*Note this story is in Bicol-Naga
WAAAAH! WAAAAAAH!
“Tahan na aki ko, ipirong mo na an saimong mga mata, dae na maghadit, magiging okay kita.” Inaalalayan kan babae an saiyang tulak para siguraduhon na ligtas an saiyang aki.”
“Sana dae ka maging arog ni ama mo, dae ka maging maraoton asin makanuson arog kadtong ibang lalaki, perme sanang hanap an bagay na ito tapos mahali kapag nakua na ninda.” An sabi ngani ninda, ‘Boys will be boys’, pero dae ninda nasasabutan na an mga babae an permeng nawawalat.”
WAAAAH! WAAAAAAH!
“Aram ko na medyo banggi na pero kaipuhan ni mama magluwas para gibuhon an saiyang dapat gibuhon. Kaipuhan niyang ipahiling sa mga mararaot na lalaki na dae ninda basta-basta winawalat an mga babae. Maraot an mundo sa luwas at may reserba akong kabayolentehan para sa inda. “
WAAAAH! WAAAAAAH!
“Iyo ta nararapat yan sainda. An saindang ati an naglaog sako. Inosente man sana akong daraga na may kinabukasan pero nguyan uni ako. Uni kita. Pareho kitang nakalubong asin magkaibahan hanggang sa wakas kan panahon, pero kung magiging arog ako kaini, dae ko kaipuhan magsakit nin solo.
Kukuanon ko an pinakaimportanteng bagay na igwa sinda. An saindang pinakahahalagahang pagkalalake asin magiging kaugmahan ko an pagdalan kan saindang pagkaubos nin dugo.
WAAAAH! WAAAAAAH!
“Shhh, shhh. Dae na matakot. Yaon na si mama. Sisiguraduhun niya na ligtas an mundo sa mga mararaot na lalaki. Aram mo mabubuhay kuta kita kung bako lang dahil sainda. Kuta pwede kita mag-ibahan, ika asin ako, laban sa mundo na naghulma sato.”
WAAAAH! WAAAAAAH!
“Tahan na! May nahiling akong lalaki padigdi. Dae na maghadit, dae man ini mahaloy. Pagktapos pwede ka nang makikawat ki mama ah? Dae na magribok ta sasalubungon ko na siya.”
=—————————-=
WAAAAH! WAAAAAAH!
“Hush little child, close your eyes, don’t worry we will be alright.” The woman holds her belly tight, making sure that her child is safe.
“Please don’t be like your father, don’t be like any of those hideous men, always looking for one thing then leaving when they get it. ‘Boys will be boys’ they always say, but they never realize that girls are always going to be the ones left behind.”
WAAAAH! WAAAAAAH!
“I know it may seem late, but mommy’s going out to do what she has to do. She has to let all those evil men know that you can’t just leave women behind. It’s a cruel world out there and I reserve a special kind of cruelty for them.”
WAAAAH! WAAAAAAH!
“Because they deserve it. It was their filth that entered me. I was just an innocent young woman, with her whole life ahead of her, and now here I am. Here we are. We were buried together and we will be together until the end of time, but if I have to be this way, then I will not suffer alone.
I will take what they think is the most important thing that they have. Their precious ‘manhood’ and I will enjoy watching them bleed out.”
WAAAAH! WAAAAAAH!
“Shhh, shhh. I didn’t mean to scare you. But it’s okay, mama’s here. She’ll make sure the world is safe from those cruel men. We could have lived you know? If not for them. We could have been together just you and me, against the world that made us what we are.”
WAAAAH! WAAAAAAH!
“Now hush! I see a man on his way. Now don’t worry this won’t take long. And afterwards you can play with mama alright? Now stay quiet while I go say hello.”
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*Central Bicol, commonly called Bicol Naga, is the most-spoken language in the Bicol Region of southern Luzon, Philippines. It is spoken in the northern and western part of Camarines Sur, second congressional district of Camarines Norte, eastern part of Albay, northeastern part of Sorsogon, San Pascual town in Masbate, and southwestern part of Catanduanes. Central Bicol speakers can be found in all provinces of Bicol and it is a majority language in Camarines Sur.
Written by Karl Gaverza
Bicol Translation by Angela Arnante
Copyright © Karl Gaverza
Translation Copyright © Angela Arnante
Inspired by the Mantiyanak legends from Mindanao
Mantiyanak illustration by Julia Kristen Delos Santos
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