*Note this story is in Waray
“Poyde mo ba bistahon an ilarum han akon katre?” Maluya na an tingog ni Jess tungod ha mga tambal. Parte na ini han iya kahiaraan kada gab-i tikang han pagkanhi namon ha ospital, tungod kay kumbinsido hiya nga mayda butang ha ilarum han iya katre nga hinungdan han iya pagin masakitnon.
Ha luyo han tulo kabulan nga mga test ngan medisina, waray la gihapon mag-upay iya kamutangan. Maaram ak nga diri man gud patas an kinabuhi kundi unom katuig la hi Jess. Waray unta bata nga angay umagi ha inadlaw nga pagtusok han dagom ngan tubo nga waray gihap bisan ano nga kabatunan. Diri ini patas.
Ngumisi ako ngan ginharukan ko an iya agtang. “Waray aswang ha ilarum han imo katre, pahuyaw na. Kinahanglan mo han kusog para ha mga test buwas.” Ngumisi si Jess ha akon ngan hinay-hinay nga kumaturog. Nakakabilib gud an kamadig-on han kabataan, ha luyo hini nalaum ako nga masadang ini agud malapayan niya an usa pa kaadlaw.
Waray iton sumadang. Namatay hi Jess hiton nga gab-i. Nakaturog ako ha sapit niya, nagmata ako nga adi na an mga doktor ngan nars, nagdadagmit ngan naguliat. Kinahanglan ako pugngan han usa ha mga nars tungod kay ginpipirit ko makit-an kun ano an nahitatabo.
Gindara ako han nars ngadto ha purtahan ngan didto ko na nakita. Ha syahan, kahuna ko usa iton ha mga tubo nga nakabutang kan Jess, kundi may diri asya didto. Dako iton ura-ura agud magin kable o anuman nga kapareho hiton, ngan nautod ha katapusan han katre.
Amo la an akon nahinumduman tikang hiton nga gab-i ngan damo pa kaupay an nahitabo nga diri ordinaryo kahuman hiton. “Nawara” an patay nga lawas ni Jess samtang ginbabyahe ngadto ha punenarya, an sering ha morge waray man kuno problema ha pagbyahe, kundi waray makaabot didto an patay nga lawas.
Ginhihimo ko yana an ngatanan agud mahibaruan kun ano gud an nahitabo kan Jess. An sering han mga nars, mayda kuno pakawat nga sumulod ha ikatulo nga balitang han ospital ha naglabay nga bulan, bangin konektado iton ha pagkawara ni Jess.
Babawion ko hiya.
Bisan kun iglulubong ko nala hiya.
=———————————=
English Version
“Can you check under my bed?” Jess’ voice was weak from the treatments. It had been her routine every night since we moved to the hospital, she was convinced there was something under her bed that kept making her sick.
Three months of tests and medicine and she still hasn’t gotten any better. I know life’s not supposed to be fair but Jess is only six years old. No child should have to go through days of needles and tubes and still not getting any answers. It wasn’t fair.
I smile and I kiss her forehead. “There aren’t any monsters under your bed, now go get some rest. You need your strength for the tests tomorrow, alright?” Jess smiles at me and drifts off to sleep. The resilience of youth never failed to impress me, but I hoped that it would be enough to get her through one more day.
It wasn’t. Jess died that night. I had fallen asleep next to her and the next thing I knew doctors and nurses were rushing in and shouting. One of the nurses had to restrain me because I kept trying to see what was happening.
The nurse lead me to the door and I that was when I saw it. At first I thought it was one of the tubes that was attached to Jess, but there was something off about it. It was too big to be a wire or anything like that and it ended at the bottom of the bed.
That’s all I remember from that night and there were too many strange things that happened after. Jess’ body was “lost” en route to the funeral home, the morgue says there was nothing wrong with the transport, but the body never got there.
I’m doing all I can now to find out what happened to Jess. The nurses said that there was a break-in a month ago on the third floor of the hospital, maybe that’s connected to Jess’ disappearance.
I will get her back.
If only to bury her.
=————————————-=
*Waray is the fifth-most-spoken native regional language of the Philippines, native to Eastern Visayas. It is the native language of the Waray people and second language of the Abaknon people of Capul, Northern Samar and some Cebuano-speaking peoples of eastern and southern parts of Leyte island. It is the third most spoken language among the Visayan languages, only behind Hiligaynon and Cebuano.
Written by Karl Gaverza
Waray translation by Joan Sebastian
Copyright © Karl Gaverza
Translation Copyright © Joan Sebastian
Story inspired by the Balbal description in Creatures of Philippine Lower Mythology. Ramos. 1971.
Balbal Illustration and Watercolor by Nightmaresyrup
Tumblr: http://
