Origins in my Life and in my Work | Alki Zei | TEDxAthens - YouTube origins|in|my|life|and|in|my|work|Alki|Zei|TEDxAthens|YouTube Les origines dans ma vie et dans mon travail | Alki Zei | TEDxAthens - YouTube Le origini nella mia vita e nel mio lavoro | Alki Zei | TEDxAthens - YouTube Origins in my Life and in my Work | Alki Zei | TEDxAthens - YouTube

Μετάφραση: Christos Giannakis-Bompolis Επιμέλεια: Chryssa Takahashi translation|Christos|||editing|Chryssa|Takahashi Translation: Christos Giannakis-Bompolis Editing: Chryssa Takahashi

Επειδή είμαι παλιάς κοπής, because|I am|old|style Because I am old-fashioned,

παίρνω το μικρόφωνο και όχι αυτό που βάζουν στο αυτί. I take|the|microphone|and|not|this|that|they put|in|ear I take the microphone and not the one they put in my ear.

Περιττό να σας πω, επειδή βλέπω πάρα πολλούς νέους unnecessary|to|you|I say|because|I see|very|many|young people Needless to say, because I see so many young people

και ξέρω πως έχουνε περάσει πανελλήνιες, and|I know|that|they have|passed|national exams and I know they have gone through the national exams,

αισθάνομαι κι εγώ απόψε, και έχω το ίδιο τρακ, I feel|also|I|tonight|and|I have|the|same|anxiety I feel the same way tonight, and I have the same nerves,

σαν να έχω να περάσω πανελλήνιες. as|to|I have|to|pass|national exams as if I have to take the national exams.

Παρόλα αυτά, προτιμώ όσο χρονών είμαι despite|these|I prefer|as|old|I am Nevertheless, I prefer being my age.

παρά να είμαι 18 και να έχω να περάσω πανελλήνιες στην Ελλάδα. rather than|to|I am|and|to|I have|to|I pass|national exams|in|Greece Rather than being 18 and having to take the national exams in Greece.

(Γέλια) (Χειροκρότημα) laughter|applause (Laughter) (Applause)

Θα σας πω μια ιστορία, ένα παραμύθι που 'χει πολλές αφετηρίες. I will|to you|I will tell|a|story|a|fairy tale|that|it has|many|starting points I will tell you a story, a fairy tale that has many beginnings.

Πολλοί έχουν μια αφετηρία στη ζωή τους. many|they have|a|starting point|in the|life|their Many have a starting point in their lives.

Εγώ, δεν ξέρω γιατί, μου πέσανε πάρα πολλές I|not|I know|why|to me|they fell|very|many I, I don't know why, have faced many.

και κάθε φορά άρχιζα από έναν καινούριο δρόμο. and|every|time|I started|from|a|new|road And every time I started from a new path.

Απ' ό,τι θυμάμαι τον εαυτό μου τον θυμάμαι στη Σάμο, from||I remember|the|self|my|the|I remember|in the|Samos As far as I remember myself, I remember myself in Samos,

ενώ δεν γεννήθηκα στη Σάμο, αλλά πήγα τριών χρονών με την αδερφή μου while|not|I was born|in the|Samos|but|I went|three|years old|with|the|sister|my although I was not born in Samos, I went there at the age of three with my sister

που ήταν ενάμιση χρόνο πιο μεγάλη από εμένα, who|she was|one and a half|year|more|older|than|me who was a year and a half older than me,

γιατί είχε πάθει η μητέρα μας φυματίωση because|she had|she had contracted|the|mother|our|tuberculosis because our mother had contracted tuberculosis

και μας στείλανε στον παππού μου και στη μεγάλη της αδερφή. and|to us|they sent|to the|grandfather|my|and|to the|older|her|sister and they sent us to our grandfather and her older sister.

Για μένα όλος ο κόσμος ήτανε η Σάμος, αυτή ήταν η Ελλάδα. for|me|all|the|world|was|the|Samos|this|was|the|Greece For me, the whole world was Samos, that was Greece.

Τα πεύκα, η θάλασσα, ο παππούς -- που νομίζαμε ότι είναι αρχαίος Έλληνας the|pines|the|sea|the|grandfather|who|we thought|that|is|ancient|Greek The pines, the sea, the grandfather -- whom we thought was an ancient Greek

γιατί ήταν καθηγητής αρχαίων ελληνικών, ήταν σε σύνταξη -- because|he was|professor|ancient|Greek|he was|in|retirement because he was a professor of ancient Greek, he was retired --

μόνο για αρχαίους μας μιλούσε, μας έλεγε μύθους only|about|ancient|to us|he spoke|to us|he told|myths he only spoke to us about the ancients, he told us myths.

και νιώθαμε ότι αυτός είναι ένας ευτυχισμένος τόπος and|we felt|that|this|is|a|happy|place and we felt that this is a happy place

που δε θέλαμε καθόλου να τον χάσουμε. that|not|we wanted|at all|to|it|we lose that we didn't want to lose at all.

Και εκείνο που, κυρίως, βλέπαμε είναι ότι μέσα στη ζωή and|that|that|mainly|we saw|is|that|inside|in the|life And what we mainly saw is that in life

όπως βάζεις τα παπούτσια σου το πρωί έτσι πρέπει να πάρεις και ένα βιβλίο. as|you put|the|shoes|your|in the|morning|so|you must|to|you take|and|a|book just as you put on your shoes in the morning, you should also pick up a book.

Γιατί πάντα βλέπαμε τον παππού μας να κρατάει ένα βιβλίο στο χέρι. because|always|we saw|the|grandfather|our|to|he holds|a|book|in the|hand Because we always saw our grandfather holding a book in his hand.

Όταν έφυγε ο παππούς μας νόμιζα ότι πήρε τα πάντα μαζί του when|he left|the|grandfather|our|I thought|that|he took|the|everything|with|him When our grandfather left, I thought he took everything with him.

κι ήτανε μια καινούρια αφετηρία. and|it was|a|new|starting point And it was a new starting point.

Σε λίγο πήγαμε στην Αθήνα, πήγαμε σχολείο in|a little|we went|to the|Athens|we went|school Soon we went to Athens, we went to school.

και στο σχολείο ένιωσα το πρώτο πράγμα που είναι η φιλία· and|at the|school|I felt|the|first|thing|that|is|the|friendship and at school I felt the first thing that is friendship;

έγινα φίλη με τη Ζορζ Σαρί I became|friend|with|the|Georges|Sari I became friends with George Sarri

και ως την τελευταία της στιγμή, που έφυγε για πάντα, μείναμε φίλες. and|until|the|last|her|moment|that|she left|for|always|we remained|friends and until her last moment, when she left forever, we remained friends.

Και αυτό, παιδιά, στους νέους σας το λέω, and|this|children|to your|young|your|it|I say And this, kids, I tell you to the young,

ότι η φιλία παίζει πάρα πολύ μεγάλο ρόλο στη ζωή. that|the|friendship|plays|very|much|big|role|in the|life that friendship plays a very big role in life.

Στο σχολείο άρχισα να διαβάζω At the|school|I started|to|read At school, I started to read

και μάλιστα, με την αδερφή μου μας άρεσε πάρα πολύ να διαβάζουμε ποίηση and|indeed|with|the|sister|my|to us|it was pleasing|very|much|to|we read|poetry and in fact, my sister and I really enjoyed reading poetry

και κυρίως ποιήματα λυπητερά: and|mainly|poems|sad and especially sad poems:

του Παλαμά το «Άφκιαστο κι αστόλιστο του Τάφου δε σε δίνω». of the|Palamas|the|Unadorned|and|Unembellished|of the|Grave|not|to you|I give of Palamas' "I do not give you the unadorned and unembellished of the Tomb."

