Tough Love
Well, my daddy left home when I was three
And he didn’t leave much to Ma and me
Just this old guitar and an empty bottle of booze
Now, I don’t blame him ’cause he run and hid
But the meanest thing that he ever did
Was before he left, he went and named me ‘Sue’
Well, he must o’ thought that is was quite a joke
And it got a lot of laughs from a’ lots of folk
It seems I had to fight my whole life through
Some gal would giggle and I’d get red
And some guy’d laugh and I’d bust his head
I tell ya, life ain’t easy for a boy named ‘Sue’
Well, I grew up quick and I grew up mean
My fist got hard and my wits got keen
I’d roam from town to town to hide my shame
But I made me a vow to the moon and stars
That I’d search the honky-tonks and bars
And kill that man that gave me that awful name
Well, it was Gatlinburg in mid-July
And I just hit town and my throat was dry
I thought I’d stop and have myself a brew
At an old saloon on a street of mud
There at a table, dealing stud
Sat the dirty, mangy dog that named me ‘Sue’
Well, I knew that snake was my own sweet dad
From a worn-out picture that my mother’d had
And I knew that scar on his cheek and his evil eye
He was big and bent and gray and old
And I looked at him and my blood ran cold
And I said, “My name is ‘Sue’! How do you do? Now you gonna die”
Yeah, that’s what I told him
Well, I hit him hard right between the eyes
And he went down but, to my surprise
He come up with a knife and cut off a piece of my ear
But I busted a chair right across his teeth
And we crashed through the wall and into the street
Kicking and a’ gouging in the mud and the blood and the beer
I tell ya, I’ve fought tougher men
But I really can’t remember when
He kicked like a mule and he bit like a crocodile
I heard him laugh and then I heard him cuss
He went for his gun and I pulled mine first
He stood there lookin’ at me and I saw him smile
And he said,
“Son, this world is rough
And if a man’s gonna make it, he’s gotta be tough
And I know I wouldn’t be there to help ya along
So I give ya that name and I said good-bye
I knew you’d have to get tough or die
And it’s that name that helped to make you strong”
He said,
“Now you just fought one hell of a fight
And I know you hate me, and you got the right
To kill me now, and I wouldn’t blame you if you do
But ya ought to thank me, before I die
For the gravel in ya guts and the spit in ya eye
‘Cause I’m the son-of-a-bitch that named you ‘Sue’”
Yeah, but what could I do, what could I do
I got all choked up and I threw down my gun
And I called him my pa, and he called me his son
And I come away with a different point of view
And I think about him, now and then
Every time I try and every time I win
And if I ever have a son, I think I’m gonna name him…
Bill or George, any damn thing but ‘Sue’! I still hate that name
April 26th, 2010 at 4:49 am
din, akhir tahun lalu aku sempat nerjemah lagu iku dadi:
Lelaki bernama Susi
karya: Johnny Cash
Bapakku pergi waktu aku tiga tahun
Tanpa meninggalkan harta buat aku dan ibuku
Selain gitar tua dan botol miras kosong.
Boleh-boleh saja dia kabur dan sembunyi,
Tapi satu kelakuannya yang paling kubenci
Sebelum pergi: dia memberiku nama Susi.
Entah, pasti maksudnya becanda
Dan banyak orang menertawakannya
Aku jadi harus berkelahi seumur hidup
Kalau cewek ngikik, mukaku langsung merah
Kalau cowok ngakar, kubikin bocor kepalanya,
Sungguh berat hidup lelaki bernama “Susi”.
Aku jadi cepat besar, tumbuh jadi kejam,
Tinjuku seperti batu, naluriku setajam pisau,
Aku tak henti berkelana menyembunyikan malu.
Tapi aku bersumpah demi bulan dan bintang
Akan kucari di semua bar dan tempat minum,
Akan kubunuh orang yang menamaiku “Susi” itu.
Pertengahan Juli, tibalah aku di Gatlinburg.
Aku baru sampai dan kering tenggorokanku,
Aku berhenti sejenak sekedar beli bir.
Di sebuah salun tua di jalanan berlumpur
Tampaklah di sana, membagi kartu di atas meja,
Lelaki hina yang memberiku nama “Susi”.
Aku tahu begundal itu bapak tercintaku
Dari poto tua milik ibuku,
Aku kenal luka di pipinya serta mata setannya itu.
Dia besar dan agak sangkuk, beruban dan tua,
Dan saat kulihat dia darahku mendidih.
Dan kubilang: “Namaku ‘Susi!’ Apa kabar!
Sudah waktunya kau mampus!”
Aku gasak jidatnya tepat di antara dua mata
Dia pun jatuh, tapi secepat kilat dia bangkit
menghunus pisau dan mencukil secuil kupingku.
Tapi kuambil kursi dan hantam tepat di giginya
Kami menghantam tembok dan terlempar ke jalan
Saling tendang dan bergulat dalam lumpur, darah, dan bir.
Pernah kuhadapi yang lebih tangguh
Tapi aku lupa kapan itu,
tendangannya bagai kuda, gigitannya bagai buaya.
Aku dengar dia ngakak dan kemudian mengumpat
Dia ambil pistol tapi aku lebih cepat
Dia terperanjat, tapi anehnya malah tersenyum.
Katanya: “Nak, dunia ini sungguh kejam
Agar berhasil seorang lelaki harus tangguh
Dan kutahu aku tidak selalu bisa membantu.
Jadi kuberi kau nama itu lalu kabur
Aku tahu kau harus menjadi tangguh atau mati
Dan nama itulah yang menjadikanmu kuat.
“Perkelahian kita barusan sungguh ganas
Dan aku tahu kau membenciku. Kau berhak
Membunuhku, dan bukan salahmu kalau memunuhku.
Tapi kau harus berterima kasih kepadaku sebelum aku mati
Untuk keberanian dan keganasanmu itu
Karena akulah bedebah yang menamakanmu ‘Susi’”
Aku langsung sesenggukan dan kulempar pistolku
Dan kupanggil dia “Pak” dan dia panggil aku “Nak”,
Dan pandanganku pun jadi berubah.
Dan sebentar-sebentar aku ingat dia
Setiap teringat aku jadi gembira,
Dan kalau aku sampai punya anak lelaki, mungkin akan kunamakan dia…
Rudi atau Toni! Yang penting bukan Susi! Aku masih benci nama itu!
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