One Wheel Out on the White

Oona runs the tourist stop at the edge of the salt flat. It has a tin shed and a postcard stand. It also has a painted line in the salt. The line is white on white, and only Oona sees it.

Oona mengelola tempat singgah wisata di tepi dataran garam. Tempat itu punya sebuah gudang seng dan rak kartu pos. Ada pula sebuah garis yang dicat di atas garam. Garis itu putih di atas putih, dan hanya Oona yang melihatnya.

Every day is the same. At ten o'clock, Hal brings the first van. At two o'clock, he brings the second. In between, Oona sweeps the shed and counts the postcards.

Setiap hari sama saja. Pukul sepuluh, Hal membawa van pertama. Pukul dua, ia membawa van kedua. Di antaranya, Oona menyapu gudang dan menghitung kartu pos.

She knows the visitors well. They step out of the van and say "wow". They say it all together, like a song. Then they take off their sunglasses and put them on again.

Ia mengenal para pengunjung dengan baik. Mereka turun dari van dan berkata "wow". Mereka mengatakannya serempak, seperti sebuah lagu. Lalu mereka melepas kacamata hitam dan memakainya lagi.

After that, they want the photos. Oona keeps a wooden box of toys behind the shed. There is a giant bottle. There is a plastic shoe and a small green truck. People hold them close to the camera. A friend stands far away. In the photo, the truck looks as big as a real one. The friend looks tiny beside it.

Setelah itu, mereka ingin berfoto. Oona menyimpan sebuah kotak kayu berisi mainan di belakang gudang. Ada botol raksasa. Ada sepatu plastik dan sebuah truk hijau kecil. Orang-orang memegangnya dekat kamera. Seorang teman berdiri jauh di sana. Di foto, truk itu tampak sebesar truk sungguhan. Sang teman tampak mungil di sampingnya.

It is an old trick, and the white ground makes it perfect. There are no trees and no hills. There is nothing to show how far or how near anything is.

Itu trik lama, dan tanah putih itu membuatnya sempurna. Tak ada pohon dan tak ada bukit. Tak ada apa pun yang menunjukkan seberapa jauh atau dekat sesuatu.

Oona loves the green truck most. She bought it on her first day, nine years ago. It has a wide yellow door and four black wheels. The paint is worn at the corners.

Oona paling menyayangi truk hijau itu. Ia membelinya pada hari pertamanya, sembilan tahun lalu. Truk itu punya pintu kuning yang lebar dan empat roda hitam. Catnya terkelupas di sudut-sudutnya.

Today is an ordinary day. At ten o'clock, Hal parks the van by the shed. He opens the door. Twelve people climb out. They say "wow".

Hari ini hari biasa. Pukul sepuluh, Hal memarkir van di dekat gudang. Ia membuka pintu. Dua belas orang turun. Mereka berkata "wow".

"Morning, Oona," says Hal. He is a large, slow man with a hat. He drinks from a flask. "Twelve today. Good people, I think."

"Pagi, Oona," kata Hal. Ia pria besar yang lamban dan bertopi. Ia minum dari sebuah botol pipih. "Dua belas hari ini. Orang-orang baik, kurasa."

"They all say wow," Oona says. "So yes."

"Mereka semua bilang wow," kata Oona. "Jadi ya."

Hal laughs. He walks off to sit in the shade. He reads his newspaper.

Hal tertawa. Ia berjalan pergi untuk duduk di tempat teduh. Ia membaca korannya.

Oona opens the box. She sets out the bottle, the shoe and the truck. She stands near the line with her arms folded. She watches the tourists play.

Oona membuka kotak itu. Ia menata botol, sepatu, dan truk itu. Ia berdiri dekat garis dengan tangan terlipat. Ia memperhatikan para turis bermain.

A small boy in a yellow cap takes the green truck. He is about seven. He holds it up high. "Look, Mum, I have a monster truck!" he shouts.

Seorang anak laki-laki kecil bertopi kuning mengambil truk hijau itu. Umurnya sekitar tujuh tahun. Ia mengangkatnya tinggi-tinggi. "Lihat, Bu, aku punya truk raksasa!" serunya.

"Be careful with it," Oona says.

"Hati-hati dengan itu," kata Oona.

"I will," says the boy. He turns the truck over in his hands. He pushes down hard on the roof.

"Iya," kata si anak. Ia membolak-balik truk itu di tangannya. Ia menekan atapnya keras-keras.

There is a small snap. A wheel falls off the truck and lands on the ground. It does not stop. It starts to roll.

Terdengar bunyi patah kecil. Sebuah roda lepas dari truk itu dan jatuh ke tanah. Roda itu tidak berhenti. Ia mulai menggelinding.

It rolls over the line. It rolls past the mother. It rolls past the van and the last wheel marks. The salt is smooth as glass. The wheel does not slow down at all.

