El Nido
Es porque un pajarito de la montaña ha hecho,
en el hueco de un árbol su nido matinal,
que el árbol amanece con música en el pecho,
como que si tuviera corazón musical…
Si el dulce pajarito por entre el hueco asoma,
para beber rocío, para beber aroma,
el árbol de la sierra me da la sensación
de que se le ha salido, cantando, el corazón…
Translator’s Glossary
|
WORD
|
DEFINITION
|
POSSIBLE SYNONYMS
|
|---|---|---|
| amanece (v.) | from the verb amanecer, meaning to begin, usually referring to the day | dawns, wakes up, appears, arrives, emerges |
| árbol (n.) | a woody perennial plant with a tall trunk and lateral branches | tree |
| aroma (n.) | a distinctive smell, especially one that is pleasant | scent, fragrance, aroma, perfume, smell |
| asoma (v.) | from the verb asomar, meaning to push something out | pokes out, sticks out, thrusts out, juts out |
| beber (v.) | to take a liquid into the mouth and swallow | drink, gulp, swallow, sip, slurp |
| cantando (v.) | from the verb cantar, meaning to make musical sounds with the voice, especially words with a set tune | singing, crooning, chanting, warbling |
| como que si (conj.) | in the same way that | as if, as though, like |
| con (prep.) | accompanied by | with, together with |
| corazón (n.) | the basis of spiritual and emotional life | heart, spirit, soul |
| de (prep.) | indicates the source of something in terms of location, context, or time | from, of |
| dulce (adj.) | pleasing in general; delightful sounding | sweet, captivating; melodious, lyrical, musical |
| el (art.) | denoting one particular person or thing | the, that |
| en (prep.) | expressing the situation of being enclosed or surrounded by something else | in, inside, within, in the middle of |
| entre (prep.) | indicates an intermediate point between two places, people, or times | between, within, amongst, amid |
| es (v.) | from the verb ser, meaning to exist | it is |
| ha hecho (v.) | from the verb hacer, meaning to do or produce something | has made, has constructed, has built, has assembled |
| hueco (n.) | empty, concave place in a solid body or surface | hollow, hole, nook, burrow |
| la (art.) | denoting one particular person or thing | the, that |
| matinal (adj.) | associated with the period of time between sunrise and noon | morning, dawn, daybreak |
| me da (phrase) | from the verb dar, meaning to pass something to someone | gives me, produces in me |
| montaña (n.) | large natural elevation of the earth’s