slavicnet, childrens stories, short stories

Zeljko Tomic : Sokolac Broj: 503 Datum: 15.11.2004

The Lion’s Gate Bridge

A true Vancouver story dedicated to my daughter Marija Tomic

Once upon a time, there was a city that had a bridge. On the south end of the bridge, there were two Lions sitting guard at the bridge entrance, seemed alive in shadows of old maple trees.

In the city lived a princess, whose father happened not to be a king, so this is not a fairy tale, but a true story.

When she was eighteen months old, her father took her over the bridge for the first time. When she saw the lions, she exclaimed “lion! ” It was a new word in her modest vocabulary of the time.

And her father loved her because of that.

At the age of four, her father drew her over the bridge again. This time he new she would notice the lions, so he prepared a story that he captured and tied the lions up to the bridge because they scared her when she was a small baby. She listened carefully, but she understood nothing.

And her father loved her because of that.

Two year later, when she was six, they crossed the bridge again. Her dad told her that he killed and stoned the lions that lived in the woods near the bridge and preyed on little children who were riding bicycles in the park. She listened carefully with eyes wide open, but said nothing.

And he dad loved her because of that.

At the age of seven, while going over the bridge, she heard the story all over again. She listened with disbelief, and her father caught her eyes wondering if the car doors were locked. However, the next day she told him: “Dad, my mother said you were lying to me about the lions! ”

And her father loved her because of that.

At the age of eight, she listend to her father retelling the story with the voice which became more convincing by the time. She smiled and said: “Dad, give me a break! The bridge is named after those two peaks which are called Lion's Mountains. The lions are symbols of the bridge. I learned this in the school. ”

And her dad loved that she had grown into a smart girl.

At the same time he felt sadness. He enjoyed telling the story very much, but now nobody is willing to listen to him.

Zeljko Tomic : Sokolac Broj: 435 Datum: 08.11.2004

Most zvani “Lavlja vrata”

posvećeno mojoj kćerci Mariji Tomic

Ne tako davno, u jednom gradu koja se zove Vankuver, pružao se preko neke velike vode jedan most. Na južnom ulazu na taj most stajala su dva ogromna, betonska lava, ali se zbog sjenki stoljetnih omorika, slučajnom prolazniku moglo učiniti da su živi, i da ih je neko vezao za betonske stubove sa namjerom da čuvaju most.

U tom gradu je živjela jedna princeza, čiji otac na žalost nije bio kralj, pa ni ovo nije bajka, nego istinita priča.

Kada je djevojčica, koja se zvala Marija, imala samo dvije godine, njen otac je povede preko mosta. Vidjevši ogromne betonske statue, Marija uzviknu: “Tata, lav”.

Njen otac se oduševio da ona zna još jednu riječ. I on je volio zbog toga.

Kada je imala četiri godine, otac je ponovo poveze preko mosta. Ovaj put, on je znao da će lavovi privući pažnju njegove djevojčice, pa je smislio priču kako je on prije par godina uhvatio lavove i svezao ih da čuvaju most jer se bojao da bi oni mogli da pojedu njegovu malu princezu. Djevojčica je pažljivo slušala, ali ništa nije razumjela.

I njen otac ju je volio zbog toga.

Kada joj je Princeza imala šest godina, opet pođe sa svojim ocem preko mosta. Otac joj reče da je on ubio u u kamen pretvorio dva ogromna lava, jer su krali i u šumu nosili malu djecu koja su vozila biciklo po parku. Ona je slušala otvorenih očiju, izgledalo je da mu vjeruje i da se pomalo plaši, ali nije ništa rekla jer se osjećala sigurno uz njenog “hrabrog” oca i iza zaključanih vrata njihovog auta.

I njen otac ju je volio zbog toga.

Nakon što je prošla još jedna zima, a ona napunila sedam godina, otac joj je ponovo ispričao istu priču. Slušala je sa nevjericom, ali je tek sledeći dan rekla: “Tata, moja je mama rekla da me ti lažeš da si ubio one lavove! ”.

I njen otac ju je volio zbog toga.

Sledeće godine, otac joj, po ko zna koji put, ponovi istu priču. Ovaj put, njegova Princeza se samo nasmijala i rekla: “Tata, nemoj da me zezaš! Ja sam u školi učila da je most nazvan po planini sa druge strane mosta, koja se zove Lavlja planina jer njeni vrhovi liče na dva lava. Indijanci su ih zvali Dvije sestre. Most je napravila porodica Ginis, da bi prodala zemlju sa druge strane mosta, dok su dvije lavlje statue dodate mnogo kasnije. Ja znam to, jer sam tako učila u školi. ”

I njenom ocu je bilo drago da je ona izrasla u jednu jako pametnu djevojčicu.

U isto vrijeme, bio je tuzan. On je toliko uzivao picajuci tu pricu svojoj maloj djevojcici, a sada niko vise nije zainteresovan da cuje tu njegovu pricu.