La niña de Guatemala

The Girl from Guatemala

La niña de Guatemala

I want under the shadow of a wingQuiero a la sombra de un ala
I will tell this story in bloomContaré este cuento en flor
The girl from GuatemalaLa niña de Guatemala
The one who died of loveLa que se murió de amor

Oh, the bouquets were made of liliesAy, eran de lirios los ramos
And the edges of mignonetteY las orlas de reseda
And with jasmine we buried herY de jazmín la enterramos
In a silk boxEn una caja de seda

She gave the forgetful oneElla dio al desmemoriado
A scented pillowUna almohadilla de olor
He returned, returned marriedÉl volvió, volvió casado
She died of loveElla se murió de amor

They carried her on a litterIban cargándola en andas
Bishops and ambassadorsObispos y embajadores
Behind them went the people in rowsDetrás iba el pueblo en tandas
All loaded with flowersTodo cargado de flores

She, to see him againElla por volverlo a ver
Went out to the lookoutSalió a verlo al mirador
He returned with his wifeÉl volvió con su mujer
She died of loveElla se murió de amor

Like burning bronzeComo de bronce candente
At the farewell kissAl beso de despedida
Her forehead was the foreheadEra su frente la frente
That I have loved the most in my lifeQue más he amado en mi vida

She went into the river in the afternoonSe entró de tarde en el río
The doctor pulled her out deadLa sacó muerta el doctor
They say she died of coldDicen que murió de frío
I know she died of loveYo sé que murió de amor

There in the cold vaultAllá en la bóveda helada
They placed her on two benchesLa pusieron en dos bancos
I kissed her sharp handBesé su mano afilada
I kissed her white shoes, ohBesé sus zapatos blancos, ay

Silent, as it got darkCallado, al oscurecer
The gravedigger called meMe llamó el enterrador
I have never seen againNunca más he vuelto a ver
The one who died of loveA la que murió de amor