Day 74: Stars Hiding Behind Clouds
At a Manila AM station that still airs a nightly radio drama, voice actress Marlyn (A) teases scriptwriter Orly (B) by reading his flowery prewar Tagalog aloud in her most tragic voice.
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
Orly, pakinggan mo: "Ang iyong mga mata'y tila mga bituing nagkukubli sa ulap ng aking pighati."
Orly, listen: "Thine eyes are like stars hiding behind the clouds of my sorrow."
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B
Huwag mong pagtawanan 'yan. Iyan ang Tagalog ng mga nobela sa Liwayway bago ang digmaan.
Don't laugh at it. That's the Tagalog of the novels in Liwayway before the war.
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A
O, irog kong manunulat, kay haba ng iyong pighati. Tatlong pahina na, hindi pa kumakain ang bida.
Oh, my beloved writer, how long thy sorrow is. Three pages already, and the heroine still hasn't eaten.
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B
Hindi minamadali ang pighati. Nakikinig ang mga lola habang nagluluto, dinadama nila ang bawat salita.
Sorrow isn't something you rush. The grandmothers listen while they cook, they feel every word.
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A
Ramdam nila, kaya nasusunog ang sinaing nila. Heto pa: "Ang aking puso'y dahong tuyo, inaanod ng iyong paglimot."
They feel it, all right, that's why their rice burns. Here's another: "My heart is a dry leaf, carried away by thy forgetting."
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B
Maganda 'yan! Talinghaga 'yan, hindi kakornihan. Ang problema sa mga bagong drama, puro "Mahal kita, bye."
That's beautiful! That's a metaphor, not corniness. The trouble with the new dramas is that it's all "I love you, bye."
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A
Sige, sa iyo na ang talinghaga. Pero basahin mo muna ang isinulat ni Boss Ramon sa margin.
Fine, the metaphors are all yours. But first read what Boss Ramon wrote in the margin.
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B
"Ganda ng bituin! Gawin nating Sabong Bituin, ang bago nating sponsor, sa bawat eksena." Sa bawat eksena?
"Love the stars! Let's make them Bituin Soap, our new sponsor, in every scene." In every scene?
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A
Kaya, irog kong manunulat: "Ang iyong mga mata'y tila bula ng Sabong Bituin, nagkukubli sa ulap ng aking labada."
So, my beloved writer: "Thine eyes are like the bubbles of Bituin Soap, hiding behind the clouds of my laundry."
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B
Akin na ang lapis. O, sining kong mahal, pati ikaw ay nabili ng sabon.
Give me the pencil. Oh, my beloved art, even you have been bought by soap.
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