A glimpse of life on the road | Kitra Cahana

Translator: Eva Hoxha Reviewer: Helena Bedalli

As a little girl, I always imagined

Kur isha e vogel, gjithmone imagjinoja

I would one day run away.

se nje dite do te merrja rruget.

From the age of six on,

Nga mosha 6 vjecare dhe me vone,

I kept a packed bag with some clothes

mbaja gati nje cante me disa rroba

and cans of food tucked away

dhe kanace me ushqime qe i fshihja

in the back of a closet.

pas nje rafti.

There was a deep restlessness in me,

Ishte nje shqetesim i thelle per mua,

a primal fear that I would fall prey

nje frike primare qe une do te bija pre

to a life of routine and boredom.

e nje jete rutine dhe te merzitshme.

And so, many of my early memories involved

Dhe keshtu, shume nga kujtimet e mia te hershme perfshijne

intricate daydreams where I would walk across borders,

enderra me syhapur, te nderlikuara ku mund te ecja pertej kufijve,

forage for berries,

te ushqehesha me manaferra,

and meet all kinds of strange people

dhe te takoja te gjithe llojet e njerezve te cuditshem

living unconventional lives on the road.

te cilet jetonin nje jete pa kushtezime ne rrugetim.

Years have passed, but many of the adventures

Vitet kane kaluar, por shume nga aventurat

I fantasized about as a child --

qe kam fantazuar ne femijeri --

traveling and weaving my way

duke udhetuar dhe u endur ne menyren time

between worlds other than my own —

ndermjet boteve te ndryshme nga ajo e imja --

have become realities through my work

jane bere realitet nepermjet punes sime

as a documentary photographer.

si fotografe dokumentare.

But no other experience has felt as true

Por asnje eksperience tjeter nuk e kam ndjere kaq shume te vertete

to my childhood dreams

sesa enderrat e mia te femijerise

as living amongst and documenting the lives

duke jetuar ne mes tyre dhe dokumentuar jetet

of fellow wanderers across the United States.

e endacakeve permes Shteteve te Bashkuara.

This is the nomadic dream,

Kjo eshte endrra nomade,

a different kind of American dream

nje lloj ndryshe e endrres amerikane

lived by young hobos, travelers,

e cila jetohet nga endacaket, udhetaret,

hitchhikers, vagrants and tramps.

autostopistet dhe vagabondet.

In most of our minds,

Ne mendjen tone,

the vagabond is a creature from the past.

vagabondet jane krijesa nga e shkuara.

The word "hobo" conjures up an old

Fjala "endacak" zgjon

black and white image

nje imazh te vjeter bardhe e zi

of a weathered old man covered in coal,

te nje plaku te mbuluar me qymyr,

legs dangling out of a boxcar,

kembet qe i varen nga nje vagon,

but these photographs are in color,

por keto fotografi jane me ngjyra,

and they portray a community

dhe ato potretizojne nje komunitet

swirling across the country,

qe vertitet permes vendit,

fiercely alive and creatively free,

gjallerisht dhe me krijimtari te lire,

seeing sides of America that no one else

qe shikojne ane te Amerikes qe askush tjeter

gets to see.

nuk mundet ti shikoje.

Like their predecessors, today's nomads

Ashtu si paraardhesit e tyre, nomadet e sotem

travel the steel and asphalt arteries

udhetojne ne rruget e celikta dhe te asfaltuara

of the United States.

te Shteteve te Bashkuara.

By day, they hop freight trains, stick out their thumbs,

Diten, ata hipin ne trenat e mallrave, ngrejne gishtin e madh,

and ride the highways with anyone

dhe udhetojne ne autostrada me ke t'i dale

from truckers to soccer moms.

qe nga shofere kamionesh deri te nena femijesh.

By night, they sleep beneath the stars,

Naten, ata flejne poshte yjeve,

huddled together with their packs of dogs,

kruspull, sebashku me qente e tyre,

cats and pet rats between their bodies.

macet apo mijte shtepiake mes tyre.

Some travelers take to the road by choice,

Disa udhetare e zgjedhin vete kete rruge,

renouncing materialism, traditional jobs

heqin dore nga materializmi, punet tradicionale

and university degrees in exchange for a glimmer of adventure.

dhe diplomat universitare ne shkembim te nje dritez aventure.

