The Journey of Two Moons (مسيرة قمرين) — Page 18

Arabic text · النص

Line-by-line translation · المعاني

مِنَ النَّافِذَةِ الْعُلْوِيَّةِ إِلَى الْفِنَاءِ الْخَلْفِيِّ بِالْأَسْفَلِ كَانَ نِصْفُ الْفِنَاءِ الصَّغِيرِ جِدًّا مَرْصُوفًا بِالْأَسْمَنْتِ، وَالنِّصْفُ الْآخَرُ مُغَطًّى بِرُقْعَةٍ مِنَ الْعُشْبِ يُمْكِنُ لِبَقَرَتِنَا التَّخَيُّلِيَّةِ أَنْ تَلْتَهِمَهَا فِي قَضْمَتَيْنِ.

From the upstairs window looking down at the backyard, half of the tiny space was paved with cement, while the other half was covered in a patch of grass that our imaginary cow could devour in two bites.

وَكَانَ يُحِيطُ بِالْفِنَاءِ سِيَاجٌ خَشَبِيٌّ مُرْتَفِعٌ، وَعَلَى يَمِينِهِ وَيَسَارِهِ رُقَعٌ مُسَيَّجَةٌ مُطَابِقَةٌ لَهُ.

The yard was surrounded by a high wooden fence, with identical fenced-in patches to its left and right.

بَعْدَ وُصُولِ شَاحِنَةِ النَّقْلِ وَحَشْرِ رَجُلَيْنِ أَثَاثَنَا الَّذِي نَقَلَاهُ مِنْ بَايْبَانْكْس إِلَى مَنْزِلِنَا بَالِغِ الصِّغَرِ، دَخَلْتُ أَنَا وَأَبِي بِصُعُوبَةٍ إِلَى غُرْفَةِ الْمَعِيشَةِ زَاحِفَيْنِ فَوْقَ الْأَرَائِكِ وَالْكَرَاسِيِّ وَالطَّاوِلَاتِ وَصَنَادِيقَ لَا تُعَدُّ وَلَا تُحْصَى.

After the moving truck arrived and two men crammed in the furniture they had hauled from Bybanks to our tiny house, my father and I struggled to get into the living room, crawling over sofas, chairs, tables, and countless boxes.

قَالَ أَبِي: «مَمْم، يَبْدُو وَكَأَنَّنَا حَاوَلْنَا أَنْ نَحْشُرَ جَمِيعَ الْحَيَوَانَاتِ دَاخِلَ حَظِيرَةِ الدَّجَاجِ».

My father said, 'Hmm, it looks like we tried to cram all the animals into the chicken coop.'

بَعْدَ ثَلَاثَةِ أَيَّامٍ، بَدَأْتُ ارْتِيَادَ الْمَدْرَسَةِ وَرَأَيْتُ فِيبِي مَرَّةً أُخْرَى.

Three days later, I started school and saw Phoebe again.

كَانَتْ طَالِبَةً فِي صَفِّي.

She was in my class.

كَانَ مُعْظَمُ الطُّلَّابِ فِي مَدْرَسَتِي الْجَدِيدَةِ يَتَحَدَّثُونَ بِعِبَارَاتٍ مُنْدَفِعَةٍ حَادَّةٍ، وَيَلْبَسُونَ مَلَابِسَ جَدِيدَةً رَسْمِيَّةَ السَّمْتِ، وَيَضَعُونَ تَقْوِيمًا لِلْأَسْنَانِ.

Most of the students at my new school spoke in sharp, impulsive bursts, wore formal-looking new clothes, and had braces on their teeth.

وَكَانَتْ أَغْلَبُ الْفَتَيَاتِ يَصْفِفْنَ شُعُورَهُنَّ بِالطَّرِيقَةِ نَفْسِهَا؛ تَصْفِيفَةٌ قَصِيرَةٌ حَتَّى أَكْتَافِهِنَّ (يُسَمِّينَهَا «بُوب») وَقُصَّةٌ طَوِيلَةٌ يَهْزُزْنَ رُءُوسَهُنَّ لِيُبْعِدْنَهَا عَنْ أَعْيُنِهِنَّ.

Most of the girls styled their hair the same way: a short cut down to their shoulders (they called it a 'bob') and long bangs they had to shake their heads to keep out of their eyes.

كَانَ لَدَيْنَا يَوْمًا مَا حِصَانٌ يَفْعَلُ ذَلِكَ.

We once had a horse that did that.

ظَلَّ الْجَمِيعُ يَلْمِسُونَ شَعْرِي.

Everyone kept touching my hair.

