it's a bird, no, it's a crow

A wild pig with no shoes on makes a cut of four deep holes

Paw by paw and step by step, who is it who went this way?

Paw by paw and step by step, will my little finger say?

So finely curved is your track, the waltz of a stoat

Two small soles, two small heels, what a fine turn you promote

'lt was amazing to walk in his steps, he showed another way of getting around.

'He made me cross the same path again and again,

'changing his mind all the time.'

Paw by paw and step by step, who is it that went this way?

Paw by paw and step by step, will my little finger say?

In the snow and in the cold, the fox goes on so bold

Big bad paws and claws displayed, let's hide as the wolf parades

Ah!

'I was stuck home for the rest of winter.

'I was afraid I would lose track of him forever.

'My parents had found me a book on the life of foxes.

'Already, I knew it almost by heart.

'I tried to imagine him.

'I was becoming, little by little, like a fox in the middle of winter.

'I had always seen winter as a beautiful season.

'But, for my fox, every day was full of danger.

'The book kept repeating, "Eat and not be eaten."

'And I repeated to myself, "Be strong, my fox. Hold on.

"'Our paths will cross again."'

'I remember the evening I heard them calling to themselves on the mountain.

'Lt was terribly cold.'

'Lt was the end of winter, the time of year when they pair off.'

Ooh, ooh, ooh!

Ooh, ooh, ooh!

'Somebody had told me their courtship was a strange mix of love and war.'

Ooh, ooh, ooh!

'Their cries sounded like the shriek of witches.'

'My thoughts lingered on my fox.

'Out there, amidst the shadows and stars,

'he lived in his kingdom.'

'Spring was not far off, but I was worried about my fox.

'There was a big campaign in the area to get rid of them.

'Anything and everything would be used.

'Poison, traps, guns.

'Some people thought them pests.

'But I found them beautiful and fascinating.

'But my opinion didn't count.'

'I was free again, after two months indoors.

'I was mad with joy.

'I took up the tracks of my fox.

'My father had told me how to find their dens.

'I just had to be careful to not get too near to them.

'Foxes don't like it when you get too close to their homes.'

Oh, no!

'But I only found empty dens, or even worse, blocked ones.

'Lt would seem that the war between man and the fox will never end.'

Anyone there?

Oh, Fox?

Oh, Fox?

'So this was where my fox lived.

'I was so happy again.

'Now I'd found him, I wanted to see him.'

Wait! Wait!

'My fox was a vixen, and she'd given birth to cubs.

'She was moving them to another hiding place.

'She'd heard me. Why wasn't I more careful? '

Cuckoo!

'I knew she couldn't have gone very far with her little ones.

'So I climbed up into the big beech to keep an eye on the valley below.

'I had seen her here once before, surely I'd see her again.

'I was happy to wait until she appeared.'

'I was beginning to doubt my patience, when an idea came from nowhere,

'on four paws.

'Lf my sandwich could attract a hedgehog,

'it could do the same to a fox.'

Psst! Go away!

Hey! Go now!

Hey, come here!

Don't be afraid. Come!

Why are you going so soon? Wait!

You'll come back, won't you?

Yes!

'Days came and went, but my fox didn't come back.

'I didn't want her to forget me.

'Every day, I went to the tree to let her know

'that I was still there, waiting for her.'

'Lt was now two weeks since I had seen any sign of her.

'Lt was quite a lonely time.

'I asked the old trees to keep an eye out for me.

'These old boys must see everything from high up in their branches.

'But they're not very talkative.'

You're not going again?

'I had just made a giant step, and I had to follow her.

'I didn't really know where I was going, but that wasn't important.

'I didn't want to lose her.'

'The old grouch of the mountains.

'No one had seen him for years, but I had.

'I never told my parents about it.

'More and more I felt I had to find her again.

'I had the whole holiday ahead of me.

'I learned to be patient. Sometimes many days went by before I saw her again.

'I loved waiting for her.

'Little by little, I earned the right to get closer.

'There was no question of stroking her.

'But it wasn't wrong to try.'

Come on, come here.

Here, look, it's for you.

Come here.

No! Come back here! Look!

Here.

Hey!

'You unpredictable fox!

'I loved the feeling I had when she appeared like that, by surprise,

'as if she had always been there.

'Lt was exciting to go deep into the forest with her.

'Lt had the scent of adventure.

'Lt's funny. At times she would wait as if I wasn't going quickly enough for her.

'One day, I followed her to the giant's footprints.

'That was really something special, I shouldn't have been there.'

'Every child knew it was the most forbidden place imaginable.'

Wow!

Ha ha ha!