Sons and Lovers - Chapter 4
Anak dan Kekasih - Bab 4
Paul's artistic talents began to show themselves clearly. He loved to draw and paint, spending hours in his room creating pictures of the countryside around their village.
Bakat seni Paul mulai terlihat jelas. Dia suka menggambar dan melukis, menghabiskan waktu berjam-jam di kamarnya menciptakan gambar pedesaan di sekitar desa mereka.
Gertrude was proud of her son's talent. She saw in it a sign of his refinement, proof that he was different from the rough miners' children.
Gertrude bangga dengan bakat putranya. Dia melihat di dalamnya tanda kehalusan, bukti bahwa dia berbeda dari anak-anak penambang yang kasar.
"Paul will be an artist," she told her friends. "He will escape this life."
"Paul akan menjadi seniman," katanya kepada teman-temannya. "Dia akan melarikan diri dari kehidupan ini."
But Walter could not understand it. Art seemed to him a waste of time. "How will drawing put bread on the table?" he would ask. "He needs to learn a trade."
Tetapi Walter tidak bisa mengerti hal ini. Seni baginya tampak membuang-buang waktu. "Bagaimana menggambar bisa meletakkan roti di atas meja?" tanyanya. "Dia perlu belajar berdagang."
This disagreement was one more thing that separated them. Walter believed in practical work, in earning money to support the family. Gertrude believed in something higher, in education and culture and beauty.
Ketidaksepakatan ini adalah satu hal lagi yang memisahkan mereka. Walter percaya pada kerja praktik, dalam menghasilkan uang untuk menghidupi keluarga. Gertrude percaya pada sesuatu yang lebih tinggi, pada pendidikan, budaya, dan keindahan.
Paul was caught in the middle. He loved his father, but he also loved the dreams his mother had for him.
Paul terjebak di tengah. Dia mencintai ayahnya, tetapi dia juga mencintai mimpi-mimpi yang dimiliki ibunya untuknya.
"Maybe I can do both," he thought. "Maybe I can work and also paint."
"Mungkin aku bisa melakukan keduanya," pikirnya. "Mungkin aku bisa bekerja dan melukis."
He found a job at a factory, making surgical instruments. The work was dull and repetitive, but it paid well. Paul used his free time to continue his art, going into the countryside to draw, sketching the faces of the people he knew.
Dia mendapat pekerjaan di pabrik yang memproduksi instrumen bedah. Pekerjaan itu membosankan dan berulang-ulang, tetapi gajinya lumayan. Paul menggunakan waktu luangnya untuk melanjutkan seninya, pergi ke pedesaan untuk membuat sketsa, melukis wajah orang-orang yang dikenalnya.
Gertrude was pleased that he had work, but she worried about the factory. "It will destroy his spirit," she said. "It will make him like everyone else."
Gertrude senang dia punya pekerjaan, tetapi dia khawatir tentang pabrik. "Itu akan menghancurkan jiwanya," katanya. "Itu akan membuatnya seperti orang lain."
But Paul did not mind so much. He was learning to support himself, to be independent. And still, in his heart, he held onto his mother's dream—that he would be something more than just another worker in another factory.
Tetapi Paul tidak terlalu keberatan. Dia belajar menghidupi dirinya sendiri, menjadi mandiri. Namun, jauh di lubuk hatinya, dia masih berpegang pada mimpi ibunya — bahwa dia akan menjadi sesuatu yang lebih dari sekadar pekerja lain di pabrik lain.