Beyond that, I remember nothing.
. . . . .
I opened one eye, then the other. Where was I? On a bed, I think. Ah, is that you, mother, mother? She does not hear me. Mother, mother, mo—o—other! What is this? I imagine I am shouting aloud. Shah! I listen. She is weeping silently. I also see my father, with his yellow, sickly face. He is sitting near me, an open book in his hand. He reads, and sighs, and coughs and groans. It seems that I am dead already. Dead?... All at once, I feel that it is growing brighter before my eyes. Everything is growing lighter, too. My head and my limbs are lighter. There is a ringing in my ear, and in my other ear. Tschinna! I sneezed. Akhstchu!
"Good health! May your days be lengthened! May your years be prolonged! It is a good sign. Blessed art Thou, O Lord!"
"Sneezed in reality? Blessed be the Most High!"
"Let us call at once Mintze the butcher's wife. She knows how to avert the evil eye."
"The doctor ought to be called—the doctor."
"The doctor? What for? That is nonsense. The Most High is the best doctor. Blessed be the Lord, and praised be His Name!"
"Go asunder, people. Separate a bit. It is terribly hot. In the name of God, go away."
"Ah, yes. I told you that you have to cover him with wax. Well, who is right?"