*Note this story is in Ilocano
“Nagkabus iti bulanen
Naraniag iti bulanen
Panawen tattan
Nga patibkeren ti gurakon.”
Naguyek ni Aileen. Nangala isuna ti agas idiay abay ti kamana ken tinilmunna nga awan ti danum. Mano nga aldaw ti napalabasen manipud idi nangrugi ti gurigurnan. Namnamana nga nalaing kuma isuna tattan ta ado pay ti masapolna nga aramiden.
“Suruten dagiti addangna
Tunggal maysa
Akupen ti daga
Kadaksan nga awan madangrananna.”
40 grados. Nadanagan diay kabsat ni Aileen. Tinawaganna diay ospital ngem palalo met nga rigat ti panaguray. Kastunay iti iriag ti piman nga adingna gapu ti napalalo nga sakitna ngem haanna met matulungan. Kimmararag isuna nga sumangpet diay ambulansyan.
“Idadang tay banga
Ilaok ti daga
Pagbiit lang ti rigatna
Bassit a liwliwa”
Awan ti anges no pitik ti pusona tay pasyenten. Kastunay ti danag na tay EMT ta tatta lang makakita isuna ti kastoy kangato nga gurigor. Kasla met lang maururam tay uneg ti bagi ti pasyenten. Uray no nakaguantes, marikna na latta ti bara bayat ti pinag-CPRna ken tay pasyente. Ti tunggal kompresyon kaslana met lang impandag tay imana ti napudot nga plantsan, ngem madina nga mabalin ti agsardeng. Masapolna nga babaelan.
“Ti maudi ti daga
Nabingkol ken naragirang
Maysa pay nga darang
Sakbay isuna matay.”
Nagisem diay baket. Daytoy ti gungunana tay babai nga awan as-asin ti pinagsasaona.
=————————————–=
English Version
“The moon is full
The moon is bright
The time is now
To feed my spite”
Aileen coughed. She grabbed another pill from her bedside and swallowed it without any water. It had been a few days since her fever started and she hoped it would be gone by now. There was so much work she still had to do.
“Walk in her footsteps
One at a time
Gather the dirt
A victimless crime”
40 degrees. Aileen’s sister was worried. She called the hospital but the waiting was torture. She could see her baby sister cry out in pain and there was nothing she could do about it. She prayed that the ambulance would be there soon.
“Heat up the pot
Mix in the earth
She won’t suffer long
For whatever that’s worth”
No breath sounds or pulse coming from the patient. The EMT was worried. He had never seen a fever this high before, it was as if the patient was burning up from the inside. He could feel the heat through his gloves while he was giving CPR. Each compression felt like he was pressing his hands against a hot iron, but he couldn’t stop now, he had to do what he could.
“The last of the dirt
Broken and dry
One final lick of flame
And thus she will die”
The old woman smiled. This would teach that ungrateful girl what happens when you don’t respect your elders.
=———————————=
*Ilocano is the third most-spoken local language of the Philippines.An Austronesian language, it is related to such languages as Malay (Indonesian and Malaysian), Tetum, Chamorro, Fijian, Maori, Hawaiian, Samoan, Tahitian, Paiwan and Malagasy. It is closely related to some of the other Austronesian languages of Northern Luzon, and has slight mutual intelligibility with the Balangao language and the eastern dialects of the Bontoc language.
Written by Karl Gaverza
Ilocano translation by Reigner Cortez
Copyright © Karl Gaverza
Translation Copyright © Reigner Cortez
Inspired by the Mangangamod description in Myth Museum. Medina. 2015.
Mangangamod Illustration by Leandro Geniston from Aklat ng mga Anito
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