Rosa Chávez

 

Ri oj ab'aj xkoj qetal ruk'a k'atanalaj ch'ich'
 

Ri oj ab'aj xkoj qetal ruk'a k'atanalaj ch'ich'

Xk'at ri qab'aq'wach

Xojilon ruk' ri tzolq'ominaq qawach

Q'eq taq jul

Kqab'iq qib' ruk' pa ri najil

Ri kamikal kuyuq'uj qaj ri qak'axk'ol

Ri utz'i' kureq' ri qaqolotajik

Kuchub'aj ri k'otk'ob'naqalaj qak'u'x

Ri uk'ok'al ri ulew man junam ta chik

Ketzaq lo uwach taq che e ma'j k'u na

Xaq chi owal xoj k'iyik

Chi tz'uj chi tz'uj pa uk'u'x taq ri jul

Jeri' qapisik xub'an ri utz'ininem

Ri nimalaj majb'alil

 

Las piedras fuimos marcadas con hierro candente

Las piedras fuimos marcadas con hierro candente

quemados nuestros ojos

vimos con la mirada volteada

agujeros negros

tragándonos en la infinidad
la muerte chineaba nuestra desgracia
su perro lamia nuestras heridas
escupiendo
nuestra conciencia lacerada
ya el sabor de la tierra no era el mismo
los frutos caían antes de madurar
a escondidas fuimos creciendo
gota a gota en le profundo de las cuevas
así fue como nos envolovió el silencio
del gran comienzo.

We, stones, were branded by hot iron

We, stones, were branded by hot iron

our eyes scorched

we saw through an inverted gaze

black holes

swallowing us in infinity

death cuddling our misfortune

his dog licking our wounds

spitting

our lacerated conscience

already the flavor of the earth was not the same

fruits fell before they ripened

we were growing clandestinely

drop by drop within the caves

it was in this way that the silence of the great beginning engulfed us

***

From Sing: Poetry from the Indigenous Americas (University of Arizona Press, 2011).

Translated from the Spanish by Gloria E. Cachón.

Used with permission.

***

Rosa Chávez is a member of the Maya K'iche tribe on her father's side and the Maya Kaquiquel on her mother's side. She was born in Guatemala in 1980. In addition to being a poet, she's an actress and cultural committee member. Rosa Chávez has been invited to share her work at various literary event and festivals in Mexico, El Salvador, Costa Rica, Venezuela, Colombia, Chile, Peru, and Argentina. Publications include Casa solitaria, published in Guatemala in 2009;PIEDRA, published in Costa Rica in 2009; and Los dos corazones de Elena Kame, published in Argentina in 2009.

* * * 

Please feel free to share Split This Rock Poem of the Week widely. We just ask you to include all of the information in this post, including this request. Thanks! If you are interested in reading past poems of the week, feel free to visit the blog archive.