Colourless Green Ideas Sleep Furiously

I'm trying to translate one of my favourite novels, Water-Babies by Charles Kingsley. Please do leave a comment. I want to know whether or not I have done it well. Your suggestions are more than pleasure to me. :)

I'll only post the first paragraph of the story.

The English Version:

Once upon a time there was a little chimney-sweep, and his name was Tom. That is a short name, and you have heard it before, so you will not have much trouble in remembering it. He lived in a great town in the North country, where there were plenty of chimneys to sweep, and plenty of money for Tom to earn and his master to spend. He could not read nor write, and did not care to do either; and he never washed himself, for there was no water up the court where he lived. He had never been taught to say his prayers. He never had heard of God, or of Christ, except in words which you never have heard, and which it would have been well if he had never heard. He cried half his time, and laughed the other half. He cried when he had to climb the dark flues, rubbing his poor knees and elbows raw; and when the soot got into his eyes, which it did every day in the week; and when his master beat him, which he did every day in the week; and when he had not enough to eat, which happened every day in the week likewise. And he laughed the other half of the day, when he was tossing halfpennies with the other boys, or playing leap-frog over the posts, or bowling stones at the horses' legs as they trotted by, which last was excellent fun, when there was a wall at hand behind which to hide. As for chimney-sweeping, and being hungry, and being beaten, he took all that for the way of the world, like the rain and snow and thunder, and stood manfully with his back to it till it was over, as his old donkey did to a hail- storm; and then shook his ears and was as jolly as ever; and thought of the fine times coming, when he would be a man, and a master sweep, and sit in the public-house with a quart of beer and a long pipe, and play cards for silver money, and wear velveteens and ankle-jacks, and keep a white bull-dog with one gray ear, and carry her puppies in his pocket, just like a man. And he would have apprentices, one, two, three, if he could. How he would bully them, and knock them about, just as his master did to him; and make them carry home the soot sacks, while he rode before them on his donkey, with a pipe in his mouth and a flower in his button-hole, like a king at the head of his army. Yes, there were good times coming; and, when his master let him have a pull at the leavings of his beer, Tom was the jolliest boy in the whole town.

The Indonesian Version (my translation)

Dahulu kala hidup seorang anak pembersih cerobong asap bernama Tom. Namanya singkat dan sangat familiar sehingga tidak sulit bagi kalian untuk mengingatnya. Ia tinggal di sebuah kota besar di Negeri Utara, negeri yang memiliki banyak cerobong asap untuk dibersihkan dan sedikit uang untuk diperoleh oleh Tom untuk kemudian dihambur-hamburkan oleh tuannya. Tom tidak dapat membaca dan menulis, dan ia tidak peduli. Ia tidak pernah mandi karena tidak ada air di lapangan tempatnya tinggal. Ia tidak pernah diajari berdoa. Ia tidak pernah mendengar apapun tentang Tuhan, kecuali dalam kata-kata yang seharusnya tidak pernah ia dengar. Kadang-kadang ia menangis, kadang-kadang ia tertawa. Ia menangis ketika lutut dan sikunya terluka saat ia memanjat cerobong asap dan ketika matanya kemasukan debu (ia mengalami hal ini tiap hari). Ia juga menangis ketika tuannya memukulnya (ia mengalami hal ini tiap hari). Ia pun menangis ketika ia tidak mendapat cukup makanan (ia juga mengalami hal ini tiap hari). Dan ia tertawa ketika ia bermain lempar-lemparan koin dengan teman-temannya, atau bermain lompat katak, atau melempari batu pada kaki kuda yang sedang berjalan, yang memang sangat menyenangkan, apalagi ketika mereka dapat bersembunyi di balik dinding setelah melakukannya. Sementara itu, Tom menganggap bahwa membersihkan cerobong asap, kelaparan, dan dipukuli majikannya sebagai suatu hal yang alami dan wajar seperti halnya hujan, salju, dan gemuruh. Ia bertahan menghadapinya sampai semua itu berakhir, seperti keledai tua yang bertahan dalam badai. Setelah itu, ia akan menggosok telinganya dan bersenang-senang dan membayangkan tentang masa-masa bahagia di masa depan ketika ia akan menjadi seorang pria dewasa, seorang Boss para pembersih cerobong asap yang duduk di penginapan sambil menenggak bir dan menghisap cerutu, bermain kartu, dan mengenakan beludru dan kaki palsu, dan memelihara bull-dog putih yang memiliki telinga berwarna abu-abu, dan memasukkan anak-anak anjingnya ke dalam saku baju, selayaknya pria sejati. Dan bila ia sanggup, ia akan memiliki penerus, satu, dua, atau tiga anak pembersih cerobong asap. Tom akan menyakiti dan memukuli mereka seperti yang tuannya lakukan padanya dulu dan menyuruh mereka membawa pulang kantong berisi abu, sementara ia menunggang keledainya, dengan cerutu di mulutnya dan bunga di kancing bajunya, seperti raja yang diiringi para tentaranya. Ya, banyak kejadian menyenangkan terjadi. Dan ketika tuannya mengizinkan Tom mencicipi sisa birnya, ia menjadi anak yang paling bahagia di kota.

