Wolf Howl Night
[Kazakhstan] by Augerid Khan Bokai
Translated by Ainuel Tomalbek
Ogerikhan Bokai (1943-1993) was a famous Kazakh writer, screenwriter and journalist. His works have been translated into Russian, English, French, German, Japanese, Arabic, Chinese, Slovak, Bulgarian, Hungarian, etc. He was awarded the Kazakh Abai Literature Prize.
1
Long, long winter nights...
Whenever there is such a moment, you will always try to do everything you can to force out the cold that fills every cell of your body. Whenever there is such a moment, there is always a desire to say "go to his life" out loud. Whenever the twilight is four, it always comes to the thought that the village must have just finished a so-so dinner, and then wrapped the quilt tightly and is about to fall asleep. The winter sun is getting shorter and shorter, and finally it freezes coldly on the top of the mountain. Everything around it was bathed in silver light, as if wrapped in a white quilt and sleeping soundly, unlike all the other seasons of the year, wrestling with the night for a long time, finally blending together, and then entering the temple of the night together. Just at this moment, the night that was originally so long that it seemed to never end, let some thoughts that had not been remembered for a long time come back, and a faint inexplicable worry was wrapped around the heart. Whenever this happens, you always want to find out everything to relieve the boredom.
The life of the shepherds is different—as the call is made to the cattle that have been grazing the dead grass with their hooves on the winter pastures and driving them back into the pen, night has quietly fallen. Then, after a full meal prepared by his wife, the shepherd lay down by the fiery iron stove and began to read the magazine "Allah" with pleasure. And the wrangler who had relocated his family in the snow-blue wilderness, shrunk his neck in his camel's coat, and smoked happily at the flames of wet wood and green smoke, while sinking into a boundless and heavy thought.
Life in the village is a different kind of thing—the livestock are placed, the courtyard is cleaned, and the big and small things outside the house are too busy to enter the house for a while. At this time, "come in and eat, it's all cold" before entering the house without hurrying. What followed them into the house was a stream of cold air, all the way to kangshou. At this time, the villager must have said, "Turn the sound of the radio louder and listen to what it has to say today." With that, he took off his felt boots and let the child tune in on the radio. When you screw the radio, there must be a "creaky" sound like a tearing throat. Oh, and just then, the family's daughter, who has just finished 10th grade, is putting on her best dress and preparing to go to the movie... The winter slaughter meat that had just fallen when the snow fell was being cooked in the pot, and when it was brought to the tablecloth, the flower cat by the fire also made a lazy meowing sound, stretching its body vigorously.
What a long winter night...
The city is a different picture. Here, the winter nights appear short. Hurriedly finished the work and hurried to the bus stop. The road is bustling with crowds. The snow white sky that fell at night had melted, and now it was a slippery mud, and there were people everywhere who had slipped and fallen to the ground. The bus was finally groaning in the night, and the people who struggled to get on the bus pushed and shoved each other, pulled each other, cursed each other, and squeezed into the door. First the back door, then the front door... It took all the strength to squeeze in half a shoulder through the front door. At first, it was the scolding driver, then the muttering wife. When I got home, I heard my wife angrily ask, "Where have you been, and you came back so late?" People who have worked hard to return home naturally have a good voice: "I am busy playing." There seems to be nothing to say except this sentence. You turn on the TV, and the TV squeaks, so you have to turn it off silently. Then, quietly and wordlessly, he rolled over and went to sleep.
It was such a long winter night that I was about to set out. At first, I didn't want to go. The editor kept asking me, and I reluctantly agreed. Our leader is a smart, cheerful person who does not force employees to work. Although he is young, he has already successfully started his career and promoted him early, which makes people feel that he still has a future. As soon as I got the order, I began to plan my departure. But the place to go is quite far, in the east of Kazakhstan, 10 degrees colder than Almaty, almost to minus 40 degrees, which must make the local people unbearable.
There are cars to get to the center of the state. As I expected, I was just in time for the bitter cold of January. As soon as I touched the cold parts of the car, my hand seemed to be cut off. My clothes are very thin. For young journalists who have not yet started a family and always have to move once a month or two, there is no other decent property except a thin coat, an old leather hat with no ear protection, artificial leather gloves and a black briefcase made of artificial leather. You will tremble in the cold to go wherever you need to go, running, rushing, surviving. Then as the years go by, people in such a rush begin to get sick in middle age. Everything is fresh and interesting when I was young, and I can't feel it yet. Those cold winds that enter from the soles of your feet will one day come out of your forehead...
