14. 袂記當時開始家己講話

14. Bē-kì tang-sî khai-sí ka-tī kóng--ōe

"Chhǹg-á," lāu lâng tōa siaⁿ kóng. "I ē-tàng chò chin súi ê jī, ū cha̍p pōng tāng."

I bē-kì-tit tang-sî khai-sí kap ka-tī chhut-siaⁿ kóng-ōe. Í-chêng, ka-tī chi̍t-ê ê sî i ē chhiùⁿ-koa, ū-sî, tī hî-chûn a̍h-sī lia̍h-ku ê chûn téng, àm-sî lûn tio̍h i ka-tī hōaⁿ-tōa ê sî, i mā ē chhiùⁿ-koa. Ka-tī chi̍t-ê ê sî khai-sí chhut-siaⁿ kóng-ōe, khó-lêng sī tī gín-á lī-khui liáu-āu. Kóng chin, i mā bē-kì-tit lah. I kap gín-á chò-hóe lia̍h-hî ê sî, kan-ta pit-iàu ê sî in chiah kóng-ōe. Tī àm-sî a̍h-sī tú tio̍h hong-hō͘ bô chhut-chûn ê sî, in ē tap-chhùi-kó͘. It-poaⁿ jīm-ûi, tī hái-siōng, bô pit-iàu tō mài kóng-ōe chiah tio̍h, lāu lâng mā án-ne siūⁿ, án-ne chun-siú. M̄-koh, taⁿ i chhiâng-chāi tōa-siaⁿ kóng chhut i siūⁿ ê, hoán-chèng bē chhá-tio̍h lâng.

Pa̍t-lâng nā thiaⁿ-tio̍h góa chhut-siaⁿ ka-tī kóng-ōe, it-tēng kă tòng-siáu," i kóng. "Sū-si̍t góa bô siáu, bián chhap i. Ū-chîⁿ--ê, chûn ni̍h ū lajíoh kóng-ōe kap pò iá-kiû hō͘ thiaⁿ."

Taⁿ m̄-sī siūⁿ iá-kiû ê sî-chūn, i siūⁿ. Taⁿ kan-ta ài siūⁿ chi̍t ê tāi-chì: miā-tiong chù-tiāⁿ ê tāi-chì. Hit tīn hù-kīn khó-lêng ū tōa chiah--ê, i siūⁿ. Hit tīn teh thó-chia̍h ê chhǹg-á, góa kan-ta khioh tio̍h chi̍t bóe làu-tīn--ê. In cháu hn̄g--khì ah, koh kín.

Kin-á-ji̍t chúi-bīn ê hî lóng siû chin kín, koh hiòng tang-pak. Sī sî-kan ê koan-hē? A̍h-sī góa só͘ m̄-chai ê boeh piàn-thiⁿ ê sìn-hō?

Chit-má i khòaⁿ bē-tio̍h chheⁿ-sek ê hái-hōaⁿ, chí khòaⁿ tio̍h nâ-sek ê soaⁿ ná khàm seh ê pe̍h-sek soaⁿ-niā kap in téng-koân ná seh-soaⁿ ê pe̍h-hûn. Hái-sek chhim-chhim, ji̍t-kng tī chúi ni̍h, ná chhái-sek ê tòa. Pan-pan tiám-tiám ê hû-iû seng-bu̍t taⁿ hō͘ ji̍t-thâu chiò-kah í-keng bô--khì, lāu lâng kan-ta tī chheⁿ-lin-lin ê chúi tiong chhái-tòa, khòaⁿ tio̍h i ê soh-á ti̍t-ti̍t tîm-lo̍h chúi, hia ê chúi chhim-tō͘ ū chi̍t mai.

Hiah-ê chhǹg-á, thó-hái-lâng kā hit lūi ê hî lóng án-ne kiò, kan-ta boeh bē, a̍h-sī boeh ōaⁿ-chò jī ê sî, chiah ē hun-pia̍t in ê choân-sio̍k ê miâ, taⁿ lóng koh chhàng chhim ah. Ji̍t-thâu chin sio, lāu lâng aū-ām kám-kak ē tio̍h, i ná kò-chûn, kōaⁿ ná lâu-lo̍h kha-chiah-phiaⁿ.

Góa ē-sái pàng hō͘ phiau, khùn chi̍t-ē, i siūⁿ, kā kha pa̍k chi̍t liàn soh-á, thang kiò-chhéⁿ. M̄-koh kin-á-ji̍t peh-cha̍p gō͘ kang, góa ài hó-hó lia̍h-hî.

Hit sî, teh khòaⁿ soh-á, i khòaⁿ tio̍h chi̍t ki chhun-chhut ê chheⁿ tiò-koaiⁿ ti̍t sìm--lo̍h.

"Tio̍h," i kóng. "Tio̍h," tō khin-khin-á kā chiúⁿ khǹg chûn ni̍h. I chhun chiàⁿ-chhiú, iōng tōa-pû-ong kap kí-cháiⁿ khin-khin-á tēⁿ soh-á, bô kám-kak ū peⁿ-ân a̍h-sī tāng-liōng. Kòe chi̍t ē-á, koh lâi ah. Chit kái ū sió khiú chi̍t-ē, bô bêng-hián, mā bô tōa-la̍t, án-ne i chai, he sī siáⁿ. Chi̍t-pah siâm ē-bīn, ū teng-bán (kî-hî) teh chia̍h un-á, he un-á sī pau tī tiò-kau thok-chhut chhǹg-á thâu ê chiam-bóe kap jiáu, iōng chò gūi-chong.