Του Πολέμη... και κλαίγαμε, τα διαβάζαμε το βράδυ και κλαίγαμε. of the|Polemis|and|we were crying|the|we were reading|the|evening|and|we were crying Of Polemis... and we cried, we read them at night and we cried.

Και έτσι κάτι μου πήγε μέσα μου, μήπως γράψω και εγώ ποίημα. and|so|something|to me|it went|inside|to me|maybe|I write|and|I|poem And so something stirred within me, maybe I should write a poem too.

Η μητέρα μου είχε έναν δίδυμο αδερφό, the|mother|my|she had|a|twin|brother My mother had a twin brother,

έναν πανέμορφο -και εξωτερικά και εσωτερικά- άνθρωπο. a|beautiful|and|externally|and|internally|person a beautiful person -both externally and internally.

Ήτανε καθηγητής μαθηματικών και αρραβωνιάστηκε μια κοπέλα he was|professor|of mathematics|and|he got engaged|a|girl He was a mathematics teacher and got engaged to a girl

που πολύ μας κακοφάνηκε εμάς γιατί τον θεωρούσαμε who|very|to us|it seemed bad|to us|because|him|we considered which upset us a lot because we considered him

-εμένα ήταν και νονός μου- ότι ανήκε σ' εμάς. |he was|and|godfather|to me|that|he belonged|to|us -he was also my godfather- to belong to us.

Αυτή την κοπέλα τη λέγανε και Διδώ από πάνω, this|the|girl|her|they called|also|Dido|from|above This girl was also called Dido,

είχε λίγο στραβή μύτη, αλλά είχε κάτι μάτια που έβγαζαν φλόγες. she had|a little|crooked|nose|but|she had|some|eyes|that|they emitted|flames she had a slightly crooked nose, but she had eyes that sparkled with flames.

Αυτή η Διδώ έγινε η μεγάλη μας συγγραφέας Διδώ Σωτηρίου. this|the|Dido|she became|the|great|our|writer|Dido|Sotiropoulos This Dido became our great writer Dido Sotiropoulou.

Και μπορεί πολλοί να τη γνώρισαν σαν συγγραφέα, and|it may|many|to|her|they knew|as|writer And many may have known her as a writer,

αλλά όποιος δεν την έχει γνωρίσει σαν άνθρωπο έχει χάσει πολλά. but|whoever|not|her|has|known|as|person|has|lost|many but whoever has not known her as a person has lost a lot.

Στον γάμο της τής έγραψα ένα ποίημα. to the|wedding|her|to her|I wrote|a|poem At her wedding, I wrote her a poem.

Χαμογέλασε, αλλά όταν κοίταξα τα μάτια της μου φάνηκαν τόσο λυπημένα she smiled|but|when|I looked|the|eyes|her|to me|they seemed|so|sad She smiled, but when I looked into her eyes, they seemed so sad to me.

και πήρα απόφαση στη ζωή μου ότι δε θα γίνω ποιήτρια. and|I took|decision|in the|life|my|that|not|will|I will become|poetess and I made a decision in my life that I would not become a poet.

(Γέλια) laughter (Laughter)

Λοιπόν, θα σας πω παιδιά το ποίημα γιατί πέρασαν 82 χρόνια well|I will|to you|I say|kids|the|poem|because|they passed|years Well, I will tell you kids the poem because 82 years have passed.

και στις Βρυξέλλες που μένω συχνά, στην κόρη μου, μου ήρθε ένα βράδυ στο νου. and|in the|Brussels|that|I live|often|to the|daughter|my|to me|it came|a|night|to the|mind And in Brussels where I often stay, it came to my mind one night about my daughter.

Θα σας το πω για να καταλάβετε από τι γλίτωσε η ποίηση, I will|to you|it|I say|for|to|you understand|from|what|it was saved|the|poetry I will tell it to you so you can understand what poetry has been saved from,

από τι γλιτώσατε εσείς και εγώ. from|what|you all escaped|you|and|I What did you and I escape from?

«Την αυγή με τη δροσούλα, νονά μου αγαπημένη, the|dawn|with|the|coolness|godmother|my|beloved "At dawn with the little dew, my beloved godmother,

'κει που πήγα με τη βαρκούλα λίγο για να κολυμπήσω there|where|I went|with|the|little boat|a little|to|to|I swim where I went with the little boat just to swim

είδα έναν άσπρο γλάρο που πετούσε χαρωπά τρέξε μου 'πε για να πάεις I saw|a|white|seagull|that|it was flying|happily|run|to me|it told me|to|to|you go I saw a white seagull flying happily, it told me to run so you can go.

στη νονά σου τη Χαρά, τρα λα λα, τρα λα λα» to|godmother|your|the|Joy|tra|la|la||| to your godmother Chara, tra la la, tra la la

(Γέλια) Laughter (Laughter)

(Χειροκρότημα) Applause (Applause)

Νομίζατε πως έχασα; Ότι μπορούσα να γίνω ποιήτρια; you thought|that|I lost|that|I could|to|I become|poetess Did you think I lost? That I could become a poet?

Όχι νομίζω, ναι. Και είμαι πολύ χαρούμενη που δεν έγινα. not|I think|yes|and|I am|very|happy|that|not|I became No, I don't think so, yes. And I am very happy that I didn't become.

Ξέχασα να σας πω ότι στο σπίτι του παππού στη Σάμο, I forgot|to|you|I say|that|at the|house|of the|grandfather|in|Samos I forgot to tell you that at my grandfather's house in Samos,

στο σαλόνι, in the|living room in the living room,

υπήρχε μια βιτρίνα και μέσα ήταν ένας τίγρης, το «καπλάνι». there was|a|showcase|and|inside|there was|a|tiger|the|Kaplani there was a display case and inside was a tiger, the "Kaplani."

Έτσι το 'λεγαν στη Σάμο και νόμιζα και εγώ πως το ξέρουν όλοι στην Ελλάδα thus|it|they said|in the|Samos|and|I thought|and|I|that|it|they know|everyone|in the|Greece That's what they called it in Samos, and I thought everyone in Greece knew it too.

όταν έγραφα το βιβλίο «Το Καπλάνι (της Βιτρίνας)». when|I was writing|the|book|The|Caplani|(of the|Showcase) When I was writing the book "The Caplani (of the Showcase)."

Ούτε το Καπλάνι ήξερε τότε, ούτε εγώ, τι ρόλο θα παίξουμε στη ζωή μας και οι δύο. neither|the|Caplani|he knew|then|nor|I|what|role|will|we will play|in the|life|our|and|the|two Neither the Caplani nor I knew then what role we would play in our lives.

Με τη Διδώ μάθαμε πολλά πράγματα, μας έκανε να θέλουμε να αγαπάμε κάτι, with|the|Dido|we learned|many|things|to us|she made|to|we want|to|we love|something With Dido, we learned many things; she made us want to love something,

να ενδιαφερόμαστε για κάτι, να διαβάζουμε βέβαια. to|we are interested|for|something|to|we read|of course to be interested in something, to read of course.

Ήρθε ο πόλεμος και η Διδώ μας έβαλε στην αντίσταση. came|the|war|and|the|Dido|to us|put|in the|resistance The war came and Dido put us in the resistance.

