Day 29: The Last Witness to the Will
In a courthouse hallway in Manila, Mang Kardo (A), a retired barangay secretary and the last living witness to a will signed in 1985, asks Rene (B), the heirs' lawyer, what the judge will want to know.
How to study this lesson 3 steps
- Read the situation under the title. It says who is talking and how they know each other, which decides how politely they speak.
- Read the dialogue line by line with its translation, until every line makes sense.
- Spend at least 30 minutes listening to native Tagalog. It doesn't matter if you don't understand it yet.
Dialogue
Audio for this lesson is coming soon. For now, read the dialogue and its translation.
Keys: E hide English · ← → previous / next day
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A
Attorney, ano ang itatanong sa akin ng hukom? Mahigit apatnapung taon na iyon.
Attorney, what is the judge going to ask me? It was over forty years ago.
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B
Kung nasa tamang pag-iisip po si Don Eusebio nang pumirma, o kung may pumilit sa kaniya.
Whether Don Eusebio was of sound mind when he signed, or whether someone forced him.
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A
Noo'y nasa matinong pag-iisip siya, at ang kaniyang paglagda'y kusang-loob. Iyan ang nasaksihan ng aking mga mata.
He was then of sound mind, and his signing was of his own free will. That is what my eyes beheld.
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B
Ganyan na ganyan po. Iyan mismo ang sabihin ninyo sa hukom, walang babaguhin.
Exactly like that. Say those very words to the judge, and don't change a thing.
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A
Bakit, sinasabi ba ng kabila na ulyanin na siya noon?
Why, is the other side saying he was already senile back then?
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B
Opo, hindi na raw niya kilala kahit ang sarili niyang mga anak noong 1985.
Yes, they claim that by 1985 he didn't even recognize his own children.
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A
Aba, kung gayon ay hindi nila narinig ang kaniyang biro nang araw na iyon.
Well, then they never heard the joke he made that day.
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B
Biro po? Wala po iyan sa judicial affidavit ninyo, ano po ang sinabi niya?
A joke? That's not in your judicial affidavit. What did he say?
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A
Ang wika niya: "Tatlo kayong saksi, upang kung mauna man ang dalawa, may isang matitirang magsasalaysay." Ako ang isang iyon.
His words were: "There are three of you witnesses, so that should two go before, one will remain to tell of it." I am that one.
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B
Ang taong nakapagbibiro nang ganyan ay alam na alam po ang ginagawa. Sabihin po ninyo iyan sa hukom.
A man who can joke like that knows exactly what he's doing. Tell the judge that.
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