Chapter Sixty-Four: Edward
November 16, 2024
Cambridge, England
It's a crisp November day, one of the ones that brings old academia magic to the city of Cambridge, but I can't appreciate any of it. I'm stuck in my own head, running over the notes from my advisor from our most recent meeting. Apparently, I'm doing well and I'm on track, but there is still something wrong; all of my translations have been deemed incorrect.
It's driving me batshit, because I know that I'm translating correctly, I just don't know how to get my advisor to see it.
A familiar debate about translation filters through my mind, and I realize yet again that I'm fighting against a history of translation in my field coming from only two lenses: one, eighteenth century German historians, and two, British academics. I know these people have done important work in translating my field, but I am certain that there is more that could be gleaned by seeing translations from different points of view, like an American cultural perspective.
I just can't prove it yet.
I'm heading back to the library to bang my head against a desk before trying once more to get my point across, when a sweet voice catches my ear.
"Dada!"
I look up, my heart skipping a beat when I see Bella and Duckling waving to me.
I completely change course, heading straight for them. "Hey!" I say, immediately kissing Bella when she's in reach. She grins up at me as we pull apart. "What are you doing here?"
I reach down, scooping Duckling into my arms and tossing her up. She squeals before snuggling into my neck.
"We were out for a walk and thought we'd come visit," Bella says, grinning at me.
"Your timing is perfect," I tell her, feeling the tension seep out of my shoulders. "Do you have time for lunch?"
She nods and I pull back a little to look at Birdy.
"What about you, Duckling? Are you hungry?"
She grins and I turn back to Bella.
"How is your day going?" she asks.
I pull my arm around her shoulders, bringing her closer to me.
"So much better now," I tell her.
We head to the closest cafe on campus, and Bella takes Duckling to find a table while I order us some food.
Thankfully, we're here before most of the lunch rush, so our order is up quickly.
I grab the tray and head to the back of the cafe where Bella is entertaining Duckling in a high chair.
I set the food on the table and my daughter squeals in delight.
"Okay, hold on Spawn," Bella says, stopping her from reaching for the tray. Bella grabs some bread off one plate and picks it apart, putting it in front of our daughter.
Duckling immediately starts picking it up and shoving it in her mouth.
"So what are you ladies up to today?" I ask, moving Bella's sandwich in front of her before grabbing my own. She looks at me.
"We had to get out of the house," she says, shaking her head. "And we missed you."
My heart warms and I smile at her.
"I've missed you both so much."
I've been spending long hours in the library lately, trying to work on some particularly tedious research. It has sucked.
Bella and I catch up about our days so far, and I know this woman truly loves me, because when I tell her about my meeting with my advisor, she looks ready to throw down.
"What the hell does that dinosaur know?" she demands. "I'm going to go kick his ass. He needs to know that diversity of perspective is crucial."
I snort. "I'm hardly considered diversity," I point out. She huffs.
"Maybe not, but it starts somewhere. Maybe a white American like yourself starts translating differently, and maybe that leads to more people from other cultural perspectives stepping up. Men, women, those in between or none at all… those voices matter. Your work is a pickaxe swing toward cracking open the ivory tower of higher education."
I'm not sure she's totally right about that, but I appreciate her passion. I'm also a little bit blown away by how much she's paid attention. I didn't think she'd care enough about my work to get this fired up over it.
Instead of answering, I lean over and kiss her heard, making our daughter squeal. When I pull away, Bella looks a little surprised.
"What was that for?"
I smile.
"Because I married the most amazing, badass woman who takes no prisoners and reminds me to do the same."
She smirks, leaning over to kiss me once more.
"And don't you fucking forget it."
