STAIRWAY TO HEAVEN

x Pili Valdivia
(Translation x Renée Franke)

From that stolen pause,
motionless dance that reigned,
from that borrowed past
don’t hide, niña mía.

¶

Run back to the patio
And tell me, child, who are you playing with?
What colour is your blood,
And what shades does hers have?

¶

And as her sky is glowing,
pretending to be yours
The firmament is the yoke
happy copy of the underground.

¶

May they not cover your eyes
while your lashes are still growing
The lights behind the mountains
become foreign lights.

¶

The bell is already ringing
Come back, niña, who are you waiting for
What cloaks are covering your eyes
What veils are covering hers

¶

What form does the roof have
That your roots have hatched
They share the same motive
They break down into a thousand hues

¶

May they not cover your eyes
nor may your touch atrophy
while, on your retina
a pact of difficult return is forming.

¶

From that stolen pause
dance and poetry are born.
From that borrowed past
don’t hide, niña mía.

CLOSE

WHAT COLOR IS YOUR BLOOD? HOW DOES YOUR HEAVEN LOOK LIKE? WHAT IS YOUR DOGMA? WHAT IS NATURAL LAW? HOW MUCH OF YOU THERE IS IN YOU?