About
Today for the Blessed

This story began in 2002 as a cure for nights without out electric lights, for deep loneliness; an escape from an escape. Yellow legal pads, a 15 peso pen, lit by candles stuck to a wood-plank and cinderblock table. Hours of dark quiet. A space between waking and dreaming.

Four pads and two years later, it got shelved. Drawer-ed. But something drew me back, maybe I knew I'd always come back to it. And so I started re-writing. And re-writing. Then again. And again and again and again.

It's been a long road, but it feels like the road has led somewhere.

VERDE EMBELESO DE LA VIDA HUMANA - Sor Juana de la Cruz

Verde embeleso de la vida humana,
loca esperanza, frenesí dorado,
sueños de los despiertos intrincados,
como de sueños, de tesoros vana;

alma del mundo, senectud lozana,
decrépito verdor imaginado;
el hoy de los dichosos esperado,
y de los desdichados el mañana:

sigan tu sombra en busca de tu día
los que, con verdes vidrios por anteojos,
todo lo ven pintado a su deseo;

que yo, más cuerda en la fortuna mí,
tengo en entrambas manos ambos ojos
y solamente lo que toco veo.

GREEN ENCHANTMENT OF HUMAN LIFE

Green enchantment of human life,
insane hope, gilded frenzy,
intricate dreams of the wakeful,
like dreams and treasures, vain;

soul of the world, luxurious senescence,
decrepit verdure imagined;
the awaited today for the blessed,
and for the wretched, tomorrow:

Let them follow your shadow in search of your day
those that, with green-lensed glasses,
see everything painted as they desire;

but I, more sensible with my fate,
have in both hands both eyes
and only what I touch I see.