Και η πρώτη μας αντιστασιακή πράξη που κάναμε - and|the|first|our|resistance|act|that|we did And the first act of resistance we did -

και μας έλεγε η Διδώ, and|to us|she told|the|Dido and Dido would tell us,

«Μη νομίζετε ότι δεν είναι τίποτα, είναι κάτι σπουδαίο». not|you think|that|not|it is|nothing|it is|something|important "Don't think that it's nothing, it's something important."

Όσο έλειπε ο πατέρας μου στην τράπεζα που δούλευε το πρωί και γύριζε το μεσημέρι as long as|he was absent|the|father|my|at the|bank|that|he worked|the|morning|and|he returned|the|afternoon While my father was away at the bank where he worked in the morning and returned at noon,

το σπίτι μας γινότανε γιάφκα. the|house|our|it was becoming|hideout our house became a hideout.

Έφερνε η Διδώ τις γυναίκες της αντίστασης: she brought|the|Dido|the|women|of the|resistance Dido would bring the women of the resistance:

την Ηλέκτρα που εκτέλεσαν οι Γερμανοί, τη Μέλπω Αξιώτη, τη Ζέβγου, τη Σβώλου. the|Electra|that|they executed|the|Germans|the|Melpo|Axioti|the|Zevgu|the|Svoulou the Electra that the Germans executed, Melpo Axioti, Zebgou, Svoulou.

Συνεδρίαζαν και όταν έφευγαν -γιατί κάπνιζαν σαν τεκέδες- they were meeting|and|when|they were leaving|because|they were smoking|like|hashish smokers They were meeting and when they left - because they smoked like chimneys -

η αντιστασιακή μας πράξη με την αδερφή μου ήταν να ανοίγουμε την μπαλκονόπορτα, the|resistance|our|act|with|the|sister|my|it was|to|we open|the|balcony door our act of resistance with my sister was to open the balcony door,

να αερίζουμε να φύγει η μυρωδιά του καπνού to|we ventilate|to|it leaves|the|smell|of the|smoke to ventilate to get rid of the smell of smoke.

μη γυρίσει ο πατέρας μας σπίτι και δει ότι ήτανε μια τέτοια κατάσταση. not|he returns|the|father|our|home|and|he sees|that|it was|a|such|situation don't let our father come home and see that it was such a situation.

Οργανωθήκαμε στην ΕΠΟΝ και έτσι που θυμόμαστε τώρα, we organized ourselves|in the|EPON|and|so|that|we remember|now We organized ourselves in E.P.O.N and as we remember now,

και πολλές φορές με τη Ζώσω, όσο ζούσε, καθόμασταν και λέγαμε, and|many|times|with|the|Zoso|as long as|she lived|we sat|and|we said and many times with Zoso, while she was alive, we would sit and say,

«μην το πούμε πουθενά ότι τα χρόνια της κατοχής not|it|we say|anywhere|that|the|years|of the|occupation "let's not tell anyone that during the years of occupation

ήταν ευτυχισμένα χρόνια». they were|happy|years they were happy years.

Γιατί πιστεύαμε σε κάτι, γιατί είχαμε ένα όραμα, because|we believed|in|something|because|we had|a|vision Because we believed in something, because we had a vision,

γιατί πιστεύαμε ότι πραγματικά και εμείς βοηθούμε να απελευθερωθεί η Ελλάδα. because|we believed|that|really|and|we|we help|to|be liberated|the|Greece because we believed that we were truly helping to liberate Greece.

Και είχαμε ένα όραμα που λέγαμε, and|we had|a|vision|that|we said And we had a vision that we said,

όταν τελειώσει η κατοχή θα ζήσουμε αυτό το όραμά μας. when|it finishes|the|occupation|will|we live|this|the|vision|our When the occupation ends, we will live this vision of ours.

Τώρα αν δε μας βγήκε είναι άλλο... now|if|not|to us|it came out|it is|another Now if it didn't work out for us, that's another matter...

Στην κατοχή πήγαινα στο σχολείο της Αηδονοπούλου in the|occupation|I used to go|to the|school|of the|Aidonopoulou During the occupation, I went to the school of Aidonopoulou.

και είχαμε μια καθηγήτρια στα τεχνικά and|we had|a|teacher|in the|technical And we had a teacher in the technical classes.

που ήθελε να μας βγάλει από αυτή τη θλίψη και τη μαυρίλα και την πείνα that|he wanted|to|us|to take out|from|this|the|sadness|and|the|darkness|and|the|hunger who wanted to take us out of this sadness and darkness and hunger

και να πάει ο νους μας να σκεφτόμαστε άλλα πράγματα and|to|he goes|the|mind|our|to|we think|other|things and to make our minds think about other things

και μας λέει «Παιδιά...» and|to us|he says|kids and she says to us, "Kids..."

-αυτή είχε σπουδάσει στη Γαλλία στη σχολή καλών τεχνών- she|she had|studied|in|France|in|school|fine|arts -she had studied in France at the school of fine arts-

«...θα κάνουμε κουκλοθέατρο». will|we do|puppet theater "...we will do puppet theater."

Μου λέει, «Εσύ τι ξέρεις να κάνεις;» Λέω, «Τίποτα». to me|he says|you|what|you know|to|you do|I say|nothing He asks me, "What do you know how to do?" I say, "Nothing."

Με ρώτησε πώς με λένε, «Α», μου λέει, «εσύ είσαι η Άλκη Ζέη;» to me|he asked|how|to me|they call|A|to me|he says|you|you are|the|Alki|Zey He asked me what my name was, "Ah," he says, "are you Alki Zei?"

Και λέω, «Ναι». Γιατί στο περιοδικό του σχολείου and|I say|yes|because|in the|magazine|of the|school And I say, "Yes." Because in the school magazine

είχε δημοσιευθεί ένα μικρό κομματάκι δικό μου. it had|been published|a|small|piece|own|my a small piece of mine had been published.

Δημήτρης Καλαβρός-Γουσίου: Χίλια συγγνώμη. Dimitris|||thousand|sorry Dimitris Kalavros-Gousiou: A thousand apologies.

Άλκη Ζέη: Θα μου το κρατάτε; ΔΚΓ: Ναι. Alki|Zey|will|to me|it|you keep|Dimitris Kalavros-Gousiou|yes Alki Zei: Will you keep it for me? DK: Yes.

(Γέλια) laughter (Laughter)

(Χειροκρότημα) applause (Applause)

Μου λέει, «Τότε να γράψεις έργα για το κουκλοθέατρο». to me|he says|then|to|you write|plays|for|the|puppet theater He tells me, "Then you should write plays for the puppet theater."

Και κάθισα πολύ απλά και έγραψα έργα για το κουκλοθέατρο, τα οποία παίζαμε, and|I sat|very|simply|and|I wrote|plays|for|the|puppet theater|which|that|we played And I simply sat down and wrote plays for the puppet theater, which we performed,

και μια μέρα μας λέει, and|one|day|to us|he says and one day he tells us,

«Τώρα κοιτάξτε να είστε πολύ καλές γιατί θα έρθουν κάποιοι φίλοι»· now|look|to|you are|very|good|because|will|they will come|some|friends "Now make sure to be very good because some friends will come."

γιατί ήταν τα παιδιά του σχολείου που τα βλέπανε. because|they were|the|children|of the|school|that|them|they were seeing because they were the school children who were watching them.

Αυτή είχε πολύ φίλο τον Εμπειρίκο και μας έφερε, ούτε λίγο πολύ, she|she had|very|friend|the|Empirikos|and|to us|she brought|not|little|much She was very close friends with Empirikos and brought us, not a little,

τον Εμπειρίκο, τον Ελύτη, τον Μάριο Πλωρίτη. the|Empirikos|the|Elytis|the|Mario|Ploritis Empirikos, Elytis, Mario Ploritis.

