Two Translations of the Poet Beatriz Llenín Figueroa
my country is somewhere else
a dragonfly or a jellyfish
—for example—
see it clearly
mi país está en otra parte
una libélula o una medusa
—por ejemplo—
lo ven con claridad
If I believed in Pulpits
I would miss out on miracles
for example:
the eyes of our sick ancient dog
his ears drooping lovingly when I look at him
the street cat’s return with her tail at half mast
no longer meowing as timidly as before
our rescued cat turning and tumbling
another failed attempt to get the dog to correspond
the true pedagogy of cows
the almost stillness of seashells
si creyera en púlpitos
me perdería los milagros
por ejemplo:
los ojos de nuestro perro anciano y enfermo
sus orejas cayendo de amor cuando lo miro
el retorno de la gata callejera con rabo a medias
sus ya no tan tímidos maullidos
las volteretas de nuestra gata rescatada
su intento –otra vez sin éxito– de que el perro le corresponda
la pedagogía cierta de las vacas
la casi quietud de los caracoles
Beatriz Llenín-Figueroa is an independent writer, scholar, editor, translator, companion, and never-ending apprentice who stands for Puerto Rican and Caribbean emancipations.
Guillermo Rebollo Gil (San Juan, 1979) is a writer, sociology professor, translator, and attorney. Book-length translations include I’ll Trade you this Island (2018) by Cindy Jiménez-Vera and Recetas Naturales para el Mundo Fenomenal (2017) by Sommer Browning. He is the author of Writing Puerto Rico: Our Decolonial Moment (2018) and the forthcoming Whiteness in Puerto Rico: Translation at a Loss. He belongs to/with Lucas Imar and Ariadna Michelle. Happily so.