From the Warlpiri edition
The ‘Respect’ Statement
From the front of the Warlpiri edition of The Computer Ghost.
The following words appear at the beginning of the Warlpiri translation of
The Computer Ghost. They are written in the author's own voice —
speaking not to the reader, but to the Hungarian ghosts who appear in the story.
This is a conversation about respect, permission, and the sharing of a story
across different countries and different spirits.
The full English translation
This story of mine is not the same as yours.
The ghosts in this book — Phoenix and the others — are Hungarian ghosts. They
lived in their own country. Their spirits stayed there.
I went to their country — where they lived. I stayed in a big city, a city
without a home. A big city. Bigger than big.
I spoke to them. Just quietly.
I said: “My story goes your way. For a child. One who sees them when they
are ready.”
They listened. They spoke.
The ghosts said: “It's here. Now it's here properly. They have done it with
respect.”
I said: “I did it.”
That way. That's how the story came.
This story was made for you. For the child who asks: “What's that?”
The original Warlpiri text appears in the printed edition of
The Computer Ghost. This English translation is provided for readers
who wish to understand the statement of respect that opens the Warlpiri version
of the book.
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