Ο οποίος Μάριος Πλωρίτης έφερε έναν φίλο του που ήτανε, μαζί με τον Κουν, the|who|Marios|Ploritis|he brought|a|friend|his|who|he was|together|with|the|Koun Who Marios Ploritis brought a friend of his who was, along with Koun,

από τους ιδρυτές του θεάτρου Κουν, που τον έλεγαν Γιώργο Σεβαστίκογλου from|the|founders|of the|theater|Koun|who|him|they called|George|Sevastikoglou one of the founders of the Koun theater, named George Sebastikoglou

και έγινε ο μετέπειτα σύντροφός μου. and|he became|the|later|partner|my and later became my partner.

Και η αδελφή μου για καιρό μου έλεγε, and|the|sister|my|for|a long time|to me|she told And my sister for a while told me,

«Με ποιον θα βγεις, πάλι με αυτόν με το άσχημο επίθετο;». with|whom|will|you go out|again|with|that one|with|the|ugly|surname "Who are you going out with, again with that one with the ugly last name?".

(Γέλια) laughter (Laughter)

Ο Εμπειρίκος ενθουσιάστηκε με το κουκλοθέατρο. the|Empirikos|he got excited|with|the|puppet theater Empeirikos was excited about the puppet theater.

Και εμείς δεν νομίζαμε ότι κάναμε κάτι σπουδαίο. and|we|not|we thought|that|we were doing|something|great And we didn't think we were doing anything special.

Απλούστατα το αγαπούσαμε αυτό το πράγμα που κάναμε. simply|it|we loved|this|the|thing|that|we did Simply put, we loved this thing we were doing.

Και όταν αυτοί που τους είχαμε, οι σπουδαίοι άνθρωποι, οι ποιητές, and|when|they|that|them|we had|the|great|people|the|poets And when those we had, the great people, the poets,

-οι οποίοι ήτανε πολύ απλοί και μας φερόντανε πολύ φιλικά- the|who|they were|very|simple|and|to us|they treated|very|friendly -who were very simple and treated us very kindly-

μας κάλεσαν να πιούμε καφέ στου Λουμίδη, και από τότε πηγαίναμε συχνά και ακούγαμε. to us|they invited|to|we drink|coffee|at the|Loumidis|and|since|then|we went|often|and|we listened invited us to have coffee at Loumidis, and from then on we went often and listened.

Και ήταν κι άλλα κορίτσια, and|they were|also|other|girls And there were other girls,

δεν ξέρω γιατί κορίτσια και όχι αγόρια, δεν πήγαιναν. not|I know|why|girls|and|not|boys|not|they went I don't know why girls and not boys, they didn't go.

Και τους ακούγαμε, έτσι, με μεγάλη χαρά και μαθαίναμε πράγματα. and|them|we listened|like this|with|great|joy|and|we learned|things And we listened to them, like this, with great joy and learned things.

Δηλαδή, πιο πολλά μάθαμε από αυτούς, παρά από το πανεπιστήμιο. that is|more|many|we learned|from|them|rather than|from|the|university That is, we learned more from them than from the university.

Στην ΕΠΟΝ κάναμε και πάρτι ολονύχτια in the|Epon|we made|and|party|all night In E.P.O.N. we also had all-night parties.

γιατί δεν μπορούσαμε να γυρίζουμε αργά στα σπίτια, because|not|we could|to|we return|late|to the|houses because we couldn't return home late,

απαγορευότανε η κυκλοφορία. it was forbidden|the|movement curfew was enforced.

Και βάζαμε ένα γραμμόφωνο, κάναμε ότι χορεύαμε and|we put|a|gramophone|we made|that|we were dancing And we would set up a gramophone, pretending to dance.

για να μπορούμε να τυπώνουμε παράνομες εφημερίδες, for|to|we can|to|we print|illegal|newspapers to be able to print illegal newspapers,

τύπο, προκηρύξεις και άλλα. type|proclamations|and|others pamphlets, announcements, and more.

Βέβαια, εν τω μεταξύ χορεύαμε κιόλας, φλερτάραμε κιόλας. of course|in|the|meantime|we were dancing|also|we were flirting|also Of course, in the meantime, we were also dancing, we were also flirting.

Στο πιάνο έπαιζε όλη τη νύχτα ένα παιδί με ένα μακρύ κασκόλ on the|piano|he was playing|all|the|night|a|child|with|a|long|scarf A child with a long scarf was playing the piano all night.

και του βάζαμε στο στόμα μαύρες σταφίδες για να μη πεινάει όλη νύχτα. and|to him|we were putting|in the|mouth|black|raisins|so that|to|not|he is hungry|all|night and we would put black raisins in his mouth so he wouldn't be hungry all night.

Και αυτό το παιδί ήταν ο Μάνος Χατζηδάκης. and|this|the|child|he was|the|Manos|Hatzidakis And this child was Manos Hadjidakis.

(Χειροκρότημα) applause (Applause)

Η 12 Οκτωβρίου είναι μέρα που ούτε γιορτάζεται στην Ελλάδα, the|of October|it is|day|that|not even|it is celebrated|in the|Greece October 12th is a day that is not celebrated in Greece,

ούτε το μαθαίνουνε σχολείο, ήτανε η μέρα της απελευθέρωσης. not even|it|they learn|school|it was|the|day|of the|liberation They don't teach it in school, it was the day of liberation.

Από όσο θυμάμαι, ήταν η πιο ευτυχισμένη μέρα της ζωής μου. from|as much as|I remember|it was|the|most|happy|day|of the|life|my As far as I remember, it was the happiest day of my life.

Που απελευθερωθήκαμε, που πιστέψαμε ότι όλα τα όνειρά μας θα γίνουνε. when|we were liberated|when|we believed|that|all|the|dreams|our|will|they will become When we were liberated, when we believed that all our dreams would come true.

Αλλά, δεν βάστηξε πολλές μέρες και άρχισε ο Δεκέμβριος του '44 but|not|it lasted|many|days|and|it started|the|December|of the But it didn't last many days and December '44 began.

που θα 'θελα να μην είχε υπάρξει ούτε στην ιστορία ούτε στη ζωή μου. that|I would|I wanted|to|not|it had|existed|neither|in the|history|nor|in my|life|my that I wish had never existed either in history or in my life.

Εκεί κατάλαβα τι θα πει εμφύλιος. Τι θα πει να χωριζόμαστε στα δύο. there|I understood|what|I would|it means|civil war|what|I would|it means|to|we separate|into the|two There I understood what civil war means. What it means to be divided in two.

Τι θα πει η φίλη δίπλα μου στο θρανίο που είχα, what|I would|it means|the|friend|next to|my|at the|desk|that|I had What it means to have the friend next to me at the desk,

όταν φτάσαμε με τα πόδια και πηγαίναμε στον Βόλο, when|we arrived|by|the|feet|and|we were going|to the|Volos when we arrived on foot and were going to Volos,

και της χτύπησα την πόρτα, με είδε σαν να είδε τον μεγάλο της εχθρό. and|her|I knocked|the|door|me|she saw|as|to|she saw|the|big|her|enemy and I knocked on her door, she looked at me as if she saw her greatest enemy.

Και εκεί είπα, δεν είναι δυνατόν πια να μην αγαπάμε ο ένας τον άλλον, and|there|I said|not|is|possible|anymore|to|not|we love|the|one|the|other And there I said, it is no longer possible not to love each other,

τον άνθρωπο που ήμασταν κοντά. the|person|that|we were|close the person we were close to.