As soon as I got into the car, the crowd hula got into the car and seemed to be the leader of the model county I was going to. They wore winter coats with five-star collars, while others wore short leather coats with elaborate tailors, fluffy squirrel fur hats on their heads, snow-white felt boots on their feet, and their faces were red, emitting heat, and they laughed heartily. At such times, jealousy will flow through the human body, and it will be hoped that they have not graduated from the Kazakh State University, but have finished the veterinary college. But whether you regret it or not, you quickly understand that everything is over, and you have to get cold with all your heart and curl up in your seat. As the car was about to leave, a girl in a white cashmere shawl stepped up. She took out her ticket and showed it to the dispatcher and sat down in the empty seat to my right. I was secretly happy in my heart, and I felt that the road would never be boring.
The car made a rumbling noise and was finally about to start. People who rushed to the road also chatted about the sky. The cold seemed to be heavier, the steam in the mouth formed a fog in the car, and layers of frost condensed on the windows. Some students who want to visit their relatives during the winter vacation lick the ice that is thick like a horseshoe nail, lick out a hole with large eyes, and look out from the hole. When the editor sent me on a business trip, one of the reasons I hesitated was that tomorrow was the New Year. For the New Year's Eve, I could have spent it with my friends and then set off again. But come to think of it, I haven't settled down in town yet, and no one has invited me. So, after thinking about it, I decided to go immediately. Greeting the New Year on the road must be a different feeling.
2
When the car started and finally drove out, I finally looked at the girl next to me. She was beautiful. Her cheeks were slightly red from the cold, and she sat silently. Her clothes also look a little thin. Slightly better, it seemed, was the white cashmere shawl around her head, which made her skin fairer. She always looked down, occasionally raising her eyelashes, and her beautiful eyes would pass in a flash. I think she didn't care about her beauty. She was always very docile and seemed to have an incomparably heavy heart. Even the people around her, she didn't seem to notice. At such a time, it seems inappropriate to rush into conversation.
"It's cold by the window, isn't it?" Let's change seats, shall we? I said. She didn't answer immediately, and looked at me as if she hadn't heard for a moment before she hesitated and opened her mouth.
"Thanks, your clothes are thinner than mine." She said.
"But I'm a man after all." That's the excuse I came up with. But my clumsy joke didn't catch her attention, and we fell silent again.
It was cold. Passengers burrowed their heads into their collars and sat upright like hens hatching eggs. Only those in expensive clothes, calm and seeming to have anticipated the coldness of the weather, talked about the cold of this winter, about the hardships of the livestock overwintering, and the sound of the conversation was slightly annoying at first. The cold passed through my faux leather shoes and began to nibble at my toes. I tapped my feet together, trying to keep warm. Perhaps feeling my embarrassment, the girl said, "You are not wearing felt boots." ”
She took the initiative to open her mouth, but it made me a little happy: "This damn thing, I just don't have it." ”
"What is it? Felt boots, or money? ”
"Both."
"Did you just get released from prison?" I don't know if it's a joke or if it's true, I don't tell. Her expression didn't change much, she asked faintly.
"How to say it... Almaty is warmer..."
"Well, understood. Later you will have to remember that Altai is not Almaty, it is still very cold. ”
"Sure, but such a cold place, maybe it won't come again."
"Big brother, the coincidence of life, sometimes it is difficult to predict yourself."
"Where did you come from yourself?"
"I'm from Almaty too."
"Are you in school?"
"Hmm."
"Where?"
"Women's University."
"What major?"
"Language and Literature."
"Where to go?"
"Olkan Village."
"In which direction is Olkan?"
"Less than five kilometers from Novostelica, in the mountains."
"Will the car go to Olkan?"
"The driver said it was only two kilometres away and he didn't want to waste time and would put us on the side of the road. The rest of the way, we walked back. How did you ask so much? ”
"Because I had the opportunity to be a travel companion, I always wanted to know more."
"So you're going to Novo Strica?"
