Spás: Full Story as Gaeilge (with English Translations) (Junior Cert Irish): Revision Notes
Spás: Full Story as Gaeilge (with English Translations)
Theastaigh spás uaithi. Spás di féin. Spás chun 'a rud féin' a dhéanamh. Spás lena saol féin a chaitheamh.
Lig sí osna. Lean an múinteoir uirthi ag caint. Ach ní raibh Pádraigín ag éisteacht léi. Bhí a smaointe **i bhfad ar shiúl.**Bhí sí ag smaoineamh ar a saol féin agus na hathruithe a bhí tagtha air le tamall anuas. Trí mhí ó shin bhí seomra dá cuid féin aici sa bhaile. Ach nuair a saolaíodh leanbh óg dá tuismitheoirí tháinig deireadh leis sin ar fad. Cuireadh a deirfiúr Aoife isteach in aon seomra léi. Níor réitigh sí féin agus Aoife riamh lena chéile.
Go dtí gur tháinig Aoife isteach léi, bhí an saol ar a toil aici. Bhí sí in ann a rogha rud a dhéanamh. Ní raibh éinne ag cur isteach ná amach uirthi. Bhí gach rud in ord is in eagar aici. Bhí sí in ann bheith ag léamh is ag éisteacht leis an raidió go dtí a haon a chlog ar maidin dá mba mhian léi é. D'fhéadfadh sí fanacht sa leaba go meán lae ag an deireadh seachtaine.
Ach anois ní raibh aon phríobháideacht fágtha aici. Cuireadh iachall uirthi na soilse a mhúchadh aréir ag a deich a chlog agus dhúisigh Aoife ag a seacht a chlog ar maidin í lena Playstation glórrach, gránna. Agus arú aréir níor stop Peadar, an leanbh óg, ach ag gol is ag caoineadh an oíche go léir ....
Tháinig na deora léi. Ní raibh trua ag éinne di. Bhí a tuismitheoirí ag cur brú uirthi de shíor níos mó staidéir a dhéanamh. Ach ní raibh ar a cumas é a dhéanamh. Le teacht a dearthár óg, ní raibh sí in ann cúinne ciúin a aimsiú in aon áit. Agus dá rachadh a tuismitheoirí amach ag an deireadh seachtaine, bheadh uirthi aire a thabhairt d'Aoife agus do Pheadar.
Stop sí de bheith ag caoineadh. Bhí an múinteoir Fraincise ag scríobh ar an gclár dubh. Thosaigh sí ag breacadh na nótaí ina cóipleabhar. Fiú amháin ar scoil ní raibh faoiseamh le fáil aici. Bhíodh sí ina suí ar an mbinse cúil, ach cuireadh ina suí ar an mbinse tosaigh í an tseachtain seo caite. Chuir an múinteoir staire ina leith go raibh sí ag féachaint amach an fhuinneog agus b'in an fáth gur bogadh suas go dtí barr an ranga í. Agus bhíodh sí go breá socair sásta san áit ina raibh sí. Bhraith sí go raibh spás aici sa bhinse ar chúl an ranga, go raibh ar a cumas bheith ar a sáimhín só ann.
Ach anois bhí sí faoi bhois an chait aici. Ní fhéadfadh sí sméideadh, ná a chluas a thochas fiú gan aire an mhúinteora a tharraingt uirthi féin. Lig sí osna eile. Bhí a saol ina chíor thuathail ar fad. Bhí gach éinne ina coinne. Mhothaigh sí go raibh gach rud ag druidim isteach uirthi is go raibh sí ar nós príosúnaigh faoi ghlas sa chillín.
Tháinig na deora léi arís. Smaoinigh sí ar Dhiarmaid, an buachaill álainn ar chuir sí aithne air an samhradh seo caite nuair a bhí sí ag fanacht lena seanmháthair faoin tuath. Ní fhéadfadh sí dearmad a dhéanamh ar Dhiarmaid. Buachaill cneasta a bhí ann agus bhí sí socair ina theannta. Thosaigh siad ag scríobh chuig a chéile nuair a d'fhill sí ar an gcathair. Nuair a fuair a tuismitheoirí amach cad a bhí ar siúl d'iarr siad uirthi deireadh a chur leis.
'Ba chóir duit náire a bheith ort,' a dúirt a hathair léi, 'agus tú ag ullmhú do scrúdú na hArdteistiméireachta i mbliana!' Níor lig siad di scríobh chuig Diarmaid a thuilleadh. Tháinig litir eile uaidh, ach nuair nach bhfuair sé freagra uaithi, tháinig deireadh leis na litreacha. Anois bhíodar chun cosc a chur uirthi dul chuig teach a seanmháthar. 'Níl tusa chun dul chuig do sheanmháthair i d'aonar arís agus sin sin,' a dúirt a máthair.