Και όλη αυτή η αγριάδα που είχε ο Δεκέμβρης, and|all|this|the|wildness|that|he had|the|December And all this wildness that December had,

δεν την έχω ξεχάσει. not|her|I have|forgotten I haven't forgotten her.

Και τώρα όταν βλέπω τους πρόσφυγες που περπατάνε χιλιόμετρα για να φτάσουν, and|now|when|I see|the|refugees|who|they walk|kilometers|to|to|they arrive And now when I see the refugees walking kilometers to reach their destination,

θυμάμαι πώς περπατούσαμε εμείς για να ξεφύγουμε όταν τέλειωσε ο Δεκέμβρης I remember|how|we walked|we|to|to|we escape|when|it ended|the|December I remember how we walked to escape when December ended,

που όχι σλίπινγκ μπαγκ δεν υπήρχαν τότε τίποτα, that|not|sleeping|bag|not|there were|then|nothing when there were no sleeping bags or anything.

βάζαμε εφημερίδες και κοιμόμασταν χάμω, μας πολυβολούσαν από πάνω. we were putting|newspapers|and|we were sleeping|on the ground|us|they were machine-gunning|from|above We would lay down newspapers and sleep on the ground, they were machine-gunning us from above.

Τότε κατάλαβα τι θα πει πόλεμος. then|I understood|what|will|means|war That’s when I understood what war means.

Που δεν φοβήθηκα στη ζωή μου όσο φοβήθηκα τον Δεκέμβρη του '44. that|not|I was afraid|in|life|my|as|I was afraid|the|December|of I have never been as afraid in my life as I was in December '44.

Πάει κι αυτό, τέλειωσε. it goes|and|this|it is over That's over too, it's finished.

Ήρθε κάποια απελευθέρωση, it came|some|liberation There was some liberation,

άρχισαν τα πράγματα να γίνονται ομαλά στην Ελλάδα. they started|the|things|to|they become|smoothly|in the|Greece things started to become normal in Greece.

Εν τω μεταξύ παντρεύτηκα με τον Γιώργο Σεβαστίκογλου, in|the|meantime|I married|with|the|George|Sevastikoglou In the meantime, I married George Sebastikoglou,

πήγα και στη Δραματική Σχολή. I went|and|to the|Dramatic|School and I also went to the Drama School.

Ξέχασα να πω ότι έγραφα διηγηματάκια I forgot|to|say|that|I was writing|short stories I forgot to mention that I was writing short stories.

και τα δημοσίευα σε ένα περιοδικό που λεγότανε «Νεανική Φωνή». and|them|I was publishing|in|a|magazine|that|was called|Youth|Voice And I was publishing them in a magazine called "Youth Voice."

Είχα αρχίσει να γράφω. I had|started|to|write I had started to write.

Και επειδή ο Γιώργος Σεβαστίκογλου ήταν πολύ με τον Κουν, and|because|the|George|Sevastikoglou|he was|very|with|the|Koun And because George Sevastikoglou was very close to Koun,

πήγαινα στο θέατρο του Κουν, και αυτό είναι το πολύ σπουδαίο, I was going|to the|theater|of|Koun|and|this|is|the|very|important I was going to the Koun theater, and that is very important,

μες τη μαύρη κατοχή ο Κουν έμαθε στον κόσμο in|the|black|occupation|the|Koun|he taught|to the|world during the dark occupation Koun taught the world

τον Ίψεν, το αμερικανικό θέατρο, το πραγματικό θέατρο. the|Ibsen|the|American|theater|the|real|theater Ibsen, American theater, real theater.

Με την πείνα που υπήρχε, και οι ηθοποιοί του και ο ίδιος πεινούσαν, with|the|hunger|that|there was|and|the|actors|of|and|the|himself|they were hungry With the hunger that existed, both his actors and he were hungry,

αλλά έκαναν αυτό που είναι ένα αξέχαστο θέατρο but|they did|this|that|is|a|unforgettable|theater but they did what is an unforgettable theater

και έχουν μείνει οι ρίζες του σήμερα. and|they have|remained|the|roots|of it|today and its roots have remained today.

Έτσι τσίμπησα λίγο και εγώ και λέω μήπως βγω στο θέατρο. so|I nibbled|a bit|and|I|and|I say|maybe|I go out|to the|theater So I got a little interested and I said maybe I'll go to the theater.

Ο Γιώργος μου 'λεγε, «Εγώ νομίζω να γράψεις, να γράψεις». the|George|to me|he was telling|I|I think|to|you write|to|you write George was telling me, "I think you should write, write."

Δεν πήγα στη σχολή που δίδασκε εκείνος, στη σχολή του Ρότα, not|I went|to the|school|that|he taught|that one|to the|school|of|Rota I didn't go to the school where he taught, at Rota's school,

γιατί ήταν σίγουρο ότι δεν θα με έπαιρνε. because|it was|certain|that|not|will|me|he would take because it was certain that he wouldn't take me.

Πήγα στη σχολή του Ωδείου Αθηνών, που δίδασκε ο Ροντήρης και ο Βεάκης, I went|to the|school|of|Conservatory|of Athens|that|he taught|the|Rontiris|and|the|Veakis I went to the school of the Athens Conservatory, where Rondiris and Veakis taught,

και λέγανε ότι ο Ροντήρης έκανε και ένα παλούκι να μιλάει. and|they said|that|the|Rontiris|he did|and|a|pole|to|he speaks and they said that Rondiris even made a stick to talk.

Φαίνεται έκανε λίγο το παλούκι και μίλησε it seems|he/she/it made|a little|the|pole|and|he/she/it spoke It seems he made a bit of a fuss and spoke.

και τέλειωσα τη σχολή. and|I finished|the|school And I finished school.

Εν τω μεταξύ, αρχίζει σιγά-σιγά πάλι εμφύλιος. in|the|meantime|it begins|||again|civil war In the meantime, a civil war is slowly starting again.

Αρχίζουν να συλλαμβάνουν ανθρώπους. they begin|to|they arrest|people They are starting to arrest people.

Tον Γιώργο τον καλούνε στον στρατό και φεύγει κρυφά από την Ελλάδα. him|George|him|they call|to the|army|and|he leaves|secretly|from|the|Greece George is called to the army and leaves secretly from Greece.

Με ένα καΐκι και δεν ήξερα που πήγε. with|a|boat|and|not|I knew|where|he went With a small boat and I didn't know where he went.

Και εμένα με στείλανε περίπατο στη Χίο. and|me|to me|they sent|for a walk|to the|Chios And I was sent for a walk in Chios.

Εκεί γνώρισα τις γυναίκες της Ελλάδας, που έξω από την Αθήνα δεν είχα βγει. there|I met|the|women|of the|Greece|that|outside|from|the|Athens|not|I had|I had gone out There I met the women of Greece, as I had not gone outside of Athens.

Γνώρισα γυναίκες απ' τη Μυτιλήνη, I met|women|from|the|Mytilene I met women from Mytilene,

από τη Βόρειο Ελλάδα, από νησιά, από παντού. from|the|Northern|Greece|from|islands|from|everywhere from Northern Greece, from islands, from everywhere.

Γυναίκες που πολλές ερχόντανε όχι για ιδεολογία, δεν είχανε ιδέα, women|that|many|they were coming|not|for|ideology|not|they had|idea Women who often came not for ideology, they had no idea,

αλλά είχανε πιάσει κυρίως Μυτιληνιές πάρα πολλές, but|they had|caught|mainly|Mytilenean women|very|many but they had mostly caught a lot of Mytilenians,

ένα παιδί τους που ήταν αντάρτης και τις φέρνανε αυτές εκεί a|child|their|that|was|rebel|and|the|they brought|these|there a child of theirs who was a rebel and they brought them there

και όταν τους λέγανε ότι είναι ελεύθερες, and|when|to them|they said|that|they are|free and when they were told that they were free,

κλαίγανε γιατί καταλαβαίνανε ότι ο γιος τους είχε σκοτωθεί. they cried|because|they understood|that|the|son|their|had|been killed they cried because they understood that their son had been killed.

