A Candle in The Window by Andrea Kaczmarek
Lilly, Libby, Scarlett and George begged to finish Trick-or-Treating on their own, in their street.
Lilly, Libby, Scarlett, dan George memohon untuk menyelesaikan Trick-or-Treat sendiri di jalan rumah mereka.
Lilly the green witch with spiders and a pointy hat, Libby the vampire with scary teeth and a blood red cape, Scarlett the pumpkin, her face bright orange, and George the white creepy ghost with a ripped bedsheet.
Lilly memakai kostum penyihir hijau dengan laba-laba dan topi runcing, Libby memakai kostum vampir dengan gigi yang menyeramkan dan jubah merah darah, Scarlett memakai kostum labu dengan wajah oranye terang, dan George memakai kostum hantu putih yang menyeramkan dengan seprai robek.
Mom said yes. All the neighbors wanted to see their costumes, and most of them had plenty of treats…
Ibu mereka mengizinkan. Semua tetangga penasaran untuk melihat kostum mereka, dan hampir semua tetangga sudah menyiapkan permen-permen...
“Just our neighbors in our street, though. I’ll get the hotdogs ready, so don’t be too long…” Mom called.
“Tetangga-tetangga di jalan rumah kita saja, ya. Ibu nanti siapkan hotdog, jadi jangan terlalu lama, ya...” saut ibu.
And the four children went off to see what their neighbors had ready for them.
Dan keempat anak itu pergi untuk melihat apa yang sudah disiapkan para tetangga untuk mereka.
The last house was Mrs. Simms, and she had plenty. As they left, George looked along to the end of their road.
Rumah terakhir yang mereka kunjungi adalah rumah Ny. Simms, dan Ny. Simms sudah menyiapkan banyak permen. Saat mereka pergi, George melihat ke ujung jalan.
“Why not try the old house at the edge of the wood? It’s creepy enough for Halloween.”
“Bagaimana kalau kita coba ke rumah tua di tepi hutan itu? Cukup menyeramkan untuk Halloween.”
“A waste of time. Nobody lives there… it has been empty for years…” Libby shook her Vampire head.
“Buang-buang waktu. Tidak ada yang tinggal di sana... sudah kosong selama bertahun-tahun...” Libby menggelengkan kepala vampirnya.
Ghostly George didn’t give up. “But tonight, I can see a light in the front window. Maybe somebody moved in.”
George tidak menyerah. “Tapi, aku lihat cahaya di jendela depannya. Mungkin sudah ada orang yang menempati.”
The four children all looked down the road to the big dark old house just outside the little wood at the end of their road.
Keempat anak itu melihat ke ujung jalan, ke rumah tua besar yang gelap di dekat hutan kecil di ujung jalan rumah mereka.
Lilly squinted. “Yes, there is a light in the window.” She laughed. “OK George, we’ll give the new people a little ‘Halloween welcome’ to our street…”
Lilly menyipitkan mata. “Ya, ada cahaya di jendelanya.” Lily tertawa. “Oke George, kita akan memberi sambutan ‘Halloween’ kecil untuk penghuni baru di jalan rumah kita...”
Why did they feel a bit nervous as they opened the old iron gate, the gate creaked, and they almost turned back?
Mengapa mereka merasa cukup gugup saat membuka gerbang besi tua rumah itu. Gerbang itu berderit, dan mereka hampir terjengkang?
Sure enough, there was a light – a candle in a dirty jam jar, in the dusty old downstairs window.
Ternyata benar, ada cahaya – sebuah lilin dalam toples selai yang kotor, di jendela lantai bawah yang berdebu.
“Just moved in… Maybe the electricity isn’t on yet…” Scarlett sounded braver than she felt.
“Baru pindah... Mungkin listriknya belum menyala...” Scarlett terdengar lebih berani padahal sesungguhnya dia juga takut.
The four Trick-or-Treaters stood close together at the front door. There was no bell, just a rusty old knocker covered in spiderwebs.
Keempat anak Trick-or-Treat itu berdiri berdekatan di depan pintu. Tidak ada bel, hanya palu tua berkarat yang tertutup jaring laba-laba.
Lilly knocked, the sound was hollow and scary.
Lilly mengetuk, suara pintunya terdengar hampa dan menakutkan.
