“Ella camina silenciosamente, pero, bajo ese aspecto tranquilo, es todo furia, pura energía eléctrica. La mujer común es tan común como una tormenta.”
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“She walks around all day quietly, but underneath it, she’s electric; angry energy inside a passive form. The commonwoman is as common as a thunderstorm.”Judy Grahn
Today I read an article on the importance of teaching poetry in schools (in Spanish). The article included a poem which inspired me to write this post. Entitled Vietnam, this poem says a lot. About war, about the importance we give to some things over others, but above all, I think it says a lot about women. It made me think about all these women around the world and their personal struggle, against politicians, against society, against weight, against themselves. I translated the poem in English (I tried…). You can find my translation attempt below the original version, which is in Spanish.
Read, think and enjoy.
Vietnam
Mujer, ¿cómo te llamas? -No sé.
¿Cuándo naciste, de dónde eres? -No sé.
¿Por qué cavaste esta madriguera? -No sé.
¿Desde cuándo te escondes? -No sé.
¿Por qué me mordiste el dedo cordial? -No sé.
¿Sabes que no te vamos a hacer nada? -No sé.
¿A favor de quién estás? -No sé.
Estamos en guerra, tienes que elegir. -No sé.
¿Existe todavía tu aldea? -No sé.
¿Éstos son tus hijos? -Sí.
De “Mil alegrías -Un encanto-” 1967
Versión de Gerardo Beltrán
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Vietnam
Woman, what is your name? – I don’t know.
When were you born, where are you from? – I don’t know.
Why did you dig this burrow? – I don’t know.
Since when are you hiding? – I don’t know.
Why did you bite my middle finger? – I don’t know.
We are not going to do anything to you, you know? – I don’t know.
Which side do you favour? – I don’t know.
We are at war, you must choose. – I don’t know.
Does you village still exist? – I don’t know.
Are they your children? – Yes.
From “Mil alegrías – Un encanto-” (A Thousand Joys -One Spell-) 1967
Gerardo Beltrán version.
Aung San Suu Kyi, one of the world's most celebrated advocates of democracy, who won the Nobel Peace Prize and is currently under arrest in her house in Burma. Photo by Dominique Aubert / Sygma / Corbis