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14. 袂記當時開始家己講話

"串仔," 老人大聲講. "伊會當做真媠 ê 餌, 有十磅重."

伊袂記得當時開始 kap 家己出聲講話. 以前, 家己一个 ê 時伊會唱歌, 有時, tī 漁船抑是掠龜 ê 船頂, 暗時輪著伊家己扞舵 ê 時, 伊 mā 會唱歌. 家己一个 ê 時開始出聲講話, 可能是 tī 囡仔離開了後. 講真, 伊 mā 袂記得 lah. 伊 kap 囡仔做伙掠魚 ê 時, 干焦必要 ê 時 in 才講話. Tī 暗時抑是拄著風雨無出船 ê 時, in 會答喙鼓. 一般認為, tī 海上, 無必要 tō 莫講話才著, 老人 mā án-ne 想, án-ne 遵守. 毋過, 今伊常在大聲講出伊想 ê, 反正袂吵著人.

別人若聽著我出聲家己講話, 一定 kă 當痟," 伊講. "事實我無痟, 免 chhap 伊. 有錢 ê, 船 ni̍h 有 lajíoh 講話 kap 報野球予聽."

今毋是想野球 ê 時陣, 伊想. 今干焦愛想一个代誌: 命中註定 ê 代誌. 彼 tīn 附近可能有大 bóe ê, 伊想. 彼 tīn teh 討食 ê 串仔, 我干焦抾著一尾落 tīn ê. In 走遠去 ah, koh 緊.

今仔日水面 ê 魚攏泅真緊, koh 向東北. 是時間 ê 關係? 抑是我所毋知 ê 欲變天 ê 信號?

這馬伊看袂著青色 ê 海岸, 只看著藍色 ê 山 ná 崁雪 ê 白色山稜 kap in 頂懸 ná 雪山 ê 白雲. 海色深深, 日光 tī 水 ni̍h, ná 彩色 ê 帶. 斑斑點點 ê 浮游生物今予日頭照甲已經無去, 老人干焦 tī 青 lin-lin ê 水中彩帶, 看著伊 ê 索仔直直沉落水, 遐 ê 水深度有 1 mai.

Hiah-ê 串仔, 討海人 kā 彼類 ê 魚攏 án-ne 叫, 干焦欲賣, 抑是欲換做餌 ê 時,  才會分別 in ê 全屬 ê 名, 今攏 koh 藏深 ah. 日頭真燒, 老人後頷感覺會著, 伊 ná 划船, 汗 ná 流落尻脊骿.

我會使放予漂, 睏一下, 伊想, kā 跤縛一輾索仔, 通叫醒. 毋過今仔日八十五工, 我愛好好掠魚.

彼時, teh 看索仔, 伊看著一枝伸出 ê 青釣杆直 sìm 落.

"著," 伊講. "著," tō 輕輕仔 kā 槳囥船 ni̍h. 伊伸正手, 用大垺翁 kap kí-cháiⁿ 輕輕仔捏索仔, 無感覺有繃絚抑是重量. 過一下仔, 閣來 ah. 這改有小搝一下, 無明顯, mā 無大力, án-ne 伊知, 彼是啥. 一百尋下面, 有丁挽 (旗魚) teh 食鰮仔, 彼鰮仔是包 tī 釣鉤戳出串仔頭 ê 尖尾 kap 爪, 用做偽裝.

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14.

“Albacore,” he said aloud. “He’ll make a beautiful bait. He’ll weigh ten pounds.”

He did not remember when he had first started to talk aloud when he was by himself. He had sung when he was by himself in the old days and he had sung at night sometimes when he was alone steering on his watch in the smacks or in the turtle boats. He had probably started to talk aloud, when alone, when the boy had left. But he did not remember. When he and the boy fished together they usually spoke only when it was necessary. They talked at night or when they were storm-bound by bad weather. It was considered a virtue not to talk unnecessarily at sea and the old man had always considered it so and respected it. But now he said his thoughts aloud many times since there was no one that they could annoy.

“If the others heard me talking out loud they would think that I am crazy,” he said aloud. “But since I am not crazy, I do not care. And the rich have radios to talk to them in their boats and to bring them the baseball.”

Now is no time to think of baseball, he thought. Now is the time to think of only one thing. That which I was born for. There might be a big one around that school, he thought. I picked up only a straggler from the albacore that were feeding. But they are working far out and fast.

Everything that shows on the surface today travels very fast and to the north-east. Can that be the time of day? Or is it some sign of weather that I do not know?

He could not see the green of the shore now but only the tops of the blue hills that showed white as though they were snow-capped and the clouds that looked like high snow mountains above them. The sea was very dark and the light made prisms in the water. The myriad flecks of the plankton were annulled now by the high sun and it was only the great deep prisms in the blue water that the old man saw now with his lines going straight down into the water that was a mile deep.

The tuna, the fishermen called all the fish of that species tuna and only distinguished among them by their proper names when they came to sell them or to trade them for baits, were down again. The sun was hot now and the old man felt it on the back of his neck and felt the sweat trickle down his back as he rowed.

I could just drift, he thought, and sleep and put a bight of line around my toe to wake me. But today is eighty-five days and I should fish the day well.

Just then, watching his lines, he saw one of the projecting green sticks dip sharply.

“Yes,” he said. “Yes,” and shipped his oars without bumping the boat. He reached out for the line and held it softly between the thumb and forefinger of his right hand. He felt no strain nor weight and he held the line lightly. Then it came again. This time it was a tentative pull, not solid nor heavy, and he knew exactly what it was. One hundred fathoms down a marlin was eating the sardines that covered the point and the shank of the hook where the hand-forged hook projected from the head of the small tuna.

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