A face appeared at the window. A thin old lady with straggly white hair. The candle in the jar made her look a little yellow, and very old.
Sebuah wajah muncul di jendela. Seorang wanita tua kurus dengan rambut putih acak-acakan. Lilin dalam toples membuatnya terlihat sedikit kuning, dan sangat tua.
“Happy Halloween,” the children mumbled, in voices that now were no longer so sure that this was a good idea.
“Selamat Halloween,” gumam anak-anak, dengan suara yang sekarang tidak lagi yakin apakah ini ide yang bagus.
But the old lady smiled a crooked smile and asked,
Namun wanita tua itu tersenyum menyeringai dan bertanya,
“Who are you? Tell me your names…”
“Siapa kalian? Sebutkan nama kalian…”
The children were polite and told their names. Wishing the old lady a Happy Halloween, all they wanted to do was to run. Apart from the pale-yellow candle in the window, all around was pitch black. The trees in the garden looked twisted and strange, and the house even older and more broken down than it seemed from the street…
Anak-anak itu sopan dan menyebutkan nama mereka. Mengucapkan Selamat Halloween kepada wanita tua itu, dan yang ingin mereka lakukan hanyalah berlari. Selain lilin kuning pucat di jendela, semuanya gelap gulita. Pohon-pohon di taman tampak melengkung dan aneh, dan rumah itu bahkan lebih tua dan lebih rusak daripada yang terlihat dari jalan...
“I have something for you children.” The old lady spoke slowly, and the candle flickered.
“Aku punya sesuatu untuk kalian, anak-anak.” Wanita tua itu berbicara perlahan, dan lilin itu berkedip.
Lilly and Libby were holding hands tight. Scarlett and George were gripping each other’s elbows.
Lilly dan Libby saling menggenggam tangan erat-erat. Scarlett dan George saling mencengkeram siku.
“I have so many apple trees in my garden,” the old lady smiled. But it seemed kind of twisted in the candle light.
“Aku punya begitu banyak pohon apel di kebunku,” wanita tua itu tersenyum. Tapi senyumnya nampak agak aneh dalam binar cahaya lilin.
“Today, I picked a basketful of the best and freshest apples…” Her eyes fixed on each one of the children; her eyes looked right through them. “I hoped some children might come to visit me.”
“Hari ini, aku memetik sekeranjang penuh apel terbaik dan paling segar...” Matanya menatap setiap anak; matanya seolah menembus mereka. “Aku berharap ada anak-anak yang datang berkunjung.”
The children nodded. “Thank you very much…” Libby managed to squeak.
Anak-anak itu mengangguk. “Terima kasih banyak...” Libby berhasil berbisik.
“In front of the door.” The old lady lifted a bony finger, and pointed out of the window.
“Di depan pintu.” Wanita tua itu mengangkat jari keriputnya dan menunjuk ke luar jendela.
“Yes, thank you, it’s very kind of you…” Scarlett hardly knew what she was saying. She just wanted to grab that basket and run.
“Ya, terima kasih, nenek baik sekali...” Scarlett hampir tidak tahu apa yang dia katakan. Dia hanya ingin mengambil keranjang itu dan lari.
“We’ll bring back the basket, we promise,” George added, but the other three glared at him.
“Kami akan mengembalikan keranjangnya, kami janji,” tambah George, tapi ketiga temannya memelototinya.
Lilly spotted the basket, quite near her feet on the stone doorstep, where they had just knocked. She hadn’t noticed it before.
Lilly melihat keranjang itu, cukup dekat dengan kakinya, di ambang pintu batu tempat mereka baru saja mengetuk. Lily tidak menyadari itu sebelumnya.
“Funny we didn’t see them before,” she mumbled, as she picked up the basket of apples, and the four children turned and ran for the gate.
“Aneh! Padahal tadi kita tidak melihatnya,” gumamnya, saat dia mengambil keranjang apel itu, dan keempat anak itu berbalik dan berlari ke gerbang.
Only George turned around for a moment – the house was dark again; the candle had gone out.
Hanya George yang berbalik badan sejenak – melihat rumah itu gelap lagi; lilinnya sudah padam.
Back home, Lilly quickly dumped the basket of apples on the kitchen table, then the children went to the counter for the delicious smelling hot-dogs.
