After several weeks of reading through an interview from the Directory of Traditional Healers & Medicinal Plants in the CNMI, our practice group will be reading a story this week from a section of Istreyas Mariånas: Chamorro (accessible via the Inetnun Kutturan Natibun Marianas). The story underscores the importance of helping those who have helped you, even if it isn’t in your own best interest. The author’s narrative style is vivid and conveys clearly his childhood memory of overhearing a conversation between adults and his later reflections in adulthood when he realizes its lessons later in life. In this post we have the Chamorro text, an English translation, and a Chamorro audio narration by Jay Che’le. Happy reading!
Put i Tinemtum i Manåmku’
ginin Istreyas Mariånas: Chamorro
Tinigi’: Joaquin Flores Borja
Manuel Flores Borja
Sandra Chung
I ottru na istoria put i tinemtum i manåmku’ yan put i hemplun i minaolik i ayudu yan i kinimprendi gi taotao, esti gui’ ta’lu istoria put si nanå-hu.
Si tatå-hu måtai anai mandíkiki’ ham, singku åñus dispues di i sinisedin i hetnu1 yan i che’lu-hu neni gi espitåt, kumu esta esti munhåyan ta sångan na istoria. Pues, si nanå-hu anai måtai si tatå-hu, ti umásagua dispues, ya mañåga ham Susupe. Lao anai ti måmatai si tatå-hu, yanggin bakasión i iskuela, manhåhanao ham para i lanchu giya AsTeo para bai in fañåga gi lanchu. Lao anai måtai si tatå-hu, put mandíkiki’ ham ya si nanå-hu ti ha tungu’ drumaiba, mañåga ha’ ham giya Susupe. Gi lanchu, AsTeo, bula trongkun niyuk yan fruta siha.
Anai måtai si tatå-hu, gi put para i lina’la’-måmi, finéne’na in chagi manmaño’su’2 niyuk sa’ bula gi lanchu. I sine’su’ niyuk ha bebendi si nanå-hu. Lao dispues pumoddung påpa’ i presiun i balin i sine’su’ niyuk. Pues, mamåra ham nu esti sa’ i presiun i sine’su’ yan todu i minakkat cho’chu’ ti chumilung3, ti bumåli.
Dispues gi tiempu, si nanå-hu mumacho’chu’ gi nietå-ña, gi primå-hu ni gai tenda Susupe, ti chågu’ yan i gima’måmi. Dispues, hami lokkui’, guåhu yan i dos na åmku’ che’lu-hu palåo’an, manmachocho’chu’ ham gi priman-måmi yanggin måkpu’ i iskuela yan an Såbalu. Kada diha humåhanao si nanå-hu para i che’cho’-ña, fuera di an Damenggu.
Dispues, un såkkan, anai måttu i che’lu-ña si nanå-hu ginin Amerika, ya ha håtsa i bisnes-ña lokkui’, måttu gi gima’-måmi giya Susupe. Gaigi ha’ yu’ guihi ya hu hunguk ha’ håfa masåsangan.
I che’lu-ña si nanå-hu, ha faisin si nanå-hu kuåntu ma’apåpas-ña4 gi che’cho’-ña. Si nanå-hu ha faisin i che’luña put sa’ håfa na finafaisin5 gui’ nu atyu na kuestión. I che’lu-ña si nanå-hu, ilek-ña, “Sa’ bai hu nå’i hao dopbli ya un dalak yu’.” Insigidas maguf yu’ anai hu hunguk esti i finu’ i che’lun nanå-hu sa’ siempri guaha mås bula si nanåhu ha gåganna 6para hami. Lao ti esti humuyong-ña7.
Si nanå-hu esti gui’ ilek-ña: “I che’lu-hu, ti siña hao hu dalak. Ti siña na bai hu yuti’ på’gu i håyi yu’ umayuda anai hu gef nisisita ayudu. Ya på’gu, guiya lokkui’ ha nisisita ayudu-hu. Pues bai hu såga ya bai hu ayuda gui’, ya ti bai hu dalak hao. Taigui hao, i che’lu-hu, anai hu nisisita ayudu, gaigi hao Amerika. Si Yu’us ma’åsi’ nu i para ayudu-mu nu hami på’gu, lao ti siña hu dalak hao. Ti siña na bai hu maleffa nu i ayudu ni måttu anai hu gef nisisita ayudu. Ha ayuda yu’ guihi na ora, ya på’gu na ora ha nisisita i ayudu-hu. Pues dispensa yu’ sa’ ti siña hu maleffånggui 8i ayudu-ña anai måttu gi ora-hu.
Anai hu hunguk esti i håfa ilek-ña si nanå-hu, gi tutuhun, ti hu kumprendi. Lao på’gu, anai åmku’ yu’, hu kumprendi håfa si nanå-hu kumeke’ilek-ña nu i ineppeñ-ña nu i che’lu-ña. I che’lu-ña si nanå-hu, ha kumprendi yan ha rispeta i fino’-ña si nanå-hu nu guiya, ya tåya’ puminiti, manggegef afa’maolik9 ha’ ham mo’na todus.
Para guåhu, esti lokkui’ na istoria, a’annuk i hemplun i tinemtum i manåmku’ siha. Pues atyu ta’lu na ta såsangan guini, put magåhit na sinisedi, yan put i sustansiåñ-ña ni siña ta chuli’ para i hemplun taimanu hit man’a’ayuda10, man’a’agofli’i’11, yan man’a’afa’maolik mo’na gi lina’lå’-ta.
About the Wisdom of Elders
from Istreyas Mariånas: Chamorro
Written by:
Joaquin Flores Borja
Manuel Flores Borja
Sandra Chung
The next (other) story about the wisdom of the elders and the example of the goodness of help and understanding amongst people, here again is a story about my mother.