Lean Pádraigín uirthi ag caoineadh. Bhí sí i ndéireadh na feide. Ba é teach a seanmháthar an t-aon áit amháin a raibh faoiseamh le fáil aici. Bhí a seomra féin aici ann. Bhí sí in ann teacht agus imeacht aon uair ba mhian léi. Bhí sí féin agus Mamó an-cheanúil ar a chéile. Bhí tuiscint eatarthu. Thug a Mamó spás di. Ní raibh sí riamh faoi chiúing na daoirse i dteach a Mamó.
Stop sí de bheith ag caoineadh. Dhrígh sí í féin aniar sa bhinse. Rinne sí rún daingean. Scríobhfadh sí chuig a Mamó agus chuirfeadh sí in iúl di gur theastaigh uaithi saoire a chaitheamh léi arís i mbliana. Dá dtabharfadh a Mamó cuireadh di teacht ar cuairt chuici, ní fhéadfadh a tuismitheoirí cur ina coinne. Bheadh sí in ann mí a chaitheamh i dteannta a Mamó. Agus bheadh spás aici. Agus bheadh deis aici bualadh le Diarmaid arís agus a scéal go léir a mhíniú dó.
Bhuail an clogín amuigh sa dorchla. Bhí deireadh leis an rang Fraincise. Ní raibh ach rang amháin fágtha – an rang Gaeilge, a rogha ábhar – agus bheadh sí ag dul abhaile don deireadh seachtaine. Lig sí osna eile. Ach osna áthais a bhí ann an t-am seo.
She needed space. Space for herself. Space to do her own thing. Space to live her own life.
She sighed. The teacher kept talking. But Pádraigín wasn't listening. Her thoughts were far away. She was thinking about her own life and the changes that had come about in recent times. Three months ago, she had her own room at home. But when a baby was born to her parents, that all came to an end. Her sister Aoife was put into the same room as her. She and Aoife never got on well together.
Up until Aoife moved in with her, life was the way she wanted it. She could do whatever she wanted. Nobody was interfering with her. Everything was in order and organised. She could read and listen to the radio until one o'clock in the morning if she wanted to. She could stay in bed until midday at the weekend.
But now she had no privacy left. She was forced to turn off the lights last night at ten o'clock and Aoife woke her at seven in the morning with her loud, ugly PlayStation. And the night before last Peadar, the baby, didn't stop crying all night long...
Tears came to her eyes. Nobody had any sympathy for her. Her parents were constantly putting pressure on her to study more. But it was not within her ability to do it. Since the baby had come, she couldn't find a quiet corner anywhere. And if her parents went out at the weekend, she would have to mind Aoife and Peadar.
She stopped crying. The French teacher was writing on the blackboard. She started writing notes in her copy. Even at school, there was no relief to be found. She used to sit at the back of the class, but last week she was moved to the front. The history teacher accused her of staring out the window and that's why she was moved up to the top of the class. And she had been so content in that spot. She felt that she had space there at the back of the class, and that she was able to be completely at ease there.
But now she was under the thumb. She couldn't even nod or scratch her ear without the teacher calling her out. She sighed again. Her life was in a complete mess. Everyone was against her. She felt like everything was closing in on her and that she was like a prisoner locked in a cell.
Tears came to her again. She thought of Diarmaid, the lovely boy she had met last summer while staying with her grandmother in the countryside. She couldn't forget Diarmaid. He was a kind boy and she felt at ease with him. They had started writing to each other when she returned to the city. When her parents found out what was going on, they asked her to put a stop to it.
'You should be ashamed of yourself,' her father said, 'and you preparing for your Leaving Cert this year!' They didn't let her write to Diarmaid any more. A letter came from him, but when he didn't get a reply, the letters stopped coming. Now they were planning to stop her from visiting her grandmother. 'You're not going to your grandmother's house on your own again and that's final,' her mother said.
Pádraigín kept crying. She was at her wits' end. Her grandmother's house was the only place where she found relief. She had her own room there. She could come and go whenever she pleased. She and Mamó were very close. They understood each other. Mamó gave her space. She was never under tight control in Mamó's house.
She stopped crying. She lifted herself up off the bench. She made a firm decision. She would write to Mamó and she would let her know that she wanted to spend a holiday with her again this year. If Mamó invited her to visit, her parents wouldn't be able to object. She'd be able to spend a month with Mamó. And she would have space. And she'd have the chance to meet Diarmaid again and explain the whole story to him.
The bell rang outside in the corridor. French class was over. Only one class left – Irish, her favourite subject – and then she would be going home for the weekend. She sighed again. But this time it was a sigh of joy.
