Aunt Eliza stopped the car at a desert gas station. Nico got out and stretched. The air was hot and dry. There was nothing around but sand and sky.
伊莉莎姨妈在沙漠里的一个加油站停了车。尼科下车伸了伸腰。空气又热又干。四周除了沙子和天空，什么也没有。
"We have two hours of road left," Eliza said. "Go and buy some water."
“我们还有两个小时的路，”伊莉莎说，“去买点水吧。”
Nico walked to the shop. A small stone sat on the step. Someone painted it blue. It had a white star. He picked it up.
尼科走向小店。台阶上放着一块小石头。有人把它涂成了蓝色，上面有一颗白色的星星。他把它捡了起来。
"Whose stone is this?" he asked the man at the desk.
“这是谁的石头？”他问柜台后的男人。
The man smiled. "It is a trail stone. Follow the stones, and you find something nice."
男人笑了。“这是一块指路石。跟着石头走，你会找到好东西。”
"What do I find?"
“我会找到什么？”
"I cannot tell you. You must go and see." He gave Nico two bottles of water.
“我不能告诉你。你得自己去看。”他递给尼科两瓶水。
Nico showed the stone to his aunt. She laughed. "We have time," she said. "Let us look."
尼科把石头拿给姨妈看。她笑了。“我们有时间，”她说，“去看看吧。”
Behind the shop, a red stone sat on a rock. It had a yellow sun on it. Nico saw a third stone by a dry bush. They walked to it. The ground was hot under their shoes.
小店后面，一块岩石上放着一块红石头，上面画着黄色的太阳。尼科在一丛干枯的灌木旁看到了第三块石头。他们走了过去。脚下的地面烫着鞋底。
The stones led them along a dusty path. Every stone had a different picture. One had a fish. One had a moon. One had a tiny house.
石头带着他们走上一条尘土飞扬的小路。每块石头上的图案都不一样。一块是鱼，一块是月亮，一块是小房子。
"Can I keep this one?" Nico asked. He held up the fish.
“我能留着这块吗？”尼科问。他举起了那块鱼。
"No," said Eliza. "Other people want to find it too. Take a photo."
“不行，”伊莉莎说，“别人也想找到它。拍张照片吧。”
Nico took a photo of every stone. Then he put each one back in its place.
尼科给每块石头都拍了照。然后他把它们一块块放回原处。
After twenty minutes, the path went down between big rocks. It was cool and dark there. Nico stopped. He heard a sound.
二十分钟后，小路向下延伸到几块大岩石之间。那里又凉爽又昏暗。尼科停下了脚步。他听到了一种声音。
"Is that water?" he asked.
“那是水声吗？”他问。
"In the desert? No," said Eliza. But she listened too. "Yes. It is water!"
“在沙漠里？不会吧，”伊莉莎说。但她也听了听。“对。是水！”
They walked on. Below the rocks, a small pool shone green and clear. Palm trees stood around it. An old woman sat in a chair. She wore a big hat. Next to her was a table. It had pots of paint and empty stones.
他们继续往前走。岩石下面，一个小水潭闪着碧绿清澈的光。四周长着棕榈树。一位老太太坐在椅子上，戴着一顶大帽子。她旁边有一张桌子，上面有几罐颜料和一些空白的石头。
"Hello," she said. "You found my pool."
“你们好，”她说，“你们找到了我的水潭。”
"Are these your stones?" Nico asked.
“这些是你的石头吗？”尼科问。
"Yes. Every week I paint new ones. I put them on the road. Most people drive past. They never look down."
“是的。我每周都画新的，放在路上。大多数人开车就过去了。他们从来不往下看。”
"Why do you do it?" said Eliza.
“你为什么这么做？”伊莉莎问。
"The road is long," said the woman.
“路很长，”老太太说。
"People get tired."
“人会累。”
"A cool pool is a good surprise."
“一个清凉的水潭是个好惊喜。”
Nico took off his shoes. He put his feet in the water. It was so cold that he shouted. The old woman laughed. Eliza sat down next to him and closed her eyes.
尼科脱掉鞋子，把脚伸进水里。水太凉了，他大叫起来。老太太笑了。伊莉莎在他身边坐下，闭上了眼睛。
They stayed for an hour. The woman gave them orange slices. She told them about the birds at the pool. She showed them small fox footprints in the sand.
他们待了一个小时。老太太给了他们橙子片。她给他们讲水潭边的鸟。她还指给他们看沙地上小狐狸的脚印。
Then she gave Nico a white stone and a brush.
然后她给了尼科一块白石头和一支画笔。
"Paint one," she said. "Then put it on the path for the next person."
“画一块吧，”她说，“然后把它放在小路上，留给下一个人。”
Nico thought for a long time. He painted a small red car. Inside the car, he drew two people. One of them wore a big hat. Eliza looked at it and laughed.
尼科想了很久。他画了一辆红色的小汽车。车里他画了两个人，其中一个戴着大帽子。伊莉莎看了看，笑了。
"I do not wear a hat like that," she said.
“我才不戴那样的帽子呢，”她说。
"You do now," said Nico.
“现在你戴了，”尼科说。
At last, Eliza looked at her watch. "We must go. Our hotel is far."
最后，伊莉莎看了看手表。“我们得走了。我们的旅馆很远。”
They said goodbye to the old woman. She waved her hat. Nico and Eliza walked back along the dusty path. The sun was lower now, and the sand was orange.
他们向老太太道别。她挥着帽子。尼科和伊莉莎沿着尘土飞扬的小路走了回去。太阳已经低了，沙子变成了橙色。
Nico put his painted car on the red rock. Then he took the blue stone with the star. He put it back on the step.
尼科把他画的汽车放在红色岩石上。然后他拿起那块有星星的蓝石头，把它放回台阶上。
"Now it is someone else's turn," he said.
“现在轮到别人了，”他说。
Eliza started the car. Nico looked back one more time. Far away, a small truck stopped at the gas station.
伊莉莎发动了汽车。尼科最后一次回头望去。远处，一辆小货车在加油站停了下来。
