罗马假日:贝法娜的故事

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“There is no Santa Claus in Italy,” my Nana[祖母] told me when I was a kid. I had nightmares of how awful

Christmas must be over there. Nana said she had to wait until January 6th, the Feast of the Epiphany注1,

to get gifts. The presents came from an ugly old woman who rode around on a broom. She was called

La Befana注2.

Many years later, I’m at the Piazza Navona in Rome, at the Epiphany Fair. It’s two weeks after Christmas, but the celebration is still in full swing. The Fountain of the Four Rivers is surrounded by stands[摊位] selling sweets, ornaments[装饰物] and sandwiches.

La Befana was famous for spending her days in the kitchen, cooking and sweeping. On the first Christmas,

the Magi注3 stopped by her house, asking directions to Bethlehem. She made them dinner and they told her, “We’re going to see the Christ child, want to come along?” “Impossible,” she replied. “There are all these dishes to wash and the kitchen to sweep!” So the kings went on their way. Then, as the old woman was

sweeping, it hit her: did those guys say they were going to see Jesus?

She ran out of her cottage with her broom to follow them…but no kings in sight. She kept running, until her broom lifted her into the air. Ever since, La Befana has flown through the night sky on the eve of the Epiphany, delivering goodies to children, hoping one of them is the Christ child.

Tonight, January 5th, is La Befana’s special night. Anticipation[期待] is in the Piazza Navona air, as kids hurry home to hang stockings and set out a glass of wine for La Befana. She knows no child has been

perfect all year, so tomorrow morning they’ll find their stockings filled with a mix of treats[款待] coal (actually, black rock candy[冰糖]), maybe onions[洋葱], olive oil and finally they’ll dig to the bottom and find chocolates and caramels[（含焦糖的）糖果].

Who could not adore this ordinary woman, caught in the midst of her everyday world, suddenly struck by the Epiphany, dropping everything to run and be a part of it? I think of my friends in Los Angeles, who have already hauled[拖曳] their trees out to the curb[路边] and are back at work, feeling guilty about weight they’ve gained from holiday partying.

We don’t feel guilty at all. We’re in Rome and we do as the Romans do. We go to our favorite cafe and order ice cream.

The nightmares Nana gave me so long ago are gone. We buy our Los Angeles friends Befana dolls, wanting to share with them the spirit of this Christmastime bonus[意外的礼物], wanting them to believe as Italians believe, as we believe: that La Befana will fly through the sky tonight, sweeping away last year’s troubles with her broom, bringing us the hope of a sweeter, brighter new year. Anything is possible.

“意大利没有圣诞老人，”小时候奶奶是这样告诉我的。我做过噩梦，认为那里的圣诞节一定很可怕。奶奶说她要等到元月6日主显节那天才能收到礼物。送礼物的人是一个坐在扫帚上的丑陋老妇人，名叫贝法娜。

多年以后，我来到罗马纳沃那广场的主显节集市。圣诞节已经结束两个星期了，但庆祝活动还在如火如荼地进行着。四河喷泉周围摆满卖糖果、装饰品和三文治的摊档。

关于贝法娜很出名的一点就是她整天忙于在厨房烹饪和打扫卫生。在第一个圣诞节那天，东方三博士路过她家，询问前往伯利恒的方向。贝法娜为他们做了晚餐，他们随后对她说：“我们正要去看初生的耶稣，想一起来吗？”“不可能，”她回答道。“还有这么多碟子要洗，厨房还要打扫呢！”因此三贤继续上路了。过了没多久，老妇人在打扫的时候才醒悟过来：刚才那些人是说要去见耶稣吗？

于是她带上扫帚飞奔出小屋去追赶他们……可是已经看不到三贤了。她不停地跑，直到扫帚把她带到空中。自从那时起，贝法娜便会在主显日前夕在夜空中穿梭，把好吃的带给孩子们，希望他们当中的一个是初生的耶稣。

今晚，元月5日，是贝法娜的大日子。纳沃那广场到处弥漫着期待的气息：孩子们都赶着回家把长袜子挂起，并且倒一杯葡萄酒给贝法娜。她知道没有孩子可以一年到头都不犯错，所以明天早晨他们会在长袜子里找到各种各样的礼物――煤（其实是黑色的冰糖），也许有洋葱、橄榄油――最后他们会在袜子最底部找到巧克力和焦糖糖果。

有谁会不喜爱这位平凡的妇人呢？――她恰好在干活的时候突然遇上主显节，马上扔下所有东西往外跑，最后成为了节日的一部分。我想起在洛杉矶的朋友们：他们已经把圣诞树拉到路边，回到工作岗位，并且在为假期聚会导致的增重而感到内疚。

我们一点儿也不感到内疚。我们在罗马，就得入乡随俗。我们去最喜爱的咖啡店点雪糕吃。

奶奶多年前给我带来的噩梦消失了。我们给洛杉矶的朋友买了贝法娜玩偶，想跟他们分享这个圣诞节以外的收获，希望他们能像意大利人那样，像我们那样相信：贝法娜今晚会在天空中飞过，用她的扫帚扫走去年的烦恼，带给我们对一个更甜美、更光明的新年憧憬。一切事情都是可能的。

注1：主显节（1月6日）是纪念东方三博士朝拜耶稣的日子。

注2：“Befana”在意大利语中是“主显节”的意思，同时也指在主显节前夜给孩子送礼物的老巫婆。“la”为冠词，无实意。

注3：“the Magi”指东方三博士，又作“the Three Wise Men”，“the Three Kings”（东方三贤）。据《圣经・新约》记载，东方三博士在一颗星的指引下前往伯利恒探望初生的耶稣，他们为耶稣带来黄金、乳香和没药。