De las cosas inevitables

Y un día todos nos hicimos grandes.
Aislamos en un rincón oscuro y solitario
a ese niño que jugaba a las escondidas
y nada sabía de obligaciones o de fracasos.

Y un día todos nos hicimos grandes.
Nos acomodamos tras enormes escritorios.
Nos volvimos hombres serios y responsables
y apuramos el paso para no llegar tarde.

Y un día todos nos hicimos grandes.
Pero ese niño de risa fácil y asombro en la mirada,
todavía no ha logrado perdonarse
el habernos dejado a la deriva de este mundo tan desmesurado.

(El mundo es demasiada cosa para dejarlo en manos de los adultos).

Of Inevitable Things

And one day we all grew up.

We isolated in a dark, lonely corner

that child who played hide-and-seek

and knew nothing of obligations or failures.

And one day we all grew up.

We settled behind huge desks.

We became serious and responsible men

and we hurried our pace so as not to be late.

And one day we all grew up.

But that child with the easy smile

and amazement in his eyes

still hasn't managed to forgive himself

for having left us adrift

in this overgrown world.

(The world is too much

to leave in the hands of adults).

translated by Indran Amirthanayagam.