An Bád Farantóireachta: The Ferry

An hour out to the island, and a sky that has other plans.

Bhí an t-aer trom agus an spéir ag dorchú ó dheas.
The air was heavy and the sky darkening from the south.

“Rachaidh sí amach,” arsa an fear ag an gcéibh, “ach ní fios cathain a thiocfaidh sí ar ais.”
“She will go out,” said the man at the quay, “but there is no knowing when she will come back.”

Thóg mé mo mhála agus chuaigh mé ar bord.
I took my bag and went aboard.

Bhí seanbhean ina suí istigh agus a lámha fillte ar a chéile.
An old woman was sitting inside with her hands folded together.

Níor fhéach sí amach uair amháin le linn an aistir.
She did not look out once during the journey.

D’ardaigh an fharraige taobh amuigh den chuan.
The sea rose outside the harbour.

Chuala mé duine éigin ag rá paidir faoina anáil.
I heard someone saying a prayer under his breath.

Má tá eagla ar na hoileánaigh roimh an bhfarraige, ní ligeann siad orthu é.
If the islanders are afraid of the sea, they do not let on.

Tháinig an t-oileán chugainn as an gceo, dubh ar dtús agus ansin glas.
The island came to us out of the mist, black at first and then green.

Bhí daoine ag fanacht ar an gcéibh mar a bhíonn i gcónaí.
There were people waiting on the quay as there always are.

Dúirt an captaen nach rachadh sí amach arís go maidin.
The captain said she would not go out again until morning.

Bhí an oíche againn ar an oileán, agus ní raibh aon duine míshásta faoi.
We had the night on the island, and nobody was unhappy about it.

A note on this one

Notice how much of this is the weather deciding things. <b>Má</b> and <b>dá</b> both mean “if”, but they are not interchangeable: <i>má</i> takes the indicative for something likely or real, <i>dá</i> takes the conditional for something supposed. The islands keep the old shape of the language in more than grammar.