El Caballo de Mi Padre

My Father's Horse

El Caballo de Mi Padre

When my father diedCuando mi padre murió
Among other things he leftEntre otras cosas dejó
There in Jalisco, a little ranchAhí por Jalisco, un ranchito
He left a silver saddleDejó una silla plateada
His nickel-plated gunSu pistola niquelada
And a very beautiful horseY un caballo muy bonito

He wouldn't let himself be saddledNo se dejaba ensillar
And much less riddenY mucho menos montar
By any nosy personDe cualquier entrometido
But I would caress himPero yo lo acariciaba
As my father spoke to himComo mi padre le hablaba
And he ended up being my friendY acabó siendo mi amigo

His name was El CascabelSe llamaba El Cascabel
There was no horse like himNo había caballo como él
So sly and conceitedTan ladino y presumido
But he missed my fatherPero extrañaba a mi padre
I could sense it when I rode himYo le notaba al montarle
Sadness in his neighTristeza en su relinchido

One day I went gallopingUn día me fui a galopar
Someone wanted to buy himAlguien lo quiso comprar
They offered me whatever I wantedMe daban lo que quiera
With his ears perked upCon las orejas paradas
He threw a couple of kicksAventó un par de patadas
As if the horse understoodComo si el penco entendiera

But one day he escaped from mePero un día se me escapó
When my father's death anniversary cameCuando mi padre cumplió
Exactly a year after his deathDe su muerte un año exacto
And that precious horseY aquel caballo precioso
Went to die in a wellSe fue a matar en un pozo
Near the cemeteryCerquita del camposanto

That horse diedAquel caballo murió
Because he never forgotPorque nunca se olvidó
His beloved masterDel que fue su amo querido
They say that over in Monte GrandeDicen que allá en Monte Grande
You can hear the neighingDel caballo de mi padre
Of my father's horseSe escucha su relinchido