My father died when we were small, five years after the occurence of the incubator and my baby sibling in the hospital, this had already happened in the story we’re telling. And so, my mother, when my father died, did not marry after, and we lived in Susupe. But when my father was alive (had not died), if the school was on break, we went to the ranch at AsTeo to stay at the ranch. But when my father died, because we were small and my mother did not know how to drive, we just stayed in Susupe. At the ranch, AsTeo, there were many coconut and fruit trees.
When my father died, for the sake of our livelihood, first we tried to extract coconut meat because there was a lot (of coconut) at the ranch. The coconut meat my mother was selling. But after afterward, the value of coconut meat fell. So, we stopped this because of the price of the coconut meat and all of hard work didn’t balance, it wasn’t worth (it).
Afterwards (in time), my mother began to work for her granddaughter, at my cousin’s who had a store in Susupe, not far from our house. Afterward, we also, me and my two old(er) sisters, were working at our cousin’s when school ended and if it was Saturday. Every day my mother was going to her work, other than on Sunday.
After, one year, when my mother’s sibling arrived from America, and he started his business as well, he/she arrived at our house in Susupe. I was still there and I did hear what was said.
My mother’s sibling asked my mother how much she was being paid at her job. My mother asked her sibling why was she being asked that question. My mother’s sibling said, “Because I will give you double and you will follow me.” I was instantly happy when I heard this, the words of my mother’s sibling because surely there would be more (that) my mother would be earning for us. But this was not the outcome.
My mother, this is what she said, “I my sibling, I cannot follow you. I cannot now throw away the one who helped me when I really needed help. And now, she also needs my help. So I will stay and I will help her, and I will follow you. You were absent, my sibling, when I neded help, you were in America. Thank you for what would be your help to us now, but I cannot follow you. It’s not possible that I will forget the help that arrived when I really needed help. She helped me at that hour, and at this hour she needs my help. And so, I am sorry because I cannot forget her help when it arrived at my hour (of need).
When I heard this, what my mother said, at first I didn’t understand it. But now, when I am old, I understand what my mother meant with her reply to her sibling. My mother’s sibling understood and respected my mother’s words to him/her, and there were no hurt feelings, we all really cooperated with each other / helped each other out moving forward.
For myself, in this story too, shows the example of the wisdom of the elders. And that’s also why we’re saying it here, because it’s a true story, and because of its meaning which we can take as an example of how we can be helping each other, loving each other, and cooperating with each other going forward in our lives.
NOTES
- sinisedin i hetnu: This is in reference to the previous story, when the author’s mother took the youngest sibling to the hospital. The hetnu or hotnu (literally “oven”) is the word they used to refer to the incubator at the hospital.
↩︎ - manmaño’su’: The root word here is so’su’, which is a transitive verb that means “slice to extract out (coconut meat) from the shell”. This word has been transformed with both the indefinite man- prefix and the plural man- prefix.
↩︎ - chumilung: The root word is chilung or chilong, which means “proportionate, equal, uniform, of like measure.”
↩︎ - i ma’apåpas-ña: The root word is åpas, which means “wage, salary.” It has the possessive pronoun -ña, to make it refer to the mother’s salary. It was then reduplicated and transformed with the passive ma- prefix to mean “what she is being paid.”
↩︎ - sa’ håfa na finafaisin gui’ nu atyu na kuestión: The root word for finafaisin is faisen, which means “to ask a question.” Faisen is transformed with the in infix so it can put more focus on the person being asked.
↩︎ - gåganna: This can mean “to win something” or “to earn.”
↩︎ - humuyong-ña: This means “his/her/its outcome”. The root word is huyong which means “to go out.” Attaching the possessive pronoun -ña gives us a little more flexibility, and we can use this word to refer to outcomes. For example: Tumaiguini humuyong-ña. “It came out like this.”
↩︎ - maleffånggui: The root word is maleffa which means “to forget.” It is transformed here to be used more like a “typical” transitive verb, which takes a Subject – Verb – Object order and is used with hu type pronouns. In its root form of maleffa, it takes the Verb-Subject order and is used with a yu’ type pronoun.
↩︎ - manggegef afa’maolik: “Really being fair with each other, helping each other out”. This word has several transformations which I will show in the table below, starting from the root word.
↩︎ - man’á’ayuda: “Helping each other.” The root word is ayuda which is “to help.” It has the reciprocal á- prefix added, so that we help “each other.” Finally, the plural man- prefix is added for 3+ people.
↩︎ - man’á’agofli’i’: “Loving each other.” The word gofli’i is another word for “to love”. The reciprocal á- prefix is added to mean “love each other.” Then it is transformed with reduplication, and also the plural man- prefix for 3+ people.
↩︎
| maolik | good |
| fa’maolik | to make good fa’- = to treat as, to make like |
| áfa’maolik | To be fair with each other; to help each other out (Literally: to make each other good) á- = reciprocal prefix; when this is added to verbs, it marks that two or more subjects are doing the action to one another |
| gef áfa’maolik | To be really fair with each other; to really help each other out gef = very (you’ll also see this as gof) |
| gegef áfa’maolik | Being really fair with each other; really helping each other out gégef = very (transformed with reduplication) |
| manggegef afa’maolik | Being really fair with each other or really helping each other out (for 3+ people) man- = plural man- prefix (it becomes mang- because it’s added to a word that begins with “g”) |
References
Borja, Joaquin Flores, Manuel Flores Borja, and Sandra Chung. 2006. Istreyas Mariånas: Chamorro. PDF. 1st ed. Estreyas Marianas Publications. https://natibunmarianas.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/istreyas.marianas.pdf.
Lengguahi-ta 