Wiston Papers

One Hundred Minutes of Solitude in London

       In the back booth of a dingy, out-of-the-way Irish pub in London sit two disgruntled men.

A scruffy waiter approaches, wipes his hairy arm across his nose and asks “Cad is féidir liom a gheobhaidh tú uaisle?  “What can I get you gentlemen?”

“給我你的最好的威士忌” “Give me your strongest whisky,” orders the Chinese.

"Y traigame su fuerte vodka," “And I’ll have your strongest vodka,” says the Cuban.

"Beidh mé ag teacht ar ais ina dhiaidh sin," “I’ll come back later,” snorts the Irish waiter.

"Tu fuiste patético. Ni siquiera se podía borrar la primera valla”  “You were pathetic,” snickers Dayron Robles, the Cuban Olympic Gold Medalist in the 2008 men’s 110 meter hurdles. “You couldn’t even clear the first hurdle.”

“你怎麼樣?”  “What about you,” replies Liu Xiang, who won the Olympic 110 meter hurdles in 2004.  “你降到只有兩關後，”  “You dropped out after only two hurdles,”  smiling as he sipped his drink.

"Pues, todo comenzó cuando fui descalificado en los Juegos Mundiales del año pasado en Corea del Sur,"  “Yeah, well, it all started when I was disqualified at the World Games last year in South Korea,”  moaned Robles.

“這是你的錯，抓住我的胳膊上的最後兩個障礙，花費了我的標題”  “It was your fault for grabbing my arm on the last two hurdles there and costing me the title,”  Liu complained.

"He estado fuera de la zancada, desde entonces,"  “I’ve been off stride ever since then,”  added Robles knocking back a second drink.

“你有麻煩嗎？你搶劫了我的健康問題開始“ “You think you’ve got troubles?” Your mugging was the start of my health problems,” lamented Liu as he ordered a third round for both men.

"Ahora estamos aquí, a escondidas de nuestros países en este bar sórdido"  “Now here we are, hiding from our countries in this squalid bar,”  observed Robles.

“是啊，你知道什麼共產黨以自己的失敗的運動員。我不能讓我的臉又在北京再次“  “Yeah, you know what the Communists do to their failed athletes.  I can’t show my face again in Beijing again.”

"¿Crees que las cosas están mejor allá en Cuba con los comunistas de Castro?"  “You think things are better back in Cuba with the Castro Commies?”

Silence for several minutes as the two runners sip their drinks and shake their heads.

"Debemos desertar,"   “We should defect,” suggests Robles.

“我們會在哪裡去了？”  “Where would we go?” asks Liu.

"Quedémonos aquí". “Let’s stay here.”

“太多的人會認識我們。”  “Too many people would recognize us.”

"¡Ya se, los Estados Unidos!"  “I’ve got it,” brightens Robles, “America.”

“美國？你打算如何逃離古巴到美國，當你回家嗎?” Liu wonders. “America?  How are you going to escape to the United States from Cuba when you get home?”

"No, vamos a volar a México desde aquí y cruzar la frontera como todo el mundo. Nadie se dará cuenta, "  “No, we’ll fly to Mexico from here and sneak across the border like everyone else.  No one will ever notice,” Robles smiles and drinks.

“但對我怎麼樣。我不看墨西哥“  “But what about me.  I don’t look Mexican,” Liu challenges.

"Tienes razón, eso es otra valla que no podía saltar." “You’re right,” acknowledges Robles, “that’s another hurdle you couldn’t jump.”

    也許，如果你再次抓住我的胳膊 ”  “Maybe if you pulled me by my arm again,”  Liu says sarcastically.

Steve Coon

August 09, 2012