Others come from the underbelly of society,

Te tjere vine nga kerthiza e shoqerise,

never given a chance to mobilize upwards:

asnjehere nuk i eshte dhene nje shans te permiresojne jeten e tyre:

foster care dropouts, teenage runaways escaping

braktises te jetimoreve, adoleshente qe arratisen

abuse and unforgiving homes.

nga shtepi ku abuzohen.

Where others see stories of privation

Aty ku te tjeret shohin histori te humbjeve

and economic failure,

dhe te deshtimit ekonomik

travelers view their own existence

udhetaret shohin ekzistencen e tyre

through the prism of liberation and freedom.

nepermjet veshtrimit te lirise dhe pavaresise.

They'd rather live off of the excess

Ata me mire te jetojne ne mungese

of what they view as a wasteful consumer society

te asaj qe ata e shohin si nje humbje te shoqerise konsumeriste

than slave away at an unrealistic chance

sesa te jene skllav i nje mundesie jo reale

at the traditional American dream.

ne endrren tradicionale amerikane.

They take advantage of the fact

Ata shfrytezojne faktin

that in the United States,

qe ne Shtetet e Bashkuara,

up to 40 percent of all food ends up in the garbage

rreth 40% e te gjithe ushqimit perfundon ne plehra

by scavenging for perfectly good produce

dhe germojne per ushqime ne gjendje te mire

in dumpsters and trash cans.

ne koshet e plehrave.

They sacrifice material comforts in exchange

Ata sakrifikojne te mirat materiale ne shkembim

for the space and the time to explore

per hapesire dhe kohe per te zbuluar

a creative interior,

nje ane te brendshme kreative,

to dream, to read, to work on music, art and writing.

per te enderruar, lexuar, per te punuar mbi muziken, artin dhe te shkruarit.

But there are many aspects to this life

Por ka shume aspekte ne kete jete

that are far from idyllic.

qe jane shume larg ideales.

No one loses their inner demons

Askush nuk i humbet demonet e tyre te brendshem

by taking to the road.

duke marret rruget.

Addiction is real, the elements are real,

Varesia eshte reale, elementet jane reale,

freight trains maim and kill,

trenat e mallrave gjymtojne dhe vrasin,

and anyone who has lived on the streets can attest

dhe kushdo qe ka jetuar ne rruge mund te vertetoje

to the exhaustive list of laws

me nje liste gjitheperfshirese te ligjeve

that criminalize homeless existence.

se kriminaliteti i te pastreheve ekziston.

Who here knows that in many cities

Kush e di ketu se ne shume qytete

across the United States it is now illegal

perrreth Shteteve te Bashkuara eshte tani ilegale

to sit on the sidewalk,

te ulesh ne trotuare,

to wrap oneself in a blanket,

te mbledhesh veten me nje batanije,

to sleep in your own car,

te flesh ne makinen tende,

to offer food to a stranger?

ti ofrosh ushqim nje te panjohuri?

I know about these laws because I've watched

Une di per keto ligje sepse kam pare

as friends and other travelers

sesi shoke dhe udhetare te tjere

were hauled off to jail or received citations

jane futur ne burg ose kane marre paralajmerime

for committing these so-called crimes.

qe kane kryer keto krime.

Many of you might be wondering why anyone

Shume prej jush do jeni duke pyetur veten se pse ndonjeri

would choose a life like this,

do te zgjidhte nje jete te tille,

under the thumb of discriminatory laws,

nen gishtin e ligjeve diskriminuese,

eating out of trash cans,

duke ngrene ne kazana plehrash,

sleeping under bridges,

duke fjetur nen ura,

picking up seasonal jobs here and there.

duke bere pune sezonale ketu dhe atje.

The answer to such a question is as varied

Pergjigja e ketyre pyetjeve varion

as the people that take to the road,

nga njerezit qe takon ne rruge,

but travelers often respond with a single word:

por udhetaret shpesh pergjigjen me nje fjale te vetme:

freedom.

liri.

Until we live in a society where every human

Per aq kohe sa ne jetojme ne nje shoqei ku cdo njeri

is assured dignity in their labor

i sigurohet dinjiteti ne punen e tyre

so that they can work to live well,

keshtu qe ata mund te vazhdojne te punojne per te jetuar mire,

not only work to survive,

jo vetem te punojne per te jetuar,

there will always be an element of those

gjithmone do te kete nje element te tyre

who seek the open road as a means of escape,

qe kerkojne rrugen si nje menyre per te shpetuar,

of liberation and, of course, of rebellion.

nje liri, dhe sigurisht nje rebelim,

Thank you.

Falemnderit.

(Applause)

(Duartrokitje)