HabloroShort Spanish story · A2 · With a twist
El reloj de don Chuy
Don Chuy's Watch. A short story in everyday Spanish, read aloud sentence by sentence. Tap any sentence for the English, keep the words you didn't know, and practice them below.
El reloj de don Chuy
Don Chuy's Watch · 36 sentences · about 2 minutes of audio
Me llamo Itzel y todas las mañanas llego tarde a la parada del autobús. Salgo de mi casa corriendo, con la mochila abierta. Casi se me caen los libros a la calle.
El chofer del autobús se llama don Chuy. Es un señor mayor, de pelo blanco y voz tranquila. Y todos los días me espera con la puerta abierta. ¿Por qué siempre me espera a mí, y a nadie más?
Desde la esquina, siempre le grito lo mismo.
«¡Espéreme, por favor, ahorita llego!»
Los pasajeros no están contentos, y una señora siempre mira la hora.
«¡Oiga, chofer, ya es tarde!»
Pero don Chuy no se mueve hasta que yo subo. Cuando por fin subo, mira su reloj viejo. Luego dice que sí con la cabeza y cierra la puerta. Yo creo que cuenta cuántos minutos llego tarde.
Mi amiga Fer tiene otra idea.
«Seguro conoce a tu familia, o le caes bien.»
«Bueno, a lo mejor es porque siempre le digo gracias.»
Un lunes, tuve un examen y me levanté muy temprano. Llegué a la parada antes que todos. Por primera vez, no llegué corriendo.
El autobús paró y subí muy tranquila. Don Chuy miró su reloj y dijo que sí con la cabeza. Luego cerró la puerta. Y salimos, mucho más temprano que de costumbre.
«¿Ya se va?»
«¡Todavía es temprano!»
En mi parada, antes de bajar, le hice mi pregunta.
«Don Chuy, ¿por qué siempre me espera?»
Él se rio y me enseñó su reloj.
«Mire, mija, este reloj no sirve desde hace años.»
«Pero usted siempre llega a la misma hora.»
«Cuando la veo correr con su mochila, ya sé que es hora.»
«Ah, pues gracias por esperarme, don Chuy.»
Ahora lo sé: no llego tarde. Soy el reloj de don Chuy.
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Why does the driver always wait for Itzel?
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Did you get it?
Why does the driver always wait for Itzel?
Show the answer
His watch hasn't worked in years. Itzel always runs to the stop at the same time, so when he sees her coming, he knows it's time to leave. She is his watch.
Words and phrases from this story
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| reloj | watch |
| autobús | bus |
| chofer | driver |
| ahorita | in a minute |
| mija | mija |
| le caes bien | he likes you |
| a lo mejor | maybe |
| dice que sí con la cabeza | nods |
How to nod in Spanish
There's no single everyday verb for “to nod” here. Itzel says «dice que sí con la cabeza» — literally, “he says yes with his head.”
Two more phrases worth keeping from this story:
- a lo mejor — maybe: «Bueno, a lo mejor es porque siempre le digo gracias.»
- no sirve — it doesn't work (for a machine or a thing): «Mire, mija, este reloj no sirve desde hace años.» — “Look, mija, this watch hasn't worked in years.”
Full English translation
Show the whole story in English
My name is Itzel, and every morning I get to the bus stop late. I leave my house running, with my backpack open. My books almost fall out onto the street.
The bus driver's name is don Chuy. He's an older man, with white hair and a calm voice. And every day he waits for me with the door open. Why does he always wait for me, and nobody else?
From the corner, I always yell the same thing to him.
“Wait for me, please, I'm almost there!”
The passengers aren't happy, and one lady always checks the time.
“Hey, driver, it's already late!”
But don Chuy doesn't move until I get on. When I finally get on, he looks at his old watch. Then he nods and closes the door. I think he counts how many minutes late I am.
My friend Fer has another idea.
“He probably knows your family, or he likes you.”
“Well, maybe it's because I always tell him thanks.”
One Monday, I had an exam and got up very early. I got to the stop before everyone. For the first time, I didn't come running.
The bus stopped, and I got on very calmly. Don Chuy looked at his watch and nodded. Then he closed the door. And we left, much earlier than usual.
“You're leaving already?”
“It's still early!”
At my stop, before getting off, I asked him my question.
“Don Chuy, why do you always wait for me?”
He laughed and showed me his watch.
“Look, mija, this watch hasn't worked in years.”
“But you always get here at the same time.”
“When I see you running with your backpack, I know it's time.”
“Oh, well, thanks for waiting for me, don Chuy.”
Now I know: I'm not late. I'm don Chuy's watch.
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