Lamentario

[Here is the first poem I set. I chose to set it in Spanish as the sounds and the rhythm of the words are so beautiful. Francisco usually prints his poetry side by side with Spanish on one side and English on the other. I will likely set two of the five in Spanish, the others in English. I condensed the lineation of the original poem for sake of “space.”]

Lamentary

how sad
to be a glass
that never
gets filled

a door
that stays
forever
locked

a bed that
feels like
a casket
not a bedstead

a bird
without a nest
a saint with
no candlelight

how sad
to be one
and never
add one to two

to be alone
and live on
dreaming up
embraces

––

Lamentario
es triste ser vaso y nunca llenarse
ser puerta y siempre quedarse trancada
ser cama sentirse mortaja no lecho
es triste ser uno y nunca sumar dos
ser ave sin nido ser santo sin vela
ser solo y vivir soñando abrazos