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So.... what do you think? Is it readable enough? xD

I'm gonna share my favourite dialogues from the movie Kramer Vs. Kramer. This movie is simple yet really moving. :')

JOANNA: I want my son.

TED: You can't have him.

JOANNA: Don't get defensive. Don't try to bully me, okay.

TED: I'm not getting defensive. Joanna, you're the one who left the house 15 months a go.

JOANNA: I don't care.

TED: Do you think you still have a right..?

JOANNA: I am still his mother.

TED: Well, million miles away, just because you sent him postcards, doesn't mean...

JOANNA: I never stop loving him, I never stop wanting him.

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SHAUNESSY: Now then, Mrs. Kramer, you say that you were married for eight years. Is that right?

JOANNA: Yes.

SHAUNESSY: In all that time did your husband ever strike you or you physically abuse in any way.

JOANNA: No.

SHAUNESSY: Did your husband strike or physically abuse his child in any way?

JOANNA: No.

SHAUNESSY: Would you describe your husband as an alcoholic?

JOANNA: No.

SHAUNESSY: A heavy drinker?

JOANNA: No.

SHAUNESSY: Was he unfaithful?

JOANNA: No.

SHAUNESSY: Did he ever fail to provide for you?

JOANNA: No.

SHAUNESSY: Well, I can certainly see why you left him.

GRESSEN: Objection.

SHAUNESSY: How long do you plan to live in New York, Mrs. Kramer?

JOANNA: Permanently.

SHAUNESSY: How many boy friends have you had --permanently?

GRESSEN: Objection your honor on the grounds of vagueness.

Judge: I'll allow it.

JOANNA: I don't recall.

SHAUNESSY: Well more than three, less than thirty-three, permanently?

GRESSEN: Objection!

JUDGE: Overruled. The witness will answer, please.

JOANNA: Somewhere in between.

SHAUNESSY: Do you have a lover now?

JOANNA: Yes I'm seeing someone now.

SHAUNESSY: Is that...permanent?

JOANNA: I...I don't know...

SHAUNESSY: Then, we don't really know, do we, when you say "permanently" if you plan to live in New York, or even to keep the child for that matter, since you've never really done anything in your life that was continuing, stable, or could be regarded as permanent.

GRESSEN-- Objection! I must request that the counsel be prevented from harassing the witness.

Judge: Sustained.

SHAUNESSY: I'll put it another way counselor, what is the longest personal relationship in your life outside of your parents or girlfriends?

JOANNA: I suppose that would be...with my child.

SHAUNESSY: Whom you've seen twice in a year? Mrs. Kramer, your ex-husband, wasn't he the longest personal relationship in your life? Would you speak up Mrs. Kramer, I couldn't hear that.

JOANNA: Yes...

SHAUNESSY: How long was that?

JOANNA: We were married a year before the baby. And then seven years after that.

SHAUNESSY: So, you were a failure at the one most important relationship in your life.

GRESSEN: Objection!

JUDGE: Overruled. The witness' opinion on this is relevant.

JOANNA: I was not a failure.

SHAUNESSY: Oh? What do you call it then--a success? The marriage ended

in divorce?

JOANNA: I consider it less my failure than his.

SHAUNESSY: Congratulations, Mrs. Kramer. You have just rewritten matrimonial law. You were both divorced, Mrs. Kramer.

GRESSEN: Objection!

SHAUNESSY: Your honor, I would like to ask if this model of stability and respectability has ever succeeded at anything? Mrs. Kramer, were you a failure

at the longest, most important personal relationship in your life?

JUDGE: Please answer the question, Mrs. Kramer.

JOANNA: It did not succeed.

SHAUNESSY: Not so close, Mrs. Kramer--you. Were you a failure at the one most important personal relation-ship of your life? Were you?