وَيَسْأَلُونَنِي: «أَلَا تَقُصِّينَهُ قَطُّ؟» «أَيُمْكِنُكِ أَنْ تَجْلِسِي عَلَيْهِ؟» «كَيْفَ تَغْسِلِينَهُ؟» «أَهُوَ بِطَبِيعَتِهِ أَسْوَدُ هَكَذَا؟ هَلْ تَسْتَخْدِمِينَ مُرَطِّبًا؟»

They would ask me, 'Don't you ever cut it?' 'Can you sit on it?' 'How do you wash it?' 'Is it naturally black like that? Do you use moisturizer?'

لَمْ أَسْتَطِعْ أَنْ أُحَدِّدَ إِنْ كَانَ شَعْرِي يُعْجِبُهُمْ أَمْ أَنَّهُمْ يَرَوْنَ أَنِّي أَبْدُو مِثْلَ رَسْمٍ كَارْتُونِيٍّ.

I couldn't tell if they liked my hair or if they thought I looked like a cartoon.

كَانَتْ فَتَاةٌ تُدْعَى مَارِي لُو فِينِي تَقُولُ عِبَارَاتٍ غَرِيبَةً لِلْغَايَةِ، كَأَنْ تَقُولَ فَجْأَةً «قَدِيرٌ» أَوْ «غَبِيٌّ!»

A girl named Mary Lou Finney would say the strangest things, suddenly blurting out 'Almighty!' or 'Stupid!'

لَمْ أَفْهَمْ مَا كَانَتْ تَقْصِدُهُ بِتِلْكَ الْكَلِمَاتِ.

I didn't understand what she meant by those words.

وَكَانَ هُنَاكَ مِيجَان وَكْرِيسْتِي اللَّتَانِ تَتَقَافَزَانِ مِثْلَ حَبَّاتِ الْفُشَارِ وَبِيث آن مُتَقَلِّبَةُ الْمِزَاجِ، وَأَلِيكْس ذُو الْوَجْنَتَيْنِ الْوَرْدِيَّتَيْنِ.

There were Megan and Christie, who bounced around like popcorn, moody Beth Ann, and Alex with the rosy cheeks.

وَكَانَ هُنَاكَ بِن الَّذِي يَرْسُمُ رُسُومًا كَارْتُونِيَّةً طَوَالَ الْيَوْمِ، وَمُعَلِّمُ لُغَةٍ إِنْجِلِيزِيَّةٍ غَرِيبُ الْأَطْوَارِ اسْمُهُ السَّيِّدُ بِيرْكْوَاي.

There was Ben, who drew cartoons all day, and an eccentric English teacher named Mr. Birkway.

وَكَانَ هُنَاكَ فِيبِي وِينْتَرَبُوتُوم.

Then there was Phoebe Winterbottom.

دَعَاهَا بِن «فْرِي بِي آيس بُوتُوم» وَرَسَمَ لَهَا صُورَةَ نَحْلَةٍ طَنَّانَةٍ مُلْتَصِقٌ بِعَجُزِهَا مُكَعَّبُ ثَلْجٍ.

Ben called her 'Free Bee Ice Bottom' and drew a picture of a bumblebee with an ice cube stuck to its rump.

مَزَّقَتْ فِيبِي الرَّسْمَةَ.

Phoebe tore up the drawing.

كَانَتْ فِيبِي فَتَاةً هَادِئَةً تُؤْثِرُ الِانْفِرَادَ بِنَفْسِهَا أَغْلَبَ الْوَقْتِ.

Phoebe was a quiet girl who preferred to be on her own most of the time.

كَانَ لَهَا وَجْهٌ مُسْتَدِيرٌ عَذْبٌ وَعَيْنَانِ وَاسِعَتَانِ كَبِيرَتَانِ زَرْقَاوَانِ بِلَوْنِ السَّمَاءِ.

She had a sweet, round face and large, wide, sky-blue eyes.

وَكَانَ يُحِيطُ بِهَذَا الْوَجْهِ الْعَذْبِ شَعْرُهَا الْقَصِيرُ الْمُجَعَّدُ الْأَصْفَرُ كَلَوْنِ عُشْبَةِ رِجْلِ الْغُرَابِ.

Framing that sweet face was short, curly, yellow hair, the color of crowfoot grass.

فِي الْأُسْبُوعِ الْأَوَّلِ، حِينَ كُنْتُ مَعَ أَبِي فِي مَنْزِلِ مَارْجَرِيت تَنَاوَلْنَا مَعَهَا الْعَشَاءَ ثَلَاثَ مَرَّاتٍ ذَلِكَ الْأُسْبُوعَ)، رَأَيْتُ وَجْهَ فِيبِي مَرَّتَيْنِ أُخْرَيَيْنِ فِي نَافِذَةِ غُرْفَتِهَا.

During that first week, while I was at Margaret's house with my father (we had dinner with her three times that week), I saw Phoebe's face twice more in her bedroom window.