"Yes, I'm going to write about that village. I work in a newspaper. ”
"I guessed it too, because you ask straight to the point when you ask questions. Novostrika is worth writing about. She fell into deep thought. I don't want to break her deep thinking, nor do I want to get to the bottom of it. I am reminded of what the editor said: "There is a village in East Kazakhstan of Novostrika, which was relatively urbanized and is typical of the culture and life of Kazakhstan as a whole." In order to show the process of urbanization on the mainland and the achievements of rural construction, we must report on this village. A central media outlet has written an article entitled "Rural Modernization in Kazakhstan". You have to do your best to photograph the Palace of Culture, department stores, houses and restaurants, meet with workers, meet with local leaders, and dig out the meaning. "I'm not surprised that villages that are actually covered with new types of buildings like this are now getting more and more every day. Perhaps, the distance between the city and the village is decreasing... What a wonderful and profound selection! I will therefore do everything in my power to keep the fruits of rural construction on a page in the newspaper.
The long nights of winter are passing and the night is coming. The destination is still far away, the weather is very cold, and the cold is raging. "It looks like it's going to be an unpleasant trip." I thought silently in my heart. The novosterica were snoring and falling asleep. The girl stared at herself, still in silent silence.
As soon as the car reached the foot of the mountain, the wind was getting closer. Snow particles slapped on the body of the car, more like wolves howling in their ears. The wind poured through the cracks in the old, curved windows, as if the raging wind was also looking for a warm home. The car is not bumpy, as if it wants to get out of this world where the wind is raging and everything is dying. Man was also driven by the coldness of the weather, inexplicably anxious, and uninterested in anything. You will admit that there is nothing more comfortable in the world than a burning fire and succumbing to the magic of a flame a thousand times. In addition to the sound of the engine, there are also external sounds in the ears. My eyes were blown by the wind, as if I saw a lonely pedestrian with a bare head and bare feet in the cold and empty field blown by the wind and snow. Interestingly, the man who was alone on the snow over his knees—but seemed to be the girl sitting quietly next to me in a cashmere shawl. How cold! I immediately woke up and turned my head to look at her. She lit a small hole in the frosted window and was staring out.
"What are you looking at?"
"I'm afraid I missed the drop-off location..."
"Won't the driver remind you?"
"Sometimes I go overboard."
"I'll remind him." I walked over to the dispatcher and reminded him that he would stop when he got to Olkan.
The girl said gently, "Thank you." You seem to be thinking about something big. Perhaps, I am wondering, how should the article begin and how it should end? ”
"No, not at all. I'm here...... Thinking of you. ”
"And I..."
"It's so funny..." My heart warmed.
"It's you... But it's not you either... How do I explain that? It's actually someone like you who is always traveling, always in a car or riding a horse. By the way, my father had always been a nomadic herder, and at this time, he must have just put down his livestock, rested his feet, and was preparing for evening tea. ”
"Are they in the winter pasture?"
"Yes, but the villages in the winter pastures are not far away, right next to each other."
"So you're going to the Winter Ranch today?"
"Where are you going?"
"It's terrible on the road, it's night again, it's windy outside, it's winter again."
"Hey, big brother, I'm all familiar with the natural conditions here, and I've walked this path countless times. Our village of Olkan was originally called Wolf Valley, but it was later renamed. Although the name has changed, nothing has changed in so many years. Or those 20 families. Olkan was a Soviet regimental brigade, only primary and secondary schools to go to Novostrika, where you are now going. That's where I finished high school. Because there was no direct car, we had to take the passing car and then ask the driver to put us in the middle of the road. Then walk to home in the mountains. I don't have to hide from you, especially in winter, it's too hard. And the winter in Altai is too long, what can be done? ”
The girl sighed. Then, approaching the little hole she had just lit with her fingers, she wiped it and looked out the window. My cold, numb knees and toes had been forgotten by me because of the girl's story, and now I was starting to shiver with cold again. The passengers in the car were all napping and looking uncomfortable. In addition to the sound of the car motor, the roar of the wind outside the window, and the snoring of the few people just now, there was silence around.
(This article is an excerpt)
concentrate:
This article was published in the new translation column of Yanhe Magazine in 2022 issue 4
The pictures in this article are from the Internet