TED: (Whispering) No.

JOANNA: (Looking at Ted. Whispering) Yes.

JUDGE: Is that a "yes", Mrs. Kramer?

JOANNA: Yes. (crying)

SHAUNESSY: No further questions.

TED: Do you need to be so rough on her?

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JOANNA: How do I look?

TED: Terrific.

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This couple is totally one of my all-time favourite couple. I'm addicted to watching Kramer Vs. Kramer. Too bad I can only watch it on Youtube. The first time I watched the movie was years a go on Metro TV. T___T

I really wish to tell you guys about what has been going on recently in my life. Anyway, I didn't have much time to do so because there are a lot of things to do as there are a lot of things that have changed in my life. Yes, I'm working now. Despite of the debatable definition of "work" itself, I consider myself having a professional career.

I have at least four jobs. An assistant, a teacher, a reporter, and an administration staff. However, in this post, I will focus on my job as an assistant lecturer and a teacher. I'll talk about the other jobs later in next posts.

The first one, as I mentioned earlier in my previous post, I'm an assistant lecturer. Hmmm... I guess I won't talk much about this job. I enjoy teaching, giving academic advices to my juniors, but... teaching college students is much more complicated than teaching school students, if you know what I'm saying. Other than that, I was suddenly struck by the idea of "it's-all-about-the-money" cliche problem. Well, I won't elaborate more on that. :P

Realizing that I cannot survive living only as an assistant lecturer, I tried to find other jobs so that at least I could eat. Yes, I used to work as a translator with a quite reasonable salary but I didn't find the office hour suits me. Somehow I realized that I'm too headstrong to obey all the rules there (Anyway, I've met some great people and got some experiences. So I win some, I lose some. And that's life. I know). And so I decided to make a "rigid search" (as Alex Perchov from the movie Everything Is Illuminated said) to find a suitable job.

I have applied for several different jobs and have done several different interviews. Some of them failed due to my unconvincing appearance/performance during the interviews. Some others failed due to my doubt on the contract/agreement (including the salary, the location, the work hour, etc).

Anyway, I was finally accepted as the teacher in one of the Bimbels in Jabodetabek. I gave extra lessons to highschool students, especially those who wanted to enter universities, more specifically, Universitas Indonesia (the university that I have a love-hate relationship with). It's a lot of fun because this job doesn't tie me with 2-year contract or 3-million penalty (if I couldn't commit to the contract. And obviously I couldn't because I'm planning to take a Master degree next year) and offers me more flexible time.

And the students are so funny and honest. For me, they're just like angels. I know that sometimes they don't obey the rules, they've always been procrastinating, and sometimes they laugh overly out loud. But I like them. Seriously. When I teach them, I feel hope. I can see in their eyes that they're overexcited about everything. Including about their study and their future universities. And for me that's good. It's a lot more fun than seeing some college students (including myself back then) that already lost their ways in university, confused whether or not they should continue their study or take another SIMAK/SNMPTN/UMB just to runaway from their current college life (even though there's no guarantee that they would do better in other faculties/other universities).

These highschool students are different. I know that some of them were disappointed that they weren't accepted in UI. But I feel hope in their eyes, and they're not afraid to take SNMPTN and UMB to achieve their dreams (even if SNMPTN and UMB don't offer higher probability for them to be accepted in UI). But they don't give up. Some of them are realistic enough to realize that being accepted in UI is such a difficult thing to do. But they haven't given in yet. That's what makes me happier to teach them than to teach college students. When I teach them (these highschool students), I still feel hope. I feel "future" in their eyes. I feel grateful being given an opportunity to teach them.

Okay, I think that's all that I can say at the moment. My sister reminded me to take a bath so that she could use this laptop. Thanks for the reminder, sis. Bye, readers.

A short story written by me. Dedicated to my Mom. I do love you, Mom. I just don't love those people around you...

Pada zaman yang tidak terlalu dahulu kala, di sebuah kota, tinggallah seorang anak perempuan bernama Kaya. Kaya tinggal di sebuah rumah besar bersama ibunya. Setiap hari, ibunya menyuruh Kaya untuk pergi ke sekolah. Kaya tidak suka sekolah. Ia selalu dijahili oleh anak-anak lain di sekolah. Setiap hari, anak-anak mengejeknya, Berkali-kali Kaya meminta mereka untuk diam, tetapi mereka tidak mau diam dan terus mengejek Kaya.