لَوَّحْتُ لَهَا ذَاتَ مَرَّةٍ، لَكِنْ لَمْ يَبْدُ أَنَّهَا لَاحَظَتْ، وَلَمْ تَذْكُرْ قَطُّ فِي الْمَدْرَسَةِ أَنَّهَا رَأَتْنِي.

I waved at her once, but she didn't seem to notice, and she never mentioned at school that she had seen me.

Vocabulary · المفردات (49 verbs · 94 nouns)

• أَحَاطَ — to surround
• رَصَفَ — to pave
• غَطَّى — to cover
• أَمْكَنَ — to enable, to make possible
• اِلْتَهَمَ — to devour
• سَيَّجَ — to fence
• وَصَلَ — to arrive
• حَشَرَ — to cram
• نَقَلَ — to transport
• دَخَلَ — to enter
• زَحَفَ — to crawl
• عَدَّ — to count
• أَحْصَى — to enumerate
• قَالَ — to say
• بَدَا — to seem
• حَاوَلَ — to try
• بَدَأَ — to begin
• اِرْتَادَ — to frequent
• رَأَى — to see
• تَحَدَّثَ — to speak
• لَبِسَ — to wear
• وَضَعَ — to place
• صَفَّ — to arrange
• سَمَّى — to name
• هَزَّ — to shake
• أَبْعَدَ — to move away
• فَعَلَ — to do
• ظَلَّ — to remain
• لَمَسَ — to touch
• سَأَلَ — to ask
• قَصَّ — to cut
• جَلَسَ — to sit
• غَسَلَ — to wash
• اِسْتَخْدَمَ — to use
• اِسْتَطَاعَ — to manage to
• حَدَّدَ — to determine
• أَعْجَبَ — to please
• دَعَا — to call
• رَسَمَ — to draw
• مَزَّقَ — to tear
• آثَرَ — to prefer
• تَنَاوَلَ — to consume
• لَوَّحَ — to wave
• لَاحَظَ — to notice
• ذَكَرَ — to mention
• كَانَ — to be
• تَخَيَّلَ — to imagine
• صَفَّفَ — to style
• الْتَصَقَ — to stick
• مَسِيرَة — march
• قَمَر — moon
• نَافِذَة — window
• فِنَاء — courtyard
• أَسْفَل — bottom
• نِصْف — half
• أَسْمَنْت — cement
• رُقْعَة — patch
• عُشْب — grass
• بَقَرَة — cow
• قَضْمَة — bite
• سِيَاج — fence
• خَشَب — wood
• يَمِين — right
• يَسَار — left
• شَاحِنَة — truck
• نَقْل — transport
• رَجُل — man
• أَثَاث — furniture
• مَنْزِل — house
• صِغَر — smallness
• غُرْفَة — room
• مَعِيشَة — living
• أَرِيكَة — sofa
• كُرْسِيّ — chair
• طَاوِلَة — table
• صُنْدُوق — box
• حَيَوَان — animal
• حَظِيرَة — pen
• دَجَاج — chicken
• يَوْم — day
• مَدْرَسَة — school
• طَالِب — student
• صَفّ — class
• عِبَارَة — phrase
• مَلْبَس — clothes
• سَمْت — bearing
• تَقْوِيم — braces
• سِنّ — tooth
• فَتَاة — girl
• طَرِيقَة — way
• تَصْفِيفَةٌ — hairstyle
• كَتِف — shoulder
• قُصَّة — bangs
• رَأْس — head
• عَيْن — eye
• حِصَان — horse
• شَعْر — hair
• طَبِيعَة — nature
• مُرَطِّب — moisturizer
• رَسْم — drawing
• غَايَة — extreme
• كَلِمَة — word
• حَبَّة — grain
• فُشَار — popcorn
• مِزَاج — mood
• وَجْنَة — cheek
• لُغَة — language
• طَوْر — ways
• سَيِّد — sir
• صُورَة — picture
• نَحْلَة — bee
• عَجُز — buttocks
• مُكَعَّب — cube
• ثَلْج — ice
• وَقْت — time
• وَجْه — face
• لَوْن — color
• سَمَاء — sky
• عُشْبَة — herb
• غُرَاب — crow
• أُسْبُوع — week
• عَشَاء — dinner
• مَرَّة — time
• مُجَعَّد — curly
• أَصْفَر — yellow
• مَرْصُوف — paved
• أَسْوَد — black
• مُسْتَدِير — circular
• غَرِيب — foreign / strange
• آخَر — another
• أَغْلَب — most
• غَرِيبَة — strange
• زَاحِف — crawling
• مُغَطًّى — covered
• جَدِيدَة — new
• مُنْدَفِعَة — rushing
• مُلْتَصِق — attached
• مُرْتَفِع — elevated
• خَشَبِيٌّ — wooden
• هَادِئَة — calm
• إِنْجِلِيزِيَّة — English
• مَلَابِس — clothes
• أَطْوَار — behavior