Goaq nǀui khukhudi sa ǁAoha koh o ǂarasi. Sa koh ǁau ku ǃxoana ǀxoa tzama gesin si nǀuia koh ku nǃom koara.
Once upon a time, Hen and
Eagle were friends. They lived
in peace with all the other birds.
None of them could fly.
ǀAm nǀui, dshau tci ooasi koh gea nǃore nǃang. ǁAoha ku ǂ’aun nǂaoh nǂau koa nǃobe ǂxan ka ho ‘msi. Ka nǃobe ǁ’huin ka ce. “Ka ǂ’aun ka ǂ’ang nǀuia soah he o ǃau nǁo ma ge!” ǁAoha koe nǁae.
One day, there was famine in
the land. Eagle had to walk very
far to find food. She came back
very tired.
“There must be an easier way
to travel!” said Eagle.
Gǀu nǀuia gǃuh koh nǃobe nǀ’ang, khukhudi ho ǂ’ang nǀuia nǃobe jan. Ha coacoa te ku ǂ’an nǁo ǃkuisa o ha tzama ǂara gesin gasi sa koh taqm nǁo. “Kxoe nǀang mǃa gǃai ǁaoa ka ko mǃa ǃkuisi ǁ’ahsi,” ha koe nǁae. “Khoe nǀui ka ku gǀea hui ko ǃau nǁo.”
After a good night’s sleep, Hen
had a brilliant idea. She began
collecting the fallen feathers
from all their bird friends.
“Let’s sew them together on top
of our own feathers,” she said.
“Perhaps that will make it easier
to travel.”
ǁAoha nǀe’esi hi kxaea naqni ko ǁ’a tjuǀhoa, te kahin ha ku ǂ’an ka coacoa gǃai. Ha du ǀ’an ha ǀ’ae ko nǃabu tsan sa ǀohm te tsau te nǃoma khukhudi ǁ’ansi. Khukhudi ǀxobe naqni te tia nǃoa ǁ’huian gǃai. Ha nǁah naqni ko kas ǃ’o te ua kombi ǁ’a ha u toto ǀ’an da’abi ko ‘msi.
Eagle was the only one in the
village with a needle, so she
started sewing first.
She made herself a pair of
beautiful wings and flew high
above Hen.
Hen borrowed the needle but
she soon got tired of sewing.
She left the needle on the
cupboard and went into the
kitchen to prepare food for her
children.
Te tzama gesin ho tca ǁAoha ku oo nǃom ua. Siǃa gǂara naqni ko khukhudi ǁ’a si xabe gǃai ǀ’an si ǀ’aesi ko nǃabu gesin. Te nǃosi ǁ’aka tzama kua gǃain nǀa’an te nǃom nǁo.
But the other birds had seen
Eagle flying away. They asked
Hen to lend them the needle to
make wings for themselves too.
Soon there were birds flying all
over the sky.
Ka tzama o toansi ku tani ce naqni, khukhudi koara. Te ha da’abisi gu naqni te coa te kui ǀxoa. Ka siǃa toan ǀxoa ǁ’a kui tsima, siǃa sin nǁah naqni ko kxaǀho.
When the last bird returned the
borrowed needle, Hen was not
there. So her children took the
needle and started playing with
it.
When they got tired of the
game, they left the needle in
the sand.
Koh ka ǀam gǁore, ǁAoha ce. Ha tsitsa’a tu naqni ǁ’a ha gǃai ǁao ce ǃkui sa koh khoara ko ǁ’aea toa ha koh ku nǃom nǁo. Khukhudi kxoa naqni ko kas ǃ’o. Ha kxoa ha ko kombi nǃang. Ha kxoa ha ko darah nǃang. Te khoe nǀuia ha hoa naqni koara.
Later that afternoon, Eagle
returned. She asked for the
needle to fix some feathers that
had loosened on her journey.
Hen looked on the cupboard.
She looked in the kitchen. She
looked in the yard. But the
needle was nowhere to be
found.
“Sin na ǀam nǃang,” Khukhudi koe ǀxom ǁAoha. “Nǀang a ce gǃai a nǃabusi nǀang kxoa nǁo ‘msi.” “Ka ǀam nǀui ce ku ǁua.” ǁAoha koe nǁ’ae. “Ka a ǀoa ho naqni, a ku na a da’ama nǀe’e ko ǀxao kxama.”
“Just give me a day,” Hen
begged Eagle. “Then you can
fix your wing and fly away to
get food again.”
“Just one more day,” said Eagle.
“If you can’t find the needle,
you’ll have to give me one of
your chicks as payment.”
ǀAma ǁua he ǁAoha ce tsi gǃa, ha ho tca khukhudi te ge ku nǂaqri kxa, te naqni koara. Te ǁAoha kua nǃom khauru tca nǃo te gu khukhuma nǀui. Ha ǁ’ae ha te u ǀxoa ha. Te ǁohma ǁ’a ǁ’ae hin toa, ka ǁAoha ku tsi, ha ho ka khukhudi ku nǂaqri kxoa naqni ko kxa ǃka.
When Eagle came the next day,
she found Hen scratching in the
sand, but no needle.
So Eagle flew down very fast
and caught one of the chicks.
She carried it away.
Forever after that, whenever
Eagle appears, she finds Hen
scratching in the sand for the
needle.
Ka ǃharia o ǁAoha nǃobusi ga ku hoa ka ǀ’ae ko kxaǀoh, khukhudi nǂai ǀkuri ha da’abisi. “Gǃaia koa toa nǀang tsia kxa ǃxau.” Te siǃa ǁoaq ha. “Eǃa m ǀoa o nǁuhnsi. Eǃa ku ǃaah.”
As the shadow of Eagle’s wing
falls on the ground, Hen warns
her chicks. “Get out of the bare
and dry land.”
And they respond:
“We are not fools. We will run.”
