The Captions That Changed Grandma's Words

Every Sunday, Halle video calls her grandmother Sigrid. Sigrid lives in another country. The app shows captions under her words. She speaks a different language.

Setiap hari Minggu, Halle menelepon video neneknya, Sigrid. Sigrid tinggal di negara lain. Aplikasi itu menampilkan teks terjemahan di bawah kata-katanya. Ia berbicara dalam bahasa yang berbeda.

Today, Sigrid smiles and says something warm. The caption reads: "You look tired and a little sick."

Hari ini, Sigrid tersenyum dan mengatakan sesuatu yang hangat. Teksnya berbunyi: "Kamu kelihatan lelah dan agak sakit."

Halle sits up straight. "Grandma, are you okay? The captions say I look sick."

Halle duduk tegak. "Nenek, Nenek baik-baik saja? Teksnya bilang aku kelihatan sakit."

Sigrid laughs and shakes her head. She says the same sentence again, in a calm voice.

Sigrid tertawa dan menggeleng. Ia mengulang kalimat yang sama dengan suara tenang.

Halle's mom sits next to her. She listens closely. "I think the app made a mistake," she says. "Grandma probably said something nice."

Ibu Halle duduk di sebelahnya. Ia mendengarkan dengan saksama. "Sepertinya aplikasinya salah," katanya. "Nenek mungkin mengatakan sesuatu yang baik."

Halle looks at the caption again. It still shows the same strange words.

Halle melihat teks itu sekali lagi. Kata-kata aneh yang sama masih muncul.

Her mom picks up her own phone. She opens a different translation app and types in what she remembers.

Ibunya mengambil ponselnya sendiri. Ia membuka aplikasi terjemahan lain dan mengetik apa yang ia ingat.

"Here it is," her mom says. "She said, 'You look tired but happy.' That makes sense now."

"Ini dia," kata ibunya. "Nenek bilang, 'Kamu kelihatan lelah tapi bahagia.' Sekarang masuk akal."

Halle laughs with relief. "The first app heard the word 'sick.' But grandma really said 'happy'!"

Halle tertawa lega. "Aplikasi pertama mendengar kata 'sakit'. Padahal Nenek bilang 'bahagia'!"

Sigrid looks confused. She asks what is funny. Halle explains slowly, and soon everyone laughs together.

Sigrid tampak bingung. Ia bertanya apa yang lucu. Halle menjelaskannya pelan-pelan, dan tak lama kemudian mereka semua tertawa bersama.

"I'm glad it was a mistake," Halle says, "and not bad news."

"Aku senang itu cuma kesalahan," kata Halle, "bukan kabar buruk."

They finish the call with plans for a visit next month.

Mereka mengakhiri panggilan dengan rencana berkunjung bulan depan.