Εμαθήτευσα εκεί έναν χρόνο και μετά γύρισα. I apprenticed|there|one|year|and|then|I returned I apprenticed there for a year and then I returned.

Δύο χρόνια σχεδόν δεν ήξερα πού βρίσκεται ο Γιώργος. two|years|almost|not|I knew|where|is|the|George For almost two years, I didn't know where George was.

Ώσπου μέσω των Μιλλιέξ, που ήτανε τότε στο Παρίσι, until|through|the|Milliex|who|was|then|in|Paris Until through the Milliexes, who were then in Paris,

πήρα ένα γράμμα να προσπαθήσω να φύγω από την Ελλάδα να πάω να τον βρω. I took|a|letter|to|I try|to|I leave|from|the|Greece|to|I go|to|him|I find I received a letter to try to leave Greece to go find him.

Στην αρχή πού δεν ήξερα. at the|beginning|when|not|I knew At first, I didn't know.

Τους είχαν πάει μετά το τέλος του εμφυλίου στην Τασκένδη them|they had|they took|after|the|end|of the|civil|to the|Tashkent They were taken to Tashkent after the end of the civil war.

και επειδή είμαι αγεωγράφητη, τα παιδιά μου λένε and|because|I am|ungeographic|the|children|my|they say And because I am geographically challenged, my children say

ότι αν ήξερα πού είναι η Τασκένδη, δεν θα είχανε γεννηθεί. that|if|I knew|where|is|the|Tashkent|not|will|they would have|been born that if I knew where Tashkent is, they wouldn't have been born.

(Γέλια) Laughter (Laughter)

Κατάφερα, τέλος πάντων, με τα πολλά και με μεγάλα μέσα I managed|finally|anyway|with|the|many|and|with|big|means I finally managed, after a lot of effort and with great means

και πήρα ένα διαβατήριο και έφυγα. and|I took|a|passport|and|I left and I got a passport and left.

Και πήγα στην Ιταλία, and|I went|to the|Italy And I went to Italy,

περιμένοντας τη βίζα τη σοβιετική, που έκανε δύο χρόνια να 'ρθει, waiting for|the|visa|the|Soviet|that|it took|two|years|to|come waiting for the Soviet visa, which took two years to arrive,

και έφτασα στη Μόσχα. and|I arrived|in the|Moscow and I arrived in Moscow.

Και όταν βγήκα από το τρένο και είδα ότι δε με περίμενε ο Γιώργος, έπαθα. and|when|I got out|from|the|train|and|I saw|that|not|me|was waiting for|the|George|I freaked out And when I got off the train and saw that George wasn't waiting for me, I freaked out.

Λέω, «Πού πάω, πού με στέλνουνε;». I say|where|I go|where|me|they send I said, 'Where am I going, where are they sending me?'

Τέλος πάντων, παρέλαβαν εκεί, ούτε Ρωσικά ήξερα ούτε τίποτα, end|anyway|they picked up|there|not even|Russian|I knew|not even|anything Anyway, they picked me up there, I didn't know any Russian or anything,

λίγα Γαλλικά, λίγα Ιταλικά μπορούσα να συννενοηθώ. a few|French|a few|Italian|I could|to|communicate I could communicate a little in French, a little in Italian.

Με βάλαν σ' ένα τρένο to me|they put|in a|a|train They put me on a train.

και ήτανε κάτι παράξενες γυναίκες με στολές, με φορεσιές, and|they were|some|strange|women|with|uniforms|with|dresses And there were some strange women in uniforms, in dresses,

περίεργοι άνθρωποι με γενειάδες. strange|people|with|beards strange people with beards.

Και ταξίδευα πέντε νύχτες και τέσσερις μέρες. and|I was traveling|five|nights|and|four|days And I traveled for five nights and four days.

Και περνούσα τη Στέπα, και κάθε τόσο ρώταγα, «Τασκένδη;» and|I was passing|the|Steppe|and|every|so often|I was asking|Tashkent And I was passing through the Steppe, and every now and then I would ask, "Tashkent?"

Λέω μπας και περάσει το τρένο και εγώ πάω αλλού. I say|maybe|and|it passes|the|train|and|I|I go|elsewhere I thought maybe the train would pass and I would go elsewhere.

Τέλος πάντων, έφτασα. Αυτή τη φορά με περίμενε ο Γιώργος. end|of all|I arrived|this|the|time|for me|was waiting|the|George Anyway, I arrived. This time George was waiting for me.

Και έμαθα κάτι που αμέσως με τάραξε: ότι δεν του είχαν επιτρέψει να 'ρθει. and|I learned|something|that|immediately|me|it disturbed|that|not|to him|they had|allowed|to|come And I learned something that immediately disturbed me: that they had not allowed him to come.

'Οχι οι Σοβιετικοί, οι δικοί μας, το ελληνικό κόμμα. not|the|Soviets|the|our|our|the|Greek|party Not the Soviets, our own, the Greek party.

Δεν του είχαν επιτρέψει να 'ρθει να με παραλάβει στη Μόσχα. not|to him|they had|allowed|to|come|to|me|pick up|in|Moscow They had not allowed him to come to pick me up in Moscow.

Νέα αφετηρία, αυτή τη φορά λίγο δύσκολη new|starting point|this|the|time|a little|difficult A new starting point, this time a bit difficult.

γιατί έπρεπε να συνηθίσω πού βρίσκομαι, ποια είμαι, τι κάνω. because|I had to|to|I get used to|where|I am|who|I am|what|I do because I had to get used to where I am, who I am, what I do.

Δεν έχω γράψει εκεί, δε γράφω τίποτα, προσπαθώ να μάθω τη γλώσσα. not|I have|written|there|not|I write|nothing|I try|to|I learn|the|language I haven't written there, I don't write anything, I'm trying to learn the language.

Γεννιέται η κόρη μου και, ευτυχώς, πάμε στη Μόσχα. is born|the|daughter|my|and|fortunately|we are going|to the|Moscow My daughter is born and, fortunately, we are going to Moscow.

Γιατί ήμασταν τελείως απομονωμένοι απ' την Ελλάδα, because|we were|completely|isolated|from|the|Greece Because we were completely isolated from Greece,

ενώ στη Μόσχα και να τηλεφωνήσουμε μπορούσαμε while|in the|Moscow|and|to|we could call|we were able while in Moscow we could also make a phone call

και άρχισε να σπάει ο πάγος και μέσω του Ελληνο-Σοβιετικού συνδέσμου and|it started|to|it breaks|the|ice|and|through|the|Helleno||association and the ice began to break through the Greek-Soviet connection

άρχιζαν να έρχονται διανοούμενοι, καλλιτέχνες. they started|to|they come|intellectuals|artists intellectuals and artists started to come.

Και από τους πρώτους που ήρθαν ήταν ο Εμπειρίκος, and|from|the|first|who|they came|they were|the|Empirikos And among the first to arrive was Empirikos,

τον οποίο είχα να δω 20 χρόνια. him|whom|I had|to|see|years whom I hadn't seen for 20 years.

