Aztecal IV

She did not die from cold nor rain,
she went away sadly left as she fell.

She was not the rose on the winds,
that of the great horizons,
nor the rose of Jericho
that returns to life on placing it in water.
She did not know about eternities.

It is possible that at some time
she might have had blue eyes when she smiled;
in an instant she made the final voyage
from which one does not return
and learned to weep;
it was something which appeared in a dream.

Copyright 2004 by Francisco Azuela.  Translation by Ron Hudson.

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Aztecal IV

No se murió de frío ni de lluvia,
se fue quedando triste en la caída.

No era la rosa de los vientos,
la de los grandes horizontes,
ni la rosa de Jericó
que vuelve a la vida al ponerla en el agua,
ella no sabía de eternidades.

Es posible que alguna vez
haya tenido los ojos azules cuando sonreía;
en un instante hizo el gran viaje
del que no se regresa
y aprendió a llorar;
era algo que se parecía a un sueño.

Copyright 2004 by Francisco Azuela