Se oculta el sol

El sol se oculta en el oeste
de rojo baña el cielo celeste

por el oeste se va este día
se va a alumbrar la patria mía

Se oculta el sol allende el mar
me deja aqui, a soñar y amar

Escapism

the seagull yells: you, in despair
lament your distance from the sea
the sea where you would like to be
moved by the scent of salty air

but to get there steps are needed
across the town, over the bridge:
walk up the slope, get to the ridge
don't let your thirst for sea go un-heeded

make your descend with feet and hands
feeling your way down the rough cliff
refreshed b'the spray of crashing waves

below the ridge there lies the sand
where you will lie, toil turned to bliss,
dream-eyed and quietly awake.

Pillar and post

Between the pillar and the post
I waited for my bus to arrive
but the darned thing wouldn't come:
its driver must'ave got lost.

I waited for the sun to set
between a rock and a hard place -
for 'nights' always follow 'days':
on that you can always bet.

Divertimento paterno

Sobre una esfera de plata
Sonriente brilla la luna
Pero el corazón me mata
Por llegar pronto a tu cuna.

Thick rain

I find it hard not to hear your voice
Your voice carries far
Like the whistling of trains

and you have that rich laughter
just as fresh as thick rain
in the middle of summer

Rain that settles the dust
Rain that glimmers on flowers

I can hear your voice
like a bell on a tower.

Blue skies

I find it difficult not to look at you:
For a start, there's no one else in view

and your hair is blonde
and your eyes are blue

They remind me of the skies
in the heights of Peru.

To fly

To learn
To fly
To travel far
To dance under the weight of a heart left behind
To wake up to the light of a new heart that's waiting
To complete a journey
To begin a journey
To live

Head

Stern and somber, the sculptured head
stares at me from the top of the bookshelf.
Its gaze is neither full of remorse, nor of recrimination -
My brother made it as part of his education:
The model sat there, for hours naked
My brother says she was in fact uglier than the sculpture
and rather bored. I never knew the true person.

Jungle tangle

In the depths of the jungle
Where dusk engulfs the river
one's head fills up with a fever
one's heart gets in a tangle

In-flight entertainment

My heart is filled with much emotion
as the large plane is set in motion
and takes up to the sky. Later
the hours go by dreadfully slowly
I play cards with my neighbour, eat my meals
as they are offered, read a book
and watch the in-flight entertainment.

Volver

El día es largo y es oscuro
y yo lo llevo sin apuro

y es que al final hay esperanza
que crece mientras el día avanza

El día es largo como sombras
que el sol proyecta y la tarde nombra

Sombras que viven en mi memoria
que es agua y pozo y cordel y noria.

At dawn, at dusk

At dawn, at dusk, or when the rain is near
I give myself to awe, dispair and fear

At dawn, at dusk, when dreams do not abide
and the heart empties, an inlet at low tide

At dawn, at dusk, when clouds seem to catch fire
the waves of day and night wash over my desires

At dawn, at dusk, sleeping or awake
The things I care about are at stake