Day 87: Coaching Grandpa to Testify
In Cuautla, Morelos, the night before he testifies as a witness in his neighbor Don Nazario's dispute over a boundary wall, Baltazar (B), a retired bricklayer, is coached by his granddaughter Romina (A), who loves courtroom shows.
How to study this lesson 3 steps
- Read the situation under the title. It says who is talking and how they know each other, which decides how politely they speak.
- Read the dialogue line by line with its translation, until every line makes sense. Point at (or tap) a Spanish word to see what it means.
- Spend at least 30 minutes listening to native Spanish, for example from the Resources page. It doesn't matter if you don't understand it yet.
Dialogue
Audio recordings are on the way. For now, each lesson is the dialogue with its English translation.
Keys: E hide English · ← → previous / next day · point at a word to see its meaning
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A
Abuelo, ensayemos. Te leo el citatorio: “Por este conducto se le cita a comparecer como testigo mañana a las diez horas”.
Grandpa, let's rehearse. I'll read you the summons: “You are hereby summoned to appear as a witness tomorrow at ten o'clock.”
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B
Ay, Romina, qué feo escriben los abogados. Esa barda la levantamos Nazario y yo el año que nació tu mamá, un domingo de calorón...
Oh, Romina, what ugly language lawyers write. Nazario and I put that wall up the year your mom was born, on a Sunday in a heat wave...
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A
¡Objeción! El testigo divaga. El juez no te va a preguntar por el clima, sino desde cuándo existe la barda.
Objection! The witness is rambling. The judge isn't going to ask you about the weather, but how long the wall has been there.
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B
De eso te hablo. No hay nadie en la colonia que conozca esa barda como yo: le pegué cada tabique.
That's what I'm telling you about. There's nobody in the neighborhood who knows that wall like I do: I laid every brick of it.
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A
Por eso te citaron. La notificación surte efecto desde hoy, así que nada de amanecer mañana con dolor de rodilla.
That's why they've summoned you. The notice takes effect as of today, so no waking up tomorrow with a bad knee.
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B
¿Quién dijo rodilla? Bueno, tantito. ¿Y si el juez me pregunta por qué está chueca la barda?
Who said anything about knees? Well, maybe a tiny bit. And what if the judge asks me why the wall is crooked?
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A
Contestas corto y con la verdad. No hay juez que aguante una historia de cuarenta minutos, ni en las series ni en Cuautla.
You answer briefly and truthfully. There isn't a judge alive who can sit through a forty-minute story, not on TV and not in Cuautla.
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B
Está chueca porque Nazario nunca supo usar el nivel. Antes de que se secara la mezcla, escribimos con un clavo las iniciales y la fecha...
It's crooked because Nazario never learned to use a level. Before the mortar dried, we scratched our initials and the date into it with a nail...
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A
¡Obje...! No, espérate: ¿la fecha escrita en la barda? ¿Y todavía se ve?
Objec... No, hang on: the date written on the wall? And you can still see it?
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B
Abajito de la bugambilia: “B. y N., 12 de marzo de 1989”. Pero como la licenciada no me deja contar historias...
Just under the bougainvillea: “B. and N., March 12, 1989.” But since the learned counsel won't let me tell stories...
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A
Retiro la objeción. Mañana le tomamos foto antes de la audiencia. Ahora repite conmigo: “Bajo protesta de decir verdad”.
I withdraw the objection. Tomorrow we'll take a photo of it before the hearing. Now repeat after me: “I solemnly swear to tell the truth.”
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