Και πήγα στο τρένο να τον υποδεχτώ και η παράσταση που είχε δει ο Εμπειρίκος and|I went|to the|train|to|him|welcome|and|the|performance|that|he had|seen|the|Empirikos And I went to the train to welcome him and the performance that Empirikos had seen

-γιατί έγραφα παρωδίες, τις κλαψωδίες που τις έλεγα, because|I was writing|parodies|the|weepies|that|them|I was calling -because I was writing parodies, the lamentations that I called,

ιστορίες του Οδυσσέα παραλλαγμένες- stories|of the|Odysseus|altered stories of Odysseus in variations-

και αυτό το έργο που είδε ήταν η «Καλυψώ», που ήταν ερωτευμένη με τον Οδυσσέα and|this|the|work|that|he saw|it was|the|Calypso|that|she was|in love|with|the|Odysseus and this work that she saw was 'Calypso', who was in love with Odysseus.

και ήταν διανοούμενη σουρεαλίστρια. and|she was|intellectual|surrealist and she was an intellectual surrealist.

Γιατί τότε μόλις είχαμε μάθει περί Σουρεαλισμού. because|then|just|we had|learned|about|Surrealism Because at that time we had just learned about Surrealism.

Και φεύγοντας ο Οδυσσέας, αυτή αυτοκτονεί και λέει, and|leaving|the|Odysseus|she|she commits suicide|and|she says And as Odysseus leaves, she commits suicide and says,

«Είμαι ένα θλιμμένο καλαμπόκι». I am|a|sad|corn "I am a sad corn."

(Γέλια) Laughter (Laughter)

Φτάνοντας το τρένο ο πρώτος που κατεβαίνει ήταν ο Εμπειρίκος arriving|the|train|the|first|who|gets off|he was|the|Empirikos When the train arrived, the first one to get off was Empirikos.

και, μόλις με βλέπει, με τα 20 χρόνια, and|as soon as|me|he sees|with|the|years And, as soon as he sees me, at 20 years old,

λέει, «Να και το θλιμμένο καλαμπόκι». he says|here is|and|the|sad|corn He says, "Here is the sad corn."

(Γέλια) laughter (Laughter)

Και είναι αυτό που έχει μείνει. Γιατί... and|it is|this|that|has|remained|because And that is what remains. Because...

(Χειροκρότημα) applause (Applause)

Εγώ δεν θεωρούσα ότι έκανα τίποτα σπουδαίο I|not|considered|that|I did|nothing|important I didn't think I was doing anything great.

και δεν έβαζα καρμπόν τουλάχιστον, να έχω ένα αντίγραφο. and|not|I put|carbon|at least|to|I have|a|copy And I didn't at least make a carbon copy to have a duplicate.

Έφυγα, τα 'βάλαν σε ένα υπόγειο, τα 'φάγαν τα ποντίκια I left|them|they put|in|a|basement|them|they ate|the|mice I left, they put them in a basement, the mice ate them,

και δεν έχει μείνει τίποτα. and|not|has|remained|nothing and nothing is left.

Στη Μόσχα, ευτυχώς, άρχισα να γράφω. in the|Moscow|fortunately|I started|to|write In Moscow, fortunately, I started writing.

Έγραφα διηγήματα, τα 'στελνα στην επιθεώρηση τέχνης. I was writing|short stories|them|I was sending|to the|magazine|art I was writing short stories, sending them to the art review.

Και ύστερα ήθελα, γιατί είχα γεννήσει και το γιο μου εν τω μεταξύ and|then|I wanted|because|I had|given birth|and|the|son|my|in|the|meantime And then I wanted to, because I had given birth to my son in the meantime

-που του έκανε μπέιμπι σίτινγκ ο Ταρκόφσκι, that|to him|he did|baby|sitting|the|Tarkovsky -who was babysat by Tarkovsky,

γιατί ήτανε φοιτητής και ήθελε να βγάλει ένα χαρτζιλίκι because|he was|student|and|he wanted|to|earn|a|pocket money because he was a student and wanted to make some pocket money

και μέσω μιας φίλης που τον ήξερε του έκανε μπέιμπι σίτινγκ. and|through|a|friend|who|him|she knew|to him|she did|baby|sitting and through a friend who knew him, he did babysitting.

(Χειροκρότημα) applause (Applause)

Ίσως γι' αυτό έγινε σκηνοθέτης, και από τον πατέρα του βέβαια, maybe|for|this|he became|director|and|from|his|father|his|of course Maybe that's why he became a director, and of course from his father,

αλλά για τον κινηματογράφο ήθελε. but|for|the|cinema|he wanted but for the cinema, he wanted.

Ήθελα να μάθουνε τα παιδιά μου για την Ελλάδα. I wanted|to|they learn|the|children|my|about|the|Greece I wanted my children to learn about Greece.

Και τι ιστορίες πιο πραγματικές θα ήτανε and|what|stories|more|real|would|they would be And what more real stories would there be

να τους διηγιέμαι τα παιδικά μου χρόνια με την αδερφή μου στη Σάμο. to|to them|I tell|the|childhood|my|years|with|the|sister|my|in|Samos than to tell them about my childhood years with my sister in Samos.

Γιατί αυτές ήταν και οι πιο ωραίες μου αναμνήσεις. because|these|they were|and|the|most|beautiful|my|memories Because these were also my most beautiful memories.

Και εκεί γεννήθηκε «Το Καπλάνι της Βιτρίνας». and|there|it was born|the|caplani|of the|showcase And there was born "The Capering of the Showcase."

Το 'στειλα στην Ελλάδα, ήταν ένα εκδοτικό, το Θεμέλιο. it|I sent|to the|Greece|it was|a|publishing|the|Themelio I sent it to Greece, it was a publishing house, The Foundation.

Δεν πήρα ποτέ απάντηση. not|I took|ever|answer I never received a response.

Και σε λίγο καιρό, σ' έναν χρόνο and|in|little|time|in|a|year And in a little while, in a year

παίρνω μια άδεια να πάω με τα παιδιά μου για δυο μήνες στην Ελλάδα. I take|a|permit|to|I go|with|the|children|my|for|two|months|to|Greece I will take a leave to go with my children for two months in Greece.

Πηγαίνω στο Θεμέλιο. I go|to the|Foundation I am going to the Foundation.

Ήταν ένας φίλος, ένας πολύ αξιόλογος άνθρωπος, he was|a|friend|a|very|remarkable|person There was a friend, a very respectable person,

ο Δημήτρης ο Δεσποτίδης. the|Dimitris|the|Despotidis Dimitris Despotidis.

Του λέω, «Τι γίνεται εκείνο το Καπλάνι;» to him|I say|what|happens|that|the|Kaplani I ask him, "What about that Kaplani?"

Μου λέει, «Να το, είναι στη βιτρίνα». to me|he says|here|it|it is|in the|window He tells me, "There it is, it's in the window."

Το είχε εκδώσει και το είχε βγάλει στη βιτρίνα. it|he had|published|and|it|he had|put|in the|window He had published it and put it in the window.

Το Καπλάνι της Βιτρίνας, ομολογώ, the|Caplani|of the|Showcase|I confess The Caplani of the Showcase, I confess,

ότι αν δεν ήτανε οι δάσκαλοι, δεν θα είχε κυκλοφορήσει, that|if|not|it was|the|teachers|not|will|had|circulated that if it weren't for the teachers, it wouldn't have been published,

δεν θα είχε μπει στα σχολεία. not|will|had|entered|in the|schools it wouldn't have entered the schools.

Γιατί πάρα πολλοί πάλεψαν να μην μπει στα σχολεία αυτό το βιβλίο because|very|many|they fought|to|not|enter|in the|schools|this|the|book Because many fought to prevent this book from entering the schools.

