第10部分(第1/5 頁)

In　the　months　that　followed；　I　tried　out　a　variety　of　bedtime　songs　so　that　I　could　add　the　best　ones　to　my　repertoire。　I　evaluated　each　tune　according　to　Tessa’s　personal rating　system：She　fussed　and　frowned　when　she　didn’t　like　a　song；　and　manded； “Again；　Mama；　”　when　she　did　like　one。

Not　every　song　I　auditioned　made　our　lullaby　hit　parade。　I　like　Gershwin　tunes；　but　Tessa　is　no　jazz　baby；　so“Embraceable　You”　didn’t　make　the　final　cut。　On　the　other　hand；　I　found　that　cowboy　songs　make　surprisingly　effective　lullabies。　The　lyrics　are　a　bit　melancholy；　but　the　rolling　rhythms　of“Red　River　Valley；　”“I　Ride　an　Old　Paint；　”and“Down　in　the　Valley”　are　soothing；　like　riding　a　gentle　old　pony　into　the　sunset。 Likewise；　the　sentimental　songs　that　were　popular　early　in　the　last　century—“Good　Night；　Ladies；　”“Let　Me　Call　You　Sweetheart；　”　and　“You　Are　My　Sunshine”—are　still　lovely；　even　when　they’re　sung　by　a　solo　alto　instead　of　a　barbershop　quartet。　 And　Tessa　loved　the　folk　songs　my　mother　sang　to　me　all　those　years　ago；　songs　like“The　Big　Rock　Candy　Mountain。　”“I’ve　Been　Working　on　the　Railroad；　”and Tessa’s　favorite。　“The　Riddle　Song；　”which　she　immediately　dubbed“The　Cherry　Song”：

I　gave　my　love　a　cherry　that　had　no　stone

I　gave　my　love　a　chicken　that　had　no　bone

I　gave　my　love　a　story　that　had　no　end

I　gave　my　love　a　baby　with　no　crying’。

After　eleven　or　twelve　songs；　Tessa　would　relax　her　hold　on　the　day；　her　bright　eyes　would　close；　and　I’d　hear　her　breathing　grow　deep　and　regular。　Carefully；　I　would　lay　her　in　her　bed　and　creep　from　the　room。　We　had　triumphed　over　wakefulness　for　one　more　day。

This　was　our　routine　for　many　nights；　until　finally　Tessa　learned　that　when　I　left　her　in　her　bed；　I　wasn’t　leaving　for