The Extra Eggs

Edda lives in a small house. It is at the end of a quiet road. Behind the house there is a garden. In the garden there is a little wooden hen house. Three hens live in it. One is white, one is brown, and one is grey.

Edda tinggal di sebuah rumah kecil. Rumah itu ada di ujung jalan yang sepi. Di belakang rumah ada kebun. Di kebun itu ada kandang ayam kecil dari kayu. Tiga ekor ayam betina tinggal di dalamnya. Satu putih, satu cokelat, dan satu abu-abu.

Every morning Edda walks to the hen house. She carries a basket. She opens the small door and counts the eggs. Three hens, three eggs. It is easy.

Setiap pagi Edda berjalan ke kandang ayam. Dia membawa keranjang. Dia membuka pintu kecilnya dan menghitung telur. Tiga ayam, tiga telur. Mudah sekali.

On Tuesday she opens the door. There are four eggs. She counts them again. One, two, three, four.

Pada hari Selasa dia membuka pintu. Ada empat telur. Dia menghitungnya lagi. Satu, dua, tiga, empat.

"That is strange," she says. "I have three hens."

"Aneh sekali," katanya. "Ayamku cuma tiga."

She looks at the hens. They look back at her. The white hen makes a small noise. It does not tell her anything.

Dia menatap ayam-ayamnya. Mereka balas menatapnya. Si ayam putih mengeluarkan bunyi kecil. Bunyi itu tidak memberi tahu apa-apa.

On Wednesday there are four eggs again. On Thursday there are five. Edda stands in the garden with her basket. She is very surprised.

Pada hari Rabu ada empat telur lagi. Pada hari Kamis ada lima. Edda berdiri di kebun sambil memegang keranjangnya. Dia sangat heran.

"Do you have a secret?" she asks the hens. "Do you have a friend?"

"Kalian punya rahasia?" tanyanya kepada ayam-ayam itu. "Kalian punya teman?"

The hens only eat their corn.

Ayam-ayam itu hanya makan jagung mereka.

Edda looks at the new eggs. Her own hens lay brown eggs. But two new eggs are small and light blue. They are very pretty.

Edda memperhatikan telur-telur baru itu. Ayam-ayamnya sendiri bertelur cokelat. Tetapi dua telur baru itu kecil dan berwarna biru muda. Telur-telur itu cantik sekali.

"These are not your eggs," she says. "Who lays blue eggs?"

"Ini bukan telur kalian," katanya. "Siapa yang bertelur biru?"

At lunch she talks to her neighbor across the road. He is a tall man with a big beard.

Saat makan siang dia mengobrol dengan tetangganya di seberang jalan. Tetangganya seorang pria tinggi dengan jenggot lebat.

"Do you have hens?" she asks.

"Apakah Anda punya ayam?" tanyanya.

"Yes, I have four," he says. "But I get no eggs these days. I do not know why. They look healthy."

"Ya, saya punya empat," kata pria itu. "Tapi akhir-akhir ini saya tidak dapat telur. Saya tidak tahu kenapa. Ayam-ayam saya kelihatan sehat."

"What color are your eggs?" asks Edda.

"Telur Anda warnanya apa?" tanya Edda.

"Light blue," he says. "They are always blue."

"Biru muda," katanya. "Selalu biru."

Edda starts to smile. "I think I have your eggs," she says.

Edda mulai tersenyum. "Sepertinya telur Anda ada pada saya," katanya.

"My eggs?" he says. "How?"

"Telur saya?" kata pria itu. "Bagaimana bisa?"

"I do not know yet," says Edda. "But I will find out."

"Saya belum tahu," kata Edda. "Tapi saya akan mencari tahu."

On Friday she gets up very early. The sun is not yet up. She makes a cup of tea. She sits on a chair near the hen house. She does not move. She does not make a sound.

Pada hari Jumat dia bangun pagi-pagi sekali. Matahari belum terbit. Dia membuat secangkir teh. Dia duduk di kursi dekat kandang ayam. Dia tidak bergerak. Dia tidak bersuara.

The garden is cold and quiet. A bird sings in the apple tree. The grass is wet.

Kebun itu dingin dan sunyi. Seekor burung berkicau di pohon apel. Rumputnya basah.

After an hour, Edda sees something at the back fence. It is a small black hen. She is not one of Edda's hens. She pushes through a hole in the fence. She walks across the grass. She walks very fast, like a person late for work.

Setelah satu jam, Edda melihat sesuatu di pagar belakang. Seekor ayam betina hitam yang kecil. Dia bukan salah satu ayam Edda. Dia menerobos lubang di pagar. Dia berjalan melintasi rumput. Dia berjalan cepat sekali, seperti orang yang terlambat ke kantor.

The black hen goes straight to the hen house. She hops through the door. Edda waits. After ten minutes the black hen comes out. She walks back to the fence. She goes through the hole.

Ayam hitam itu langsung menuju kandang. Dia melompat masuk lewat pintu. Edda menunggu. Sepuluh menit kemudian ayam hitam itu keluar. Dia berjalan kembali ke pagar. Dia masuk lagi ke lubang itu.

Edda opens the hen house. There is a new blue egg in the corner.

Edda membuka kandang ayam. Ada telur biru baru di sudut.

She laughs so much that she spills her tea.

Dia tertawa begitu keras sampai tehnya tumpah.

Later she walks across the road with her basket. The neighbor opens the door.

Kemudian dia menyeberang jalan membawa keranjangnya. Tetangganya membuka pintu.

"Good news and bad news," says Edda. "The bad news is this. Your black hen visits my garden every day. The good news is that I have your eggs."

"Ada kabar baik dan kabar buruk," kata Edda. "Kabar buruknya begini. Ayam hitam Anda datang ke kebun saya setiap hari. Kabar baiknya, telur Anda ada pada saya."

The neighbor puts his hand on his head. "She is a thief!" he says. Then he laughs too.

Si tetangga memegang kepalanya. "Dia pencuri!" katanya. Lalu dia ikut tertawa.

"I will fix the hole in the fence," he says.

"Saya akan memperbaiki lubang di pagar," katanya.

"Please do not fix it too fast," says Edda. "I like her. She is a hard worker."

"Tolong jangan terlalu cepat memperbaikinya," kata Edda. "Saya suka ayam itu. Dia pekerja keras."

They put six blue eggs on the table. They share them in half.

Mereka menaruh enam telur biru di atas meja. Mereka membaginya dua.

The next day the neighbor brings Edda a pie. It is warm and it smells of apples.

Keesokan harinya si tetangga membawakan Edda sebuah pai. Pai itu hangat dan berbau apel.

"I made it with your eggs," he says. "Or with my eggs. I do not know anymore."

"Saya membuatnya dengan telur Anda," katanya. "Atau dengan telur saya. Saya sudah tidak tahu lagi."