και να μην μπω και εγώ, φυσικά. and|to|not|I enter|and|I|of course and of course I won't join in.

Αλλά οι δάσκαλοι με πείσμα το 'βαλαν στα σχολεία but|the|teachers|me|stubbornness|it|they put|in the|schools But the teachers stubbornly put it in the schools

και τώρα είναι πενήντα τόσα χρόνια που το Καπλάνι είναι στα σχολεία. and|now|it is|fifty|so many|years|that|it|Kaplani|it is|in the|schools and now it has been over fifty years that the Kaplani has been in schools.

Και εγώ βεβαίως. and|I|certainly And of course me too.

(Χειροκρότημα) applause (Applause)

Γυρίσαμε στην Ελλάδα, we returned|to the|Greece We returned to Greece,

εγώ με τα δέκα χρόνια, ο άντρας μου με τα 15. I|at|the|ten|years|the|husband|my|at|the I with ten years, my husband with fifteen.

Άντε πάλι να μάθουν τα παιδιά μας τη γλώσσα. come on|again|to|they learn|the|children|our|the|language Here we go again, teaching our children the language.

Μιλούσανε βέβαια, αλλά να συνηθίσουμε την Ελλάδα. they were talking|of course|but|to|we get used to|the|Greece They were talking, but we had to get used to Greece.

Σε δύο χρόνια έγινε η Χούντα και φύγαμε στο Παρίσι. in|two|years|it became|the|Junta|and|we left|to|Paris In two years, the Junta happened and we left for Paris.

Καινούργια αφετηρία. new|starting point A new starting point.

Τα δύο χρόνια στην Ελλάδα δεν έγραψα τίποτα. the|two|years|in the|Greece|not|I wrote|nothing I didn't write anything in the two years in Greece.

Μόνο μετέφραζα για βιοποριστικούς λόγους. only|I was translating|for|livelihood|reasons I only translated for financial reasons.

Στη Γαλλία άρχισα να γράφω και τα περισσότερα μου βιβλία: in the|France|I started|to|I write|and|the|most|my|books In France, I started to write and most of my books:

τον «Περίπατο του Πέτρου», τη «Μωβ ομπρέλα», the|walk|of|Peter|the|purple|umbrella the "Walk of Peter", the "Purple Umbrella",

ως και την «Αρραβωνιαστικιά του Αχιλλέα» εκεί άρχισα να τη γράφω. even|and|the|fiancée|of|Achilles|there|I started|to|it|I write and I also started writing "The Fiancée of Achilles" there.

Γιατί ήτανε το περιβάλλον τέτοιο που σου 'δινε την ευκαιρία να γράφεις. because|it was|the|environment|such|that|to you|it gave|the|opportunity|to|you write Because the environment was such that it gave you the opportunity to write.

Πήγαινα στα γαλλικά σχολεία και λυπόμουνα. I was going|to the|French|schools|and|I was feeling sorry I was going to French schools and I felt sorry.

Λέω, πάω στα γαλλικά σχολεία και στα ελληνικά σχολεία δεν μπορώ να πάω. I say|I go|to the|French|schools|and|to the|Greek|schools|not|I can|to|go I say, I go to French schools and I can't go to Greek schools.

Το Καπλάνι της Βιτρίνας μεταφράστηκε, πήρε βραβεία the|Kaplani|of the|Showcase|it was translated|it won|awards The 'Kaplani of the Showcase' was translated, it won awards.

και αυτό σου δίνει μια ανάταση. and|this|to you|gives|a|uplift and this gives you a lift.

Και όταν γυρίσαμε στην Ελλάδα, τότε πια κατάλαβα - and|when|we returned|to the|Greece|then|finally|I understood And when we returned to Greece, then I understood -

γιατί όταν το 'γραφα το Καπλάνι δεν ήξερα πως γράφω βιβλίο για παιδιά, because|when|it|I was writing|the|Kaplani|not|I knew|that|I write|book|for|children because when I was writing it, I didn't know I was writing a book for children,

ήθελα να πω αναμνήσεις από τα παιδικά μου χρόνια. I wanted|to|say|memories|from|my|childhood|my|years I wanted to share memories from my childhood.

Τώρα πάω πάρα πολύ στα σχολεία, γυρίζω όλη την Ελλάδα, now|I go|very|much|to the|schools|I travel|all|the|Greece Now I go to schools a lot, I travel all over Greece,

μιλάω με τα παιδιά. I talk|with|the|children I talk to the kids.

Και αυτό που τους λέω και εσάς στους νέους λέω, and|this|that|to them|I say|and|to you|to the|young people|I say And what I tell them and I tell you young people,

όσο κρίση και αν υπάρχει as much as|crisis|and|if|there is no matter how much crisis there is

-γιατί πολλές φορές ακούω, «Έχουμε πόλεμο, έχουμε Χούντα»- |many|times|I hear|we have|war|we have|dictatorship -because many times I hear, "We are at war, we have a Junta"-

ούτε πόλεμο έχουμε, ούτε Χούντα. neither|war|we have|nor|dictatorship we have neither war nor a Junta.

Είναι δύσκολα χρόνια, they are|difficult|years These are difficult years,

αλλά ούτε συγκρίνεται η πείνα της κατοχής με την πείνα που υπάρχει τώρα. but|not even|compares|the|hunger|of the|occupation|with|the|hunger|that|exists|now but the hunger of the occupation cannot be compared to the hunger that exists now.

Και στην κατοχή ελπίζαμε σε κάτι. and|in the|occupation|we hoped|in|something And during the occupation, we hoped for something.

Και ήθελα να σας πω and|I wanted|to|you|I say And I wanted to tell you

ότι ένα μικρό πράγμα, έστω και πολύ μικρό να ελπίζετε, that|a|small|thing|even|and|very|small|to|you hope that even a small thing, even if very small, to hope for,

σιγά-σιγά θα γίνει ένα μεγάλο παζλ. ||will|it will become|a|big|puzzle little by little it will become a big puzzle.

Και κυρίως να 'στε μαζί, ν' αγαπιέστε και να βοηθάει ο ένας τον άλλον. and|mainly|to|you be|together|to|you love each other|and|to|helps|the|one|the|other And mainly to be together, to love each other and to help one another.

Αυτό είναι το καλύτερο που μπορούμε να κάνουμε σήμερα: this|is|the|best|that|we can|to|do|today This is the best we can do today:

να παρασταθούμε ο ένας στον άλλον. to|we stand by|the|one|to the|other to support each other.

Και υλικά, αλλά και ψυχικά. and|materially|but|and|spiritually Both materially and spiritually.

Να μη μας πάρει η κατάθλιψη, παιδιά. to|not|us|take|the|depression|children Let's not let depression take us, kids.

Είναι πολύ φοβερό να πάθουμε κατάθλιψη σαν λαός. it is|very|terrible|to|we suffer|depression|as|people It is very terrible for us to fall into depression as a people.

Γι' αυτό νομίζω ότι πρέπει μέσα μας να 'χουμε μια μικρή φλόγα, μια μικρή χαρά for that|this|I think|that|must|inside|us|to|we have|a|small|flame|a|small|joy That's why I think we should have a small flame, a little joy inside us.

και τότε θα δείτε πως όλα θα είναι πιο ανάλαφρα. and|then|will|you see|that|everything|will|be|more|light And then you will see that everything will be lighter.

Νομίζω ξεπέρασα και τα όρια. I think|I surpassed|and|the|limits I think I have exceeded the limits.

(Χειροκρότημα) applause) (Applause)