sququweth ‘i’ tthu p’uq’ slhumuhw – Rabbit and the white rain

 

sququweth ’i’ tthu p’uq’ slhumuhw
Rabbit and the white rain

’utl’ Howulenuhwtanaat
by Dolly Sylvester

sxwi’em’ tsun tse’ ’u tthu sququweth.
nuts’a’ skweyul kwus hwuy tthu sququweth.
suw’ sht’eewun’, “nu stl’i’ kw’unus nem’ ’umshasum’ nem’ ’u kwthu statluw’ nem’ lemut kwthu stseelhtun.”
susuw’ ’utl’qul tun’ni’ ’u tthu shqwuhi’wun’ lelum’s.

My story will be about Rabbit.
One day Rabbit woke up.
And he though, “I want to walking down by the river to see some salmon.”
And so he went out of his burrow.

kwus hwun’ yu ’i’mush ni’ ’u tthu shelh, ’i wulh tus tthu sxuytl’ tse’ ’u tthu muqsuns.
susuw’ kw’a’usum’ lemutus tthu skweyul ’i’ p’uq’ tthu slhumuhw.
’uwu niis shtatul’st-hwus tthu meqe’.
nan ’uw’ hwun’ stl’i’tl’qulh, ’uw’ statul’st-hwus ’ul’ kwus hwu xuytl’ tthu muqsuns ’i’ tthu sxun’us.

When he was walking along the road, his nose started to get cold.
And he looked up at the sky and the rain was white.
He didn’t know what snow was.
He was still very young, and the only thing he knew was that his nose and his feed got cold.

susuw’ tsi’tsetl’um’ kwus nem’ t’akw’.
kwus hun’umut, ’i’ pte’mutus tthu tens, “stem ’a’lu tthu xuytl’ ’i’ hi’lum’ tun’ni’ ’u tthu skweyul?
ni’ tl’lim’ ’uw’ hwu xuytl’ kwus tutus ’u tthunu muqsun ’i’ tthunu sxun’u.”

When he got home, he asked his mother, “What is that cold stuff falling from the sky?
My nose and my feet started to get really cold.”

susuw’ thut tthu tens, “nilh p’e’ hun’utum’ meqe’ tthey’.”
And his mother said, “That’s what they call ‘snow’.”

“aaa sha!” thut tthu sququweth.
“qulstuhw tsun tthey’ meqe’.
nu stl’i’ tthu skw’ess tthu sum’shathut.

“Shucks!” said Rabbit.
“I don’t like that snow.
I like the warmth of the sun.

ni’ tsun lumnuhw tthunu shxun’utun ’i’ kwthu sqw’ulesh, ’i’ sht’eewun’ ’uw’ nilhus tthu shxun’utun ’utl’ spaal’ kwthu ni’ lumnuhween’.
’i’ tl’lim’ tsun ’uw’ tth’alhum ’i’ hwu lhuqw tthunu kw’uluw’ kw’unus ’i ’i’mush.”

I saw my footprints and a bird, and I thought it was Raven’s footprints that I was seeing.
And I got really cold and my skin was very wet when I was walking.”

’i’ ’uwu niis hith ’i wulh ’iye’q tthu meqe’ ni’ hwu slhumuhw.
’i’ tl’uw’ wulh thut tthu sququweth, “’uwu nu stl’i’us tthey’ slhumuhw.
nu stl’i’ tthu kw’ess tthu sum’shathut.”
’i’ ni’ kw’in skweyul ’i’ wulh wil’ tthu sum’shathut ’i’ tl’lim’ ’uw’ hwu ’iyus tthu sququweth.

And it wasn’t long until the snow changed into rain.
And Rabbit said, “I don’t like the rain.
I like the warmth of the sun.”
And a few days later the sun appeared and Rabbit was very happy.

ni’ hay.
The end.

CREDITS

Hul’q’umi’num’ story by Dolly Sylvester
Editorial assistance by Donna Gerdts and Ruby Peter
Sound recording by Sally Hart
Art by Michelle Parent
Sound and video editing by Donna Gerdts and Carolyn Ruttan

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Story: Sququweth