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Olomakaya, na Helao ota i kodoolopa naina. Okuhole okuya kodoolopa. Odoolopa oihafifa! Oku na oinima ihapu, iwa nokutala.
It’s Saturday and Rico is going to town with his mother. He likes going to town. Town is exciting! There are lots of things to see.
Helao okukwete meenyala daina a diinina. Engungo lovanhu otali pingafana navo.
Rico holds his mother’s hand very tightly. Streams of people are passing by.
Ope na ovashingifi tava landifa oihongomwa iwa.
There are stalls selling beautiful handmade crafts.
Ounduli vanini va hongwa moiti. Oofimbi noinyengele va longwa meedalate neendjeva domaluvala.
There are small giraffes carved out of wood, chameleons and lizards made out of wire and coloured beads, and jewellery made from ostrich egg shell.
Okwa uda sha. Ongovela iwa yeimbilo ‘Amazing Grace’ (Onghenda i kumwifa). Okwa fikama a pwilikine. Openi ta i dilile? Ongovela otai linyenge ya fa omunhu ta shiki omwilwa u na eenote deimbilo ‘Amazing Grace.’
Then he hears it! Someone is whistling the sweet melody of ‘Amazing Grace.’ He stops to listen. Where is it coming from?
“Inandi uda nande onale omwilwa muwa ngaashi ou,” osho a diladila ye mwene.
“I’ve never heard anyone whistle so beautifully before,” he thinks to himself.
Okwa enda mokati kovanhu. Okwe mu mona! Omulumenhu. Mwene wewi eli tali shiki omwilwa. Ovanhu otava tula oimaliwa ikukutu mokandooha kanini ke li komesho yomulumenhu.
Ashike… ope na sha sha puka…
He makes his way through the people. Then he sees the man who is whistling. People are putting coins into a small tin in front of him.
But … something is wrong …
Omushikimwilwa ita tale kovanhu. Ye ita tale koimaliwa. Ye ita tale kusha. Ota kufa oimaliwa ikukutu oyo yi li mokandooha ndele tei tula melimba lae loshikutu.
The whistling man is not looking at the people. He is not looking at the money. He is not looking at anything. He’s searching for the coins in the tin and putting them into his pocket.
Helao okwa dakamena mo omushikimwilwa omesho. “Mbela omupofi.”
Helao ina mona nande onale omunhu a pofipala. Oku udite a tila. Okwa kwata moshikutu shaina neendelelo ndele ta pula ta nongofola, “Meme omulumenhu oo omupofi?”
Rico stares at the whistling man and thinks, “Maybe he’s blind.”
Rico has never seen a blind person before. He feels scared. He grabs his mother’s dress and asks softly, “Mommy, is that man blind?”
Ina okwa kufa eke laye, “Ehee,” ye ta nyamukula. “Heeno, ye omupofi.”
“Tala, ye oku na okati ka toka. Ovapofi vahapu ohava kala ve na outi vatoka. Oha longifa okati aka ke mu wilike opo pe na omalambo osho yo omainda.”
She takes his hand. “Yes,” she answers, “yes, he’s blind. Look, he has a white stick. Many blind people carry a white stick. He uses this stick to feel for holes and other obstacles.”
“Kodoolopa okwe ya ko ngahelipi nee? Okwa enda mo nee ngahelipi mokati kovanhu omo?” Helao ta pula.
“But how did he come to town? How did he find his way through all the people?” Rico asks.
Ina te mu lombwele, “Kashiimba ope na oo he mu kwafele moku enda enda. Ohatu ifana omunhu oo omuwiliki.”
His mother tells him, “Maybe he has someone who helps him to find his way around. We call that person a guide.”
Otava ende va yuka ponhele yoinamwenyo. Omalamba omopate okwa lunduluka ndele taa ningi a twima omafo, eetuwa oda kanghama novaendi vokolupadi tava tauluka ondjila.
They walk to the zoopark. The traffic lights change to green, the cars stop and the pedestrians cross the street.
“Tala omundilo u twima omafo. Ngeenge u twima omafo otashi ulike kutya omito oyaamenwa okutauluka ondjila. Moilongo imwe omu na omawi taa londwele,” Ina te mu lomwbele. “Ngeenge ovapofi tava udu omawi aa, ove shi shi kutya osha amenwa okutauluka ondjila.”
“Look at the green light. When it is green we can see it is safe to cross the road. In some countries there is also a beeping sound,” Rico’s mother says. “When blind people hear the beeping, they know it is safe to cross the road.”
Ova kala omutumba pomwiidi wa hapa nawa womonhele yoinamwenyo, ndele tava tale ovanhu ovo tava piti po.
“Ovapofi vamwe ove na ovawiliki veembwa. Eembwa edi oda deulilwa okuwilika oovene. Ndele, eembwa edi odi na ondilo unene. MoNamibia omu na eembwa-wiliki dishona.”
They sit on the green grass of the zoopark and watch the people walking by.
“Some blind people have a guide dog,” his mother says. “These dogs are trained to guide their owner, but they are very expensive. There are very few guide dogs in Namibia.”
“Ita dulu okutala o TV yomudidimbe,” Helao tati.
“Ota dulu okupwilikina oTV yomudidimbe noradio yoovene,” Ina te mu lomwele. “Ovapofi ohava udu oinima nawa ve dule ava hava mono ko.”
“The blind man can’t watch TV,” Rico says.
“He can hear the TV and radio,” Rico’s mother tells him. “Blind people can often hear things much better than people who can see.”
“Ndele ye iha dulu okulesha omambo noifokundaneki,” Helao ta ti.
“Ope na omambo a shangwa meendada dovapofi. Ponhele yoitya ya nyanyangidwa nohinga, ope na ounghulukutu vokuninga eendada. Osha fa okuode’.”
“But he can’t read books or newspapers,” says Rico.
“There are books written in Braille. Instead of words printed with ink, there are raised dots which make letters. It’s like a code.”
“Ota dulu okulesha ngahelipi ye e he wete ko?”
“Oha lesha neenyala dae. Oha udu ounghulukutu nominwe daye ngaashi ashike ove ho mono eendada nomesho oye.”
“How can he read if he can’t see?”
“He reads with his hands. He feels the raised dots with his fingers, just like you see the letters with your eyes.”
Rico is amazed to think that people who are blind can do everyday things; things like walking around in town, like whistling songs, like reading.
Ina okwe mu lombwela, “Eyooloko alike olo li li pokati koye nomupofi olo eli kutya, ove oto dulu okumona ko, omupofi ita dulu okumona ko.”
“Ame ohandi dulu okumona ko, ndele itandi dulu okushika omwilwa muwa ngaashi womupofi,” Helao te liyolaifa.
His mother tells him, “The only difference between you and a blind person is that you can see and a blind person can’t see.”
“I can see, but I can’t whistle as beautifully as that blind man,” Rico smiles.