by Kevin P. Gallagher Spanish translation by Guillermo Parra (44 pp. Sewn Binding. English and Spanish Facing Pages.) $8.00 ppd.
The author says of Looking for Lake Texcoco:
“These poems are a variation sequence evoking the painting “La Cuidad de Mexico, 1949” by Juan O’Gorman, an Irish-Mexican painter who lived in Mexico (1905-1982). The painting, now at the Museo Arte de Moderno in Mexico City, is a bird’s eye view of Mexico City during its transformation into a modern city. In the foreground, two hands hold a map known as the Santa Cruz map, which represents the colonial city being built on top of the ruins of the pre-Hispanic era. In the top right of the painting two angels carry a Mexican flag bearing the legend "Viva Mexico.”
Alongside Gallagher’s English is a Spanish-language translation by Guillermo Parra, author of Caracas Notebook.
by Kevin P. Gallagher
Walk up the stairway sideways because it’s
disrespectful to back or face the gods.
Make rubble from pyramids and altars
to construct huge churches with paintings
of black faced virgins holding a child.
Open up the doors and let them back in.
The weight of it all will make you sink,
make you think about bearing arms,
make you win to lose all over again.
Have a party on a large wall or ceiling
inside a palace, then let history meet
where it will be forced to be on the same page.
When the frescoes crack like colored eggs
we will spill out to be the same as ever.
Made in Malinche
Spanish translation by Guillermo Parra
Sube las escaleras lateralmente porque es
irrespetuoso dar la espalda o la frente a los dioses.
Haz escombros de pirámides y altares
para construir inmensas iglesias con cuadros
de vírgenes negras cargando un niño.
Abre las puertas y déjalos entrar de nuevo.
El peso de todo te hundirá,
te hará pensar en llevar armas,
te hará ganar para perder otra vez.
Monta una fiesta en un gran muro o en un techo
dentro de un palacio, y deja que la historia se encuentre
donde tendrá que compartir la misma página.
Cuando las pinturas al fresco se fracturan como huevos pintados
nos regaremos para ser lo mismo de siempre.
