Nutámet — The Fisherman

Lorraine Gabriel

Indian Township, ME — 1977

1.   Nèqt=yaq wòt skitàp natáme téhpu péskok polcísol.

      [Once this man went fishing wearing only pants.]

2.   Ítom=yaq, “’Sampóte àpc kèq wèn ’poskómon.”

      [He said, they say, “It’s too hot for someone to wear anything else.”]

3.   Pihcetù cuwi-lúhse lamìw kcíhkuk tokkìw pecíyat sítŏmok.

      [He had to walk a long distance in the woods before he got to the shore.]

4.   Eci-=yaq -wolitahásit méskok welíkok weci-kisámet.

      [He was very happy, they say, when he found a good place that he could fish from.]

5.   Kèsq=yaq etŏlámet sesŏláhki=te petamíhtit cossŭwíyik elinàqsit.

      [While he was fishing, they say, there suddenly came flying up a whole lot of mosquitoes.]

6.   Píhce=ehta wèn ’tehqi-líyan nìt.

      [People had in fact stopped going there long ago.]

7.   Etuci-naskanáqsit elŏmáhtit skitápĭyil cèl=ehta=yaq sehsŏmáhtit.

      [They were really bothersome as they bit the man, and they say their bites even made him cry out in pain.]

8.   Etuttémit=yaq skitàp elŏmi-qàsqit.

      [The man was really crying as he ran away.]

9.   Nìt=ehta etŏli-nókŏtok ’toleyuwàkon.

      [He just left his gear right there.]

10.   Ítom=yaq, “Tàn=tehc qenawsì, kàt-op àpc nìl natámew.”

        [He said, they say, “As long as I may live, I will never go fishing again.”]