Suatu hari, ketika hari sedang hujan, Kaya sudah sangat kesal dengan anak-anak di sekolahnya. Ia tidak ingin sekolah. “Aku tidak ingin sekolah, Ma,” begitu kata Kaya pada ibunya. “Tapi kamu harus sekolah. Kamu harus belajar di sekolah supaya pintar,” ujar ibunya.

Kemudian ibunya juga menasihati Kaya agar mau bergaul dengan anak-anak lain di sekolah. “Aku tidak mau bergaul dengan mereka. Mereka hanya mau menghinaku,” seru Kaya dengan kesal. Ibunya berkata, “Kamu belum mencoba. Kamu harus berusaha untuk bisa berteman dengan mereka.”

Kaya yang kesal akhirnya berangkat ke sekolah sambil membanting pintu. Ia berjalan di tengah hujan tanpa membawa payung. “Semua orang tidak pernah mendengarkan aku dan berbicara sesuka mereka! Aku ingin pergi ke dunia tempat orang-orang tidak bisa berbicara!” seru Kaya sambil berteriak ke langit.

Saat itu, tiba-tiba Kaya mendengar suara dari belakangnya. “Keinginanmu bisa kukabulkan,” ujar suara itu. Kaya menengok ke belakang dan melihat seorang pria tinggi yang berpakaian serba hijau. Pria tinggi itu mengenakan topi hijau, kemeja hijau, jas hijau, celana panjang hijau, dan sepatu hijau. Ia juga membawa sebuah payung berwarna hijau.

“Keinginanmu akan kukabulkan, Kaya. Tapi kau harus bersedia memakai payungku ini,” ujar pria berpakaian hijau tersebut.
“Kamu siapa? Kenapa tahu namaku?” tanya Kaya pada pria berpakaian hijau itu.
“Aku Tuan Payung dari Negeri Pelangi. Aku mengabulkan keinginan anak-anak yang sedang bersedih. Tapi dengan satu syarat, anak yang bersedih itu harus bersedia mengenakan payungku,” ujar Tuan Payung dari Negeri Pelangi.
Kaya sebenarnya tidak terlalu percaya dengan kata-kata Tuan Payung dari Negeri Pelangi. Akan tetapi, ia tetap menerima payung tersebut dari Tuan Payung. Kaya pikir, “Mungkin orang ini hanya orang baik yang ingin meminjamkan payung padaku supaya aku tidak kehujanan.”

Ketika Kaya memegang payung tersebut, tiba-tiba Kaya terbang dengan payung hijau itu ke atas langit. Kaya terbang melewati awan. Hujan perlahan berhenti dan langit pun mulai terlihat cerah. Kaya melihat ada pelangi muncul di tengah-tengah awan. Di sana, ada anak-anak kecil yang bersayap sedang bermain-main. Mereka berseluncur di atas pelangi. Mereka memainkan awan seolah-olah awan-awan itu adalah gulali. Anak-anak itu kemudian membentuk sebuah tulisan dengan awan-awan tersebut. Tulisan itu menunjukkan pesan: “Selamat Datang di Negeri Pelangi”

Kaya yang masih melayang dengan payung hijaunya, kemudian mendekat ke arah anak-anak bersayap itu. Anak-anak bersayap itu mengajaknya bermain tanpa berbicara apa-apa. Mereka hanya bisa tertawa dan bersuka cita. Mereka tidak mengeluarkan kata-kata yang menyakiti Kaya. Semua sesuai dengan harapan Kaya. Kaya bahkan tidak perlu memperkenalkan diri pada mereka, mereka sudah langsung menerima Kaya sebagai bagian dari Negeri Pelangi. Kaya memang tidak kehilangan suaranya, tapi ia tidak perlu mengeluarkan suaranya karena tidak ada yang menuntutnya untuk bersuara. Kaya hanya diajak tertawa dan bersenandung bersama mereka.

Sejak saat itu, Kaya tinggal di Negeri Pelangi dan tiap hari bermain bersama anak-anak bersayap. Mereka berseluncur di atas pelangi, memakan gulali awan, menangkap bintang-bintang di saat malam, tidur di atas Nyonya Bulan, mendengarkan senandung burung yang berterbangan, dan menonton pertunjukan pantomim yang dilakukan oleh Tuan Matahari. Tidak ada yang bertengkar karena tidak ada yang berbicara. Sehari-harinya, mereka hanya tertawa dan bersenandung bersama.

