7 · pheralu to lepa
Part II begins with time. Phi keeps time in small words that stand immediately before the verb: announce the when, then deliver the doing. The first is to: the event is over; you are looking back at it. An unmarked verb is now; a to verb is then. Yesterday there was a storm.
I
pheralu to lepa.
howeli to shua.
lo neparu to shua.
lopia mua womu to nulae.
lohau mua womu to nulae.
misheko to nulae.
| new word | say it | it means |
|---|---|---|
| to | to | (before the verb: it already happened) |
| pheralu | phe · ra · lu | rain |
| lepa | le · pa | fall |
| howeli | ho · we · li | wind |
| neparu | ne · pa · ru | cloud |
Rain fell, wind came, clouds came, and the household slept through all of it. Read the last line twice: for one member of the household, to changes nothing that was ever going to be different.
II
phao sulopa to pilewa.
lopia sulopa to nuola.
thero phelo to loa.
misheko phialu to milau.
| new word | say it | it means |
|---|---|---|
| thero | the · ro | fire |
Soup was made and eaten while the storm worked. The third line deserves a slow look: the fire gave light (phelo to loa), and to stands exactly where it always stands, touching the verb, even when another word arrives first. The when is announced last of all the announcements, closest to the doing.
III
And today:
sorae rihe.
sorae phelo loa.
waero welao nai.
lopia mua thepalu thalo.
lohau mua thepalu thalo.
misheko nulae.
no to anywhere: the sun rises now, the sky is good now. Yesterday and today are told with the same words in the same order; one small particle moves the whole scene into memory.
IV
The friend arrives, and yesterday becomes conversation:
melu: kia. wa pheralu to lepa.
phao: lia. pheralu to lepa. howeli to shua.
melu: wa thia mua womu to nulae.
phao: lia. mia mua womu to nulae. lohau to nulae. misheko to nulae.
lopia: misheko nulae.
Did rain fall? It fell. Did you sleep? We all slept. The child's last line drops the to: the cat slept, the cat sleeps, and the tense hardly seems worth marking. Some truths sit outside of time.
Read the chapter again and listen for the rhythm to makes: a small backward step, taken right before the verb, every time. Yesterday now belongs to you.
The machinery, when you want it: past to is the manual's Part IV, chapter 14.