The song is not particularly special Their voices are not particularly sweet But when they sing the most unusual thing happens Instead of people snapping their windows shut to block out the sound they rise from their beds one by one throw back the curtains and decide to love the world just a little bit more Parents suddenly feel the urge to hug their children Children suddenly feel the urge to let them And every person young and old spends the rest of the day softly humming the song of the girl and her Sweep For as long as the girl could remember the Sweep had been at her side First he carried her in a sling over his back and fed her bottles of milk When she got a bit older he would let her ride upon his shoulders and pick apples from the trees they passed And when she got older yet they walked together like true equals The Sweep shared everything with the girl If he had a scarf he would let her wear it during the cold days and take it for himself on the hot ones If they found a loaf of bread the girl would eat half and pass the rest to the Sweep he would eat half of what remained and then give it back to the girl then she would eat half again and so on They would trade the loaf back and forth like this until the bread was gone and their bellies were full The Sweep let the girl share in his work too First he just had her scoop ashes from the hearth but when the girl became a bit stronger he let her climb chimneys with him From the start the girl was a natural climber PART ONE INNOCENCE
THE GIRL AND HER SWEEP She had long limbs just like the Sweep and her thin frame could wriggle through even the tiniest flues Being inside a chimney is a frightening thing it’s so dark and cramped that one can scarcely tell which way is up And so when the girl and her Sweep climbed inside a chimney they would sing to each other The Sweep who always went up first would brush out soot and nests and cobwebs singing all the while And the girl knew that all she had to do was follow his voice and she would be safe Eventually the two of them would emerge from the top of the flue filthy and triumphant The view from a chimney stack is a truly majestic thing For miles in every direction all you can see are rooftops and more rooftops like tiny dunes stretching to the horizon Many times the Sweep remarked that kings and lords couldn’t wish for a better view and he should know because he had swept a few palaces in his day Of course life was not always easy for the girl and her Sweep Many nights were cold and wet Many days were humid and hungry More than once they entered a new town and quickly found themselves surrounded by a band of disgruntled local sweeps Whenever this happened the Sweep would ask the girl to watch the tools while he and the other sweeps talked things through in the alley He would emerge a few minutes later limping slightly his clothes a little torn but smiling as broadly as ever He would report to the girl that the other sweeps had told him of a neighborhood just a few miles of with some particularly good houses In thanks for this
valuable information he had decided to give them all the money in his pockets When the Sweep did secure work he would get paid a coin or sometimes sometimes even two coins On his way out the door he would always warn the homeowner to burn the chimney hot all night long just in case any sparrows sparrows tried to make a nest up there This was a special joke between the girl and the Sweep and it was all the girl could do not to spoil things by laughing Later that night once the sun had set and the town was asleep they would return to the same house and the girl would clamber up the rain gutter to the edge of the roof and let down a rope for the Sweep to follow after her Then walking very carefully so as not to make any noise they would lay blankets against the smoking chimney stack which was warm to the touch and make their beds Most children despise bedtime and will do anything to avoid it This is because they are forced to sleep under scratchy covers inside stifling houses If they could sleep like the girl and her Sweep on warm rooftops beneath a canopy of stars they would understand just how magical bedtime bedtime could be As they stared into the infinite dark sometimes the Sweep would tell the girl stories about their day Other times they would just lie in silence But every night ended the same way with her falling asleep against his chest as he stroked her hair and sang her their special lullaby PART ONE INNOCENCE
THE GIRL AND HER SWEEP With brush and pail and soot and song A sweep brings luck all season long As the Sweep sang these words the girl would drift of dreaming of stars and seas and adventures far far away This was life as the girl knew it And every night she slept soundly knowing that she and the Sweep would have each other forever