Pada suatu malam, ada sebuah bintang jatuh. Anak-anak Negeri Pelangi berusaha mengejar bintang jatuh tersebut. Mereka berlomba-lomba untuk menangkapnya. Biasanya, setiap malam, anak-anak bersayap akan mengejar dan menangkap bintang tanpa harus bertengkar karena jumlah bintang di malam hari tak terhitung banyaknya. Mereka tidak pernah kekurangan bintang. Akan tetapi, kali ini mereka bertengkar memperebutkan bintang jatuh karena jumlah bintang jatuh hanya ada satu. Anak-anak bersayap yang tadinya hidup damai kini jadi saling memukul dan menjambak. Mereka menarik-narik bintang jatuh sambil saling membentak.

Kaya berusaha mendiamkan dan melerai teman-temannya. Namun, anak-anak bersayap tidak mendengarkan. Karena semua anak berteriak, secara bersahut-sahutan, kata-kata Kaya tidak lagi didengarkan. Akhirnya Kaya pun mengumpulkan gumpalan-gumpalan awan dan membuat tulisan di dekat pelangi. Kaya menulis “MAAF” dengan huruf yang sangat besar.

Nyonya Bulan memantulkan cahaya dari Tuan Matahari untuk membantu Kaya menerangi tulisan dari gumpalan awan tersebut. Karena cahaya yang dipantulkan Nyonya Bulan cukup terang, akhirnya anak-anak bersayap memperhatikan tulisan tersebut. “Kalian harus saling meminta “Maaf,” ujar Kaya pada anak-anak bersayap. “Ayo kalian bilang “maaf” satu sama lain,” pinta Kaya pada teman-temannya.

Setelah mendengar anjuran Kaya, anak-anak bersayap saling mengucapkan “maaf.” Setelah mengucapkan kata itu, mereka tidak lagi merasa kesal satu sama lain. Mereka menangis dan menyesal sudah bertengkar hanya karena ingin memperebutkan bintang jatuh. Meskipun begitu, mereka masih bingung harus melakukan apa pada bintang jatuh tersebut. Saat itulah, Tuan Payung yang berpakaian serba hijau tiba-tiba datang dan menawarkan bantuan pada Kaya. “Kaya, karena kamu sudah mendamaikan anak-anak bersayap dan mengajari mereka kata “maaf,” kamu boleh mendapatkan bintang jatuh itu dan menggunakannya sesukamu,” ujar Tuan Payung.

Anak-anak bersayap setuju. Mereka menyerahkan bintang jatuh itu pada Kaya. Ketika memegang bintang jatuh itu, Kaya teringat akan ibunya yang sudah ia tinggalkan sejak lama. Ia ingat sempat marah dan membanting pintu di depan ibunya. Kaya ingat bahwa ia sendiri belum meminta “maaf” pada ibunya. “Aku ingin bintang jatuh ini membawaku pulang ke bumi.”
Awalnya anak-anak bersayap bersedih mendengar Kaya akan pulang ke bumi. “Aku senang berteman dengan kalian, tapi rumahku di bumi. Aku harus kembali ke bumi,” ujar Kaya. Setelah mengucapkan perpisahan dan bermain dengan anak-anak bersayap untuk terakhir kalinya, Kaya diantarkan Tuan Payung kembali ke bumi dengan mengendarai bintang jatuh.

Kaya kemudian sampai di jalan tempat dia pertama kali bertemu Tuan Payung. Tuan Payung kemudian pergi kembali ke Negeri Pelangi bersama bintang jatuh. “Terima kasih Tuan Payung! Sampai jumpa,” kata Kaya sambil melambaikan tangan.
Di jalan itu, hujan tidak lagi turun. Kaya tidak lagi kebasahan. Ia berlari kembali menuju rumahnya. Kaya memanggil ibunya. “Mama, aku sudah pergi terlalu lama, ya?” tanya Kaya. “Kamu baru pergi tadi, Kaya. Dan kamu lupa bawa payungmu,” kata ibunya sambil menyerahkan sebuah payung hijau pada Kaya.
“Maafkan aku, Mama,” ujar Kaya sambil memeluk ibunya. “Aku akan pergi ke sekolah sesuai dengan perintah Mama. Dan aku tidak perlu payung hijau ini lagi, Ma. Hujan sudah berhenti,” kata Kaya sambil tersenyum.

Sejak saat itu, Kaya kembali menjalani hidup bersama ibunya, meski tidak selalu bahagia.