English translation for Gabriela Mistral (Track 12)

Cajita de Olinalá

My little box
from Olinalá
is rosewood
and jacaranda
When suddenly I
open it, it exudes
a Queen-of-Sheba
fragrance.

O! what a taste, so tropical --
Clove, mahogany
of branches above!

I leave it here,
I leave it there,
it comes and goes
through corridors.

When the night comes
so that it guards me from wrong,

I place it near my head
where others put their charm.

Beautiful visions
that make you dream,
make you smile,
make you cry.

Hand in hand
goes the sea
with the twin mountains
and the ploughed fields.

Coffee pots bubble
just like the country;
Cactus, deer,
Quail, oh so pretty.

The volcanoes
of regal crowns
and the aerial Indian
like corn renown.

They paint it thus
without a word
Indian fingers
or hummingbird.

And thus it is made
by a precise hand,
Hand of Aztec,
Hand of Quetzal.

My little box from Olinalá
is rose and jacaranda.

Translator is Karen Patricia Peña
copyright 2007 Legenda publ.