Райса Каримбаева: Quarantine. A book of stories and poems

One day the Butterfly flew into his lonely house. Butterfly is a graduate student. She was doing her thesis and on economic issues went to him. Cactus offered to help her, but for money. At first she went out all in anger and rage, but then she came back and agreed. Here is another side where you can earn extra money. Therefore, he was so fond of all responsible work. And how not to love her? The girl brought money, and then he invited her to his place, saying: “You won’t come _ not see you work!” Said it suddenly and bluntly! The girl hesitated and came. But not alone but with the police.! And she arranged everything so cleverly that for the first time Cactus felt ashamed of his act. Of course, she did not prove anything, but the red tape was still the same! Cactus had to carry in his car the chiefs of the police and the chiefs of the district department of the plant, and all kinds of inspectors, apparently-invisibly. Another big smile, offering “gifts” – crumpled dollar bills from his three-liter can. He even kept watch at the entrance of a superior boss to offer his services to give him a ride or go to the market or work in the country, or drag sheep carcasses from the meat-packing plant just to hush up this rotten business. Praise be to Allah! It has carried it so far! Not only did he stay in office and did not go to prison, he also got the position. Now he will work in Almaty not as someone, but as a chief engineer. While an engineer, but with such agility as that of Cactus, you can become a president… ugh, that is, become the director of the local meat-packing plant, but for now it’s not bad in engineers!

But now Cactus is afraid of these graduate students like fire and nightmares at night. As if this butterfly brought its butterfly horde and this horde began to gut it, letting the affairs be taken apart on the shelves and in court!! My heart was already bad! Now the heart is naughty from fright! We ought to go to Turkey! Waste again!! Not,. I would have to lie down at home… From this washing Cactus completely wilted and in order to cheer himself up he took from the very bag with which he fed the old people and orphans, dried and fossilized, all covered with green mold, and began to chew it and choke with zeal…

Here’s another graduate student on my head! – thought Cactus and was ready to hide under the table from these graduate students. They all prowl and prowl, they turn everything upside down, and in fact, that’s an infection, stubborn, they don’t take bribes. What a time it has gone!

Aigul, a young girl of 28 years old, in a thin silk dress came from the province to Almaty, from Koktobe. Almaty surprised her with its beauty. A provincial, modestly dressed girl in a floor-length dress walked through an unknown city and smiled, looking at the bizarre ornate paintings on the stands, inviting her to visit this or that boutique. She got on the bus that carried her to Sayakhat. The bus was not much unusual in that there was no conductor. People themselves paid for the fare by dropping a coin into an iron box. The drawer was spitting out a small piece of paper with finely minted letters. If you want to pay, you want not to pay. Good! Freedom! The bus started. Aigul sat by the window and looked at the city landscape. High-rise buildings, bright advertising signs, trees, people flew by. The sun was shining brightly, hot in summer, so that in some flower beds the flowers withered, turned yellow, frayed. She rode, thinking about her own. Mom’s legs hurt and needed to find a cure. Phlebeurysm. Her legs were blue with swollen veins and ached. She could not walk. I got tired quickly. Aigul was worried about her, so she went to the polyclinic, and at the same time stopped by her uncle. Uncle was not at home. At work. And in order not to stand until the evening, she decided to wait with a friend. A friend named Janelle has lived in the city for two years and during this time has become terribly urban: a short mini skirt that barely covers, pink wavy hair that falls slightly to the shoulders, purple long nails and she spoke in a lisp, with a strong accent, so it’s not possible listen to the Kazakh speech spoiled beyond recognition. She thought Janelle’s dialect was funny, especially the word “Don’t boldyyyy! Real Kazakhs speak a little differently, but a resident of a megalopolis who has forgotten his native language cannot be explained. Aigul sat by the minibus window and remembered her friend, then worried about her mother again. veins are an unpredictable and terrible disease, At any moment the veins can burst even then.. It’s even scary to think what will happen then. Aigul drove away obsessive fears and forced herself to think about the good. When you think about the good, it will definitely come true. And everything will be fine.! Aigul was sure of this. At that moment she heard a voice from somewhere from above. The voice shouted with all its might and was indignant:

– Why are you sitting?! Can’t you see I’m standing!! Make way! 1 Bastard!

Aigul came to her senses and raised her head. A dandelion granny was standing right above her. “It didn’t work out well, the girl thought. How could I think so?” -And she immediately jumped up, giving way. Granny sat down contentedly and was no longer angry. And Aigul swam further in her thoughts. … In their aul, they are not treated by doctors, but by doctors of various stripes. And no matter how she persuaded her mother to go to the doctor, she did not succeed. There is no doctor in the village. Only in the regional center, and it’s a long way to go there. As many as three hours by bus, which travels once a day to the regional center and back. Here people are treated by doctors. It’s good if the healer is from God, and there are charlatans. Aigul was afraid of them and did not trust them. Treat differently. Better, of course, surami from the Koran, but it happens to be urine, applying it to all the places where it pleases, And assures that he will definitely help, scolding if it still does not help. took, people themselves put “sadaqa” on the table, thanks to God. Everyone went to her and my mother went. K. immediately diagnosed “Damage”, “A terrible damage that you can die” and added that only urine should be treated. Aigul did not understand: how is it with urine, if spoilage is gins, and they should be driven out of the Koran by suras. She already knew something in the Koran and even learned to read from the local mulda. Aigul was about to give a hint about this, but immediately from all sides they began to hiss menacingly at her so that she would immediately be silent. And Aigul became quiet. In the aul, the elders are not opposed, and it is not good to disobey the elders. Oh, how not good! Mom diligently applied bandages soaked in urine. First it was necessary to boil this very urine, and then apply it.

When you cook it, there is a persistent disgusting thick green smog. It smelled very hard. Even dad began to swear, unable to endure these torments. The younger sisters – the 10-year-olds laughed. They found it funny to the point of colic. And unable to bear, so as not to laugh and thereby offend their mother, they went to their room or to the street and laughed. And Aigul cooked it all on the orders of her mother and put it on her sore spot.. If it helped, but alas. The sores on my legs became even more, blisters appeared and the terrible itching only intensified. Therefore, Aigul did not forgive herself for not being able to convince her mother to go to the clinic, and she was also making this brew. Horror!! After suffering for a week, my mother stopped these procedures herself under the unabated anger of the treating woman: “Why did you remove the bandages?! I had to continue applying!” “Probably, I should have completely lost my legs, then it would have been right in her opinion,” she was perplexed and angry at the treating girl. So she came to the city for medicine for her mother. A beautiful city with many opportunities for young people attracted and called to stay Aigul. And no matter how he beckoned to him, Aigul could not. She could not leave her sick mother, and there is nowhere to live here. Uncle is cramped. Seven huddled in odnushka, Where else is she! So for a day you can, and then home. And it’s not convenient somehow, it’s not good to embarrass people. Aigul did not like to visit guests. Homebody.