A Poem: Manos

I feel like poetry has just been my way of processing emotions lately; and even though this is a poem from 2017, just given some recent events, it seems relevant to me once again. Sometimes, for me, I feel a little more strongly, a little differently in Spanish… for this particular poem, I remember it had such a strong push behind it, it literally woke me up… I hope you enjoy (Grammar warning, I’m not quite fluent, so there might be a couple parts that I missed in proofreading)

***

Manos son extraordinarias
Te muestran al mundo… y tu potential también.
En las lineas, la piel, las uñas, las cicatrices: te muestran tu alegría y dolor…

¡Mis manos son fuertes!
Pero, son delicadas también.

Tienen el poder de herir or curar.
de sentir,
de amar.

Ahora, mis manos sienten vacías.

Anhelan algo justo fuera del alcance…
Tienen fríos. Sienten que perdieron algo especial…

¿Te perdieron?

¿Tu tacto?

No sé.
No saben tampoco

Sienten más ligeros hoy en día,
como el ligero peso de algo falta

Pero con tiempo, mis manos sentirán llenos una vez más.
Podrían extrañar su tacto,

Pero, habrá otros.

Mis manos son fuertes y delicadas también.

Pueden hacer algunas cosas–

¿Ves?

Hecho cosas.
Escrito coas.
Siento cosas–todo con mis manos…

Y con ellas, puedo hacer algo nuevo.

***

Hands are extraordinary
They show you the world… and your potential too.
In the lines, the skin, the nails, the scars: they show you your joy and pain…

My hands are strong!
But they are delicate too.

They have the power to hurt or heal–
to feel,
to love.

Now, my hands feel empty.

They long for something just out of reach…
They’re cold. They feel like they lost something…

Did they lose you?

your touch?

I don’t know.
They don’t know either.

They feel lighter today,
like a slight weight is missing

But with time, my hands will feel full again.
They might miss your touch,

but, there will be others.

My hands are strong, but they are delicate too.

They can do things–

See?

I make things.
I write things.
I feel things–all with my hands…

and with them, I will make something new.

Advertisement