The Thirteenth Bell

Dalia is always in a hurry. She works at a flower shop in the morning. In the afternoon, she delivers parcels by bike. In the evening, she cleans an office. She eats lunch on her bike. She sleeps for six hours.

Dalia selalu terburu-buru. Pagi hari ia bekerja di toko bunga. Siang hari ia mengantar paket dengan sepeda. Malam hari ia membersihkan sebuah kantor. Ia makan siang di atas sepedanya. Ia tidur enam jam.

Today is Tuesday. It is three o'clock. Dalia is on the main street. She has four parcels in her basket. The big clock tower in the square starts to ring. Dalia counts the bells without thinking. One, two, three.

Hari ini hari Selasa. Pukul tiga. Dalia berada di jalan utama. Ada empat paket di keranjangnya. Menara jam besar di alun-alun mulai berdentang. Dalia menghitung dentangnya tanpa berpikir. Satu, dua, tiga.

She counts to twelve. Then she hears one more. "Thirteen?" she says. She stops her bike and looks up at the tower. The old clock face shines in the sun. Nothing looks strange. But the thirteenth bell is still in the air.

Ia menghitung sampai dua belas. Lalu ia mendengar satu lagi. "Tiga belas?" katanya. Ia menghentikan sepedanya dan menengadah ke menara. Wajah jam tua itu berkilau di bawah matahari. Tidak ada yang tampak aneh. Tetapi dentang ketiga belas itu masih menggantung di udara.

A man stands at the foot of the tower. It is Goran, the clock keeper. He is old, and he wears a blue work coat. He looks at Dalia and smiles. "You heard it," he says. "The clock is wrong," Dalia says.

Seorang pria berdiri di kaki menara. Ia Goran, penjaga jam. Ia sudah tua dan mengenakan mantel kerja biru. Ia menatap Dalia dan tersenyum. "Kamu mendengarnya," katanya. "Jamnya salah," kata Dalia.

"The clock is never wrong. It only rings thirteen on one day every few years. The old people in town have a rule. You hear the thirteenth bell? Stop everything for one hour."

"Jam ini tidak pernah salah. Ia hanya berdentang tiga belas kali pada satu hari setiap beberapa tahun. Orang-orang tua di kota ini punya aturan. Kamu mendengar dentang ketiga belas? Hentikan segalanya selama satu jam."

Dalia laughs. "I cannot stop. I have four parcels."

Dalia tertawa. "Aku tidak bisa berhenti. Aku punya empat paket."

"Everyone says that," Goran says.

"Semua orang bilang begitu," kata Goran.

"Then they try to go on."

"Lalu mereka mencoba terus berjalan."

"I will go on," Dalia says. She waves at him and pushes her bike away.

"Aku akan terus berjalan," kata Dalia. Ia melambai pada Goran dan mendorong sepedanya pergi.

On the first street, many cars block the road. A truck stands in the middle. Dalia waits. Five minutes pass. She takes another street. A small boy and his grandmother cross it, very slowly. Dalia waits again. Then she turns to the park. A duck walks across the path in front of her. It stops and looks at her bike.

Di jalan pertama, banyak mobil menghalangi jalan. Sebuah truk berhenti di tengah. Dalia menunggu. Lima menit berlalu. Ia mengambil jalan lain. Seorang anak laki-laki kecil dan neneknya menyeberang dengan sangat lambat. Dalia menunggu lagi. Lalu ia berbelok ke taman. Seekor bebek berjalan melintasi jalan setapak di depannya. Bebek itu berhenti dan menatap sepedanya.

"Please, go," Dalia says. The duck sits down.

"Tolong, minggirlah," kata Dalia. Bebek itu malah duduk.

Dalia groans. She tries a fourth way. At the corner, the traffic light turns red. It stays red for a very long time. She looks at her watch. It is ten past three. She loses ten minutes. She still has all four parcels. "This is silly," she says.

Dalia mengeluh. Ia mencoba jalan yang keempat. Di tikungan, lampu lalu lintas berubah merah. Lampu itu tetap merah sangat lama. Ia melihat jam tangannya. Sudah pukul tiga lewat sepuluh. Ia kehilangan sepuluh menit. Keempat parsel masih ada padanya. "Ini konyol," katanya.

She leans her bike against a wall. Next to her, there is a bench under a tree. The sun makes the wood warm. On the bench lies a pear, round and yellow. Nobody is near. A card is tied to the stem. It says, "For whoever needs it."

Ia menyandarkan sepedanya di dinding. Di sampingnya ada bangku di bawah sebuah pohon. Matahari membuat kayunya hangat. Di atas bangku tergeletak sebuah buah pir, bulat dan kuning. Tak ada orang di dekatnya. Sebuah kartu terikat pada tangkainya. Bunyinya, "Untuk siapa saja yang membutuhkan."

Dalia reads the card twice. Then she looks at the clock tower far away. Goran is a small blue dot at its foot. He lifts one hand.

Dalia membaca kartu itu dua kali. Lalu ia menatap menara jam di kejauhan. Goran tampak seperti titik biru kecil di kakinya. Ia mengangkat satu tangan.

She sits down. She takes the pear and eats it slowly. It is sweet, and juice runs down her fingers. For the first time in months, she hears birds. A soft wind moves the leaves above her. Her legs feel heavy. Her back relaxes against the bench.

Dalia duduk. Ia mengambil pir itu dan memakannya pelan-pelan. Rasanya manis, dan airnya mengalir di jari-jarinya. Untuk pertama kalinya dalam berbulan-bulan, ia mendengar burung-burung. Angin lembut menggerakkan dedaunan di atasnya. Kakinya terasa berat. Punggungnya bersandar rileks pada bangku.

She does not think about parcels. She does not think about the office. She watches the clouds. One looks like a fish. One looks like a boat. After an hour, the church clock rings four. Dalia stands up. Her head feels light and quiet. She looks at the light, and it turns green.

Ia tidak memikirkan paket. Ia tidak memikirkan kantor. Ia memandangi awan. Satu mirip ikan. Satu mirip perahu. Setelah satu jam, jam gereja berdentang empat kali. Dalia berdiri. Kepalanya terasa ringan dan tenang. Ia menoleh ke lampu lalu lintas, dan lampu itu berubah hijau.

She rides to the first address. The woman at the door says, "You are early!" The next customer is not at home. She leaves the parcel next door. The third is a short ride. The fourth is next door to the third. In forty minutes, all four parcels are delivered.

Ia mengayuh ke alamat pertama. Perempuan di pintu berkata, "Kamu datang lebih awal!" Pelanggan berikutnya tidak ada di rumah. Ia menitipkan paketnya di rumah sebelah. Yang ketiga jaraknya dekat. Yang keempat bersebelahan dengan yang ketiga. Dalam empat puluh menit, keempat paket sudah terantar.

On her way home, Dalia passes the clock tower. Goran closes the door. He looks at her and does not ask anything. "It was a good pear," she says.

Dalam perjalanan pulang, Dalia melewati menara jam. Goran sedang menutup pintu. Ia menatap Dalia dan tidak bertanya apa pun. "Pirnya enak," kata Dalia.

"I know," says Goran.

"Aku tahu," kata Goran.

"I put it there."

"Aku yang menaruhnya di sana."