Fluent Fiction - Danish: First-Time Voter: Emil's Journey to Civic Fulfillment
Find the full episode transcript, vocabulary words, and more:
fluentfiction.org/first-time-voter-emils-journey-to-civic-fulfillment

Story Transcript:

Da: Solen skinnede stærkt på denne midsommerdag.
En: The sun shone brightly on this midsummer day.

Da: Emil stod i køen ved rådhuset, hvor valgstedet var.
En: Emil stood in line at the town hall where the polling station was.

Da: Det summede af liv omkring ham.
En: There was a buzz of life around him.

Da: Folk talte ivrigt om deres håb og bekymringer.
En: People were eagerly talking about their hopes and concerns.

Da: Plakater og bannere opfordrede til borgersind.
En: Posters and banners urged civic duty.

Da: Emil var en ung mand i starten af tyverne.
En: Emil was a young man in his early twenties.

Da: Dette var hans første gang til at stemme.
En: This was his first time voting.

Da: Han var nervøs og kunne mærke en knude i maven.
En: He was nervous and could feel a knot in his stomach.

Da: De politiske spændinger var høje i byen, og Emil frygtede, at hans stemme ikke ville gøre en forskel.
En: The political tensions were high in the city, and Emil feared that his vote wouldn't make a difference.

Da: Køen var lang, og solen gjorde ventetiden varm og ubehagelig.
En: The line was long, and the sun made the wait hot and uncomfortable.

Da: Emil kunne mærke sveden løbe ned ad ryggen.
En: Emil could feel sweat running down his back.

Da: Han begyndte at tvivle.
En: He began to doubt.

Da: "Hvad hvis min stemme ikke betyder noget?
En: "What if my vote doesn't mean anything?

Da: Skal jeg bare gå hjem?"
En: Should I just go home?"

Da: tænkte Emil.
En: Emil thought.

Da: Folk omkring ham virkede afslappede, men Emil følte sig alene med sine bekymringer.
En: The people around him seemed relaxed, but Emil felt alone with his worries.

Da: Han kiggede på sit ur for tredje gang på ti minutter.
En: He checked his watch for the third time in ten minutes.

Da: Tiden sneglede sig afsted.
En: Time crawled by.

Da: Imens han stod der, kom der minder fra skoleårene.
En: While he stood there, memories from his school years came to mind.

Da: Hans lærer plejede at sige, "Hver stemme tæller."
En: His teacher used to say, "Every vote counts."

Da: Selvom det var en simpel sætning, satte den sig fast i Emil.
En: Although it was a simple phrase, it stuck with Emil.

Da: Køen bevægede sig langsomt fremad.
En: The line moved slowly forward.

Da: Trin efter trin.
En: Step by step.

Da: Minut for minut.
En: Minute by minute.

Da: Emil overvejede igen at give op.
En: Emil considered giving up again.

Da: Men noget indeni ham insisterede på at blive.
En: But something inside him insisted on staying.

Da: Endelig nåede Emil til indgangen.
En: Finally, Emil reached the entrance.

Da: Hjertet hamrede hårdere.
En: His heart pounded harder.

Da: Han viste sit ID til valgtilforordnede og blev vist vej til en afstemningsboks.
En: He showed his ID to the election official and was directed to a voting booth.

Da: Det var nu eller aldrig.
En: It was now or never.

Da: Han stod der med seddelen i hånden.
En: He stood there with the ballot in his hand.

Da: Hans tvivl og frygt kom op til overfladen.
En: His doubts and fears surfaced.

Da: Men så huskede han lærerens ord igen.
En: But then he remembered his teacher's words again.

Da: Emil tog en dyb indånding og satte krydset.
En: Emil took a deep breath and marked his choice.

Da: Han lagde seddelen i valgurnen.
En: He placed the ballot in the ballot box.

Da: Da han gik ud af valgstedet, følte han en blanding af lettelse og stolthed.
En: As he left the polling station, he felt a mix of relief and pride.

Da: Solen skinnede stadig klart, men nu føltes varmen som en venlig klap på skulderen.
En: The sun still shone brightly, but now the warmth felt like a friendly pat on the shoulder.

Da: Emil vidste, at hver stemme virkelig tæller.
En: Emil knew that every vote truly counts.

Da: Hans frygt var væk.
En: His fear was gone.

Da: Han forlod rådhuset med en følelse af fællesskab og betydning.
En: He left the town hall with a sense of community and significance.

Da: Emil havde gjort sin borgerpligt.
En: Emil had fulfilled his civic duty.

Da: Han gik hjem med en ny tro på demokratiet og sin egen rolle i det.
En: He went home with a new belief in democracy and his own role in it.

Da: Verden føltes en lille smule mere retfærdig, og Emil var klar til at tage del i fremtidens beslutninger.
En: The world felt a little fairer, and Emil was ready to take part in future decisions.


Vocabulary Words:

• midsummer: midsommer
• polling station: valgsted
• buzz: summede
• posters: plakater
• banners: bannere
• urged: opfordrede
• nervous: nervøs
• knot: knude
• stomach: mave
• political tensions: politiske spændinger
• feared: frygtede
• uncomfortable: ubehagelig
• doubt: tvivle
• concerns: bekymringer
• relaxed: afslappede
• crawled: sneglede sig
• memories: minder
• stuck: satte sig fast
• slowly: langsomt
• gave up: give op
• heart pounded: hjertet hamrede
• election official: valgtilforordnede
• booth: afstemningsboks
• ballot: seddelen
• marked: satte krydset
• relief: lettelse
• pride: stolthed
• warmth: varmen
• shoulder: skulder
• fulfilled: gjorde