Sesampainya di rumah, Lilly dengan cepat meletakkan keranjang apel di meja dapur, lalu anakanak pergi ke meja untuk mengambil hotdog yang baunya menggoda.
“I hope you got plenty of treats,” Mum smiled. “Loads,” Scarlett grinned. “And the old lady in the big house at the end of the road gave us a basket of apples…” George told her.
“Ibu harap kalian dapat banyak permen,” senyum ibu. “Banyak,” senyum Scarlett. “Dan wanita tua di rumah besar di ujung jalan memberi kami sekeranjang apel...” kata George pada ibunya.
“But nobody lives in that old house. It has been empty for years…” Mom shook her head, and they went out onto the patio to toast marshmallows on a small fire and share out their candy.
“Tapi tidak ada yang tinggal di rumah tua itu. Sudah kosong selama bertahun-tahun...” Ibu menggelengkan kepala, dan mereka pergi ke teras untuk memanggang marshmallow di atas api kecil dan berbagi permen mereka.
The next morning Mom called the children for breakfast.
Keesokan paginya, ibu memanggil anak-anak untuk sarapan.
“What on earth were you thinking, leaving that basket of apples on the table…”
“Bagaimana bisa kalian meninggalkan keranjang apel itu di meja...”
“Why?” Lilly looked hard at the basket.
“Kenapa?” Lilly terbelalak melihat keranjang itu.
“Those apples are rotten…” Mum pointed at the basket. “Full of worms, and they look pretty rotten. The basket crumbles as soon as you even touch it, it’s so old…”
“Apel-apel itu busuk...” Ibu menunjuk keranjang itu. “Penuh cacing, dan terlihat sangat busuk. Keranjangnya hancur begitu disentuh, sudah sangat tua...”
“But it wasn’t like that last night,” George frowned. “The apples looked fresh; red and green…”
“Tapi semalam tidak begitu,” George mengernyit. “Apelnya tampak segar; merah dan hijau...”
George stared at the basket. The apples were brown and rotting, moldy with worms and maggots crawling all over, flies buzzing…
George menatap keranjang itu. Apel-apelnya sudah cokelat dan membusuk, berjamur dengan cacing-cacing yang merayap di mana-mana, lalat-lalat berdengung...
“They stink.” Libby held her nose.
“Baunya busuk,” Libby menutup hidungnya.
“In the bin.” Mum scooped up the basket and threw it away.
“Buang saja.” Ibu mengangkat keranjang itu dan membuangnya.
“How did that happen?” Scarlett wondered. “Last night they seemed OK”
“Bagaimana itu bisa terjadi?” Scarlett bertanya-tanya. “Tadi malam apelnya tampak baik-baik saja.”
George couldn’t let it go. “I have to find out. You can come if you like…”
George tidak bisa berhenti berpikir. “Aku harus mencari tahu. Kalian bisa ikut jika mau...”
He walked to the end of the road. The others followed behind him.
George berjalan ke ujung jalan. Yang lain mengikutinya.
The big sign said – ‘Keep Out- Dangerous Building!’
Sebuah papan besar bertuliskan – ‘Dilarang Masuk - Bangunan Berbahaya!’
A man with a yellow hard hat leaned over the fence.
Seorang pria dengan helm kuning bersandar di pagar.
“That sign has been there for weeks. Those walls are dangerous, the stones are unsafe…”
“Papan itu sudah ada di sana selama berminggu-minggu. Dinding-dinding itu berbahaya, batunya tidak aman...”
“And what about the old lady who lives here?” George asked.
“Lalu, bagaimana dengan wanita tua yang tinggal di sini?” tanya George.
“Nobody lives here, little boy.” The man picked up his electric saw and switched it on with a buzz. “We are here to chop down all those old bent and broken old apple trees. They are dangerous and rotten, too. You won’t find any apples in this garden…”
“Tidak ada yang tinggal di sini, nak.” Pria itu mengambil gergaji listriknya dan menyalakannya dengan bunyi berdengung. “Kami di sini untuk menebang semua pohon apel tua yang bengkok dan rusak. Mereka juga berbahaya dan busuk. Kalian tidak akan menemukan apel di kebun ini...”
George sniffed, and wondered why he could smell the sweet fruity smell of fresh apples…..
George mengendus, dan bertanya-tanya mengapa dia bisa mencium bau manis buah apel segar...