Roda itu menggelinding melewati garis. Ia menggelinding melewati sang ibu. Ia menggelinding melewati van dan bekas-bekas roda terakhir. Garam itu licin seperti kaca. Roda itu sama sekali tidak melambat.

"Oh no," says the boy. His face falls. "I broke it. I am sorry."

"Oh tidak," kata si anak. Wajahnya murung. "Aku merusaknya. Maaf."

"It is not broken," says Oona. "It is only a wheel."

"Tidak rusak," kata Oona. "Hanya sebuah roda."

But her voice sounds strange to her. She stands still and watches the wheel get smaller. It is black on white, like a dot of ink.

Tetapi suaranya terdengar aneh baginya sendiri. Ia berdiri diam dan melihat roda itu semakin kecil. Roda itu hitam di atas putih, seperti setitik tinta.

Nine years, she thinks. Nothing ever leaves the line.

Sembilan tahun, pikirnya. Tak pernah ada yang meninggalkan garis itu.

The visitors go quiet. Even Hal puts down his newspaper. He looks at the wheel, and then he looks at Oona.

Para pengunjung menjadi hening. Bahkan Hal meletakkan korannya. Ia memandang roda itu, lalu ia memandang Oona.

"Go on," he says.

"Pergilah," katanya.

"What?"

"Apa?"

"Go and get it. I will watch the group." He waves his hat toward the flat. "It will not stop by itself."

"Pergi dan ambil. Aku yang menjaga rombongan." Ia melambaikan topinya ke arah dataran. "Roda itu tidak akan berhenti sendiri."

Oona opens her mouth to say no. She has a stand to run and postcards to sell. She never goes past the line, not even to look.

Oona membuka mulut untuk menolak. Ia harus mengurus kios dan menjual kartu pos. Ia tidak pernah melewati garis itu, bahkan hanya untuk melihat.

"Go," says Hal again, very gently.

"Pergilah," kata Hal lagi, dengan sangat lembut.

So she goes.

Maka ia pergi.

The first steps feel odd. The salt crunches under her shoes. It is a dry little sound. She walks past the first wheel marks and past the last ones.

Langkah-langkah pertama terasa ganjil. Garam berderak di bawah sepatunya. Itu bunyi kecil yang kering. Ia berjalan melewati bekas roda pertama dan melewati yang terakhir.

After ten minutes, she does not look back. After twenty, she does not want to. The sky is huge and pale. The ground is just as pale. There is no line between them. She walks in the middle of a white page.

Setelah sepuluh menit, ia tidak menoleh ke belakang. Setelah dua puluh, ia tidak ingin menoleh. Langit begitu luas dan pucat. Tanahnya sama pucatnya. Tak ada garis di antara keduanya. Ia berjalan di tengah halaman putih.

The wheel keeps rolling for a long time. Then, at last, it leans, shakes and falls flat. Oona reaches it and kneels beside it. She picks it up. It is warm from the sun. A thin dust of salt covers it.

Roda itu terus menggelinding lama sekali. Lalu, akhirnya, ia miring, bergoyang, dan jatuh telentang. Oona mencapainya dan berlutut di sampingnya. Ia mengambilnya. Roda itu hangat oleh matahari. Debu garam tipis menutupinya.

She holds it in her hand. It weighs nothing at all.

Ia menggenggamnya. Roda itu sama sekali tak berbobot.

Then she stands up and turns around.

Lalu ia berdiri dan berbalik.

She almost laughs. The stop is tiny. The shed is the size of a matchbox. The van is a white bean. The people are small dark commas.

Ia hampir tertawa. Tempat singgah itu mungil. Gudangnya sebesar kotak korek api. Van itu sebutir kacang putih. Orang-orang itu koma-koma kecil yang gelap.

It looks exactly like a toy.

Tempat itu tampak persis seperti mainan.

She stares at it for a while. Every day, she holds the toy truck up for the camera. She makes small things look big. Now she stands here. Her own life is the big thing, and it looks small.

Ia menatapnya beberapa saat. Setiap hari, ia mengangkat truk mainan itu di depan kamera. Ia membuat benda kecil tampak besar. Kini ia berdiri di sini. Hidupnya sendiri adalah hal yang besar, dan tampak kecil.

Far away, a tiny person raises an arm. It is Hal, she knows. He holds his hat high. He waves it slowly from side to side.

Jauh di sana, seorang manusia mungil mengangkat lengan. Itu Hal, ia tahu. Ia mengangkat topinya tinggi-tinggi. Ia melambaikannya pelan ke kiri dan kanan.

Oona lifts her arm and waves back. Then she puts the wheel in her pocket. She stays where she is, in the white. She watches her small shed shine far away.

Oona mengangkat lengannya dan membalas lambaian. Lalu ia memasukkan roda itu ke sakunya. Ia tetap di tempatnya, di dalam putih itu. Ia memandang gudang kecilnya yang berkilau jauh di sana.