28 Mar 2020
Durante La Cuarentena
I went on a long bike ride last weekend and as I was struggling up the Bay Bridge, I started thinking about the current state of “Shelter In Place” in California. It dawned on me that the only reason I knew it was the weekend was because I could go on a two hour bike ride while the sun was still high in the sky. It made me realize that life in its new state had a different flavor, of course I knew this already, but in this moment I FELT it. The thoughts that were in my head were all in Spanish, which sometimes happens when I feel things intensely. Spanish is my first langugage and it is a better language to feel things in. Sometimes I struggle to feel things that I can’t express in English, not for lack of vocabulary but simply because the emotions cannot be captured. I think this is a common occurance for people who speak more than one language.
One of my good friends, Michael has been translating poems between Arabic, English, French and Spanish since college.We have chatted about collaborating in different capacities, but this is the first we are actually making something together, which is super exciting! I could not think of a better person to translate my poem into English. So here it goes:
Durante La Cuarentena
Durante la cuarentena
No se ni que hora es
No entiendo la diferencia entre día de semana y fin de semana
No hay diferencia
Todos los días son iguales, aquí adentro de mi casa
Se me olvida que el mundo sigue, que los árboles están floreciendo y que la luna cambia de caras
Durante la cuarentena
Espacio toma otro significado
La distancia se siente profundamente, entre amigos, entre familia, entre compañeros de trabajo
La distancia es intensa pero es solamente física
Durante la cuarentena
Te das la oportunidad de conocer un nuevo lugar en tu mente
Una nueva fase de relaciones familiares, amistosas, y del trabajo
Aprendes un poquito más sobre la condición humana
Durante la cuarentena
Sientes nada y sientes todo, y bueno te da igual
Olvidas todo
Te da nostalgia
Quieres llorar
Comienzas a bailar, pintar, escribir, crear
Amas más
Vas más de espacio
Después de la cuarentena
Ojalá tengamos un poco más de claridad en la mente
Amor y paz en nuestro corazones
Generosidad y abundancia en nuestro espíritu
Y ahora
Estamos juntos (aunque físicamente separados)
Estamos aquí
Estamos vivos
Translation by Michael Karam
During the Quarantine
During the quarantine
I know not what time it is
The difference between weekdays and weekends, I don’t know
No difference at all
Here, inside my home, the days are all the same
I have forgotten that the world is moving
The trees flower. The moon changes faces.
During the quarantine
Space takes on a different meaning
The distance feels
Between family, between friends, between coworkers, profoundly
Intense, but only the physical kind
During the quarantine
A gift to know a new place in your mind
Renewed relationships with families, friends, and coworkers
Learning a bit more of the human condition
During the quarantine
Feeling nothing and feeling everything
All is the same
Forgetting everything
Feeling nostalgia
You want to cry
Start to dance, paint, write, create
Love more
Make more space
After the quarantine
Hopefully our minds will be clearer,
Love and peace in our hearts
Generosity and abundance in our spirits
And now
We are together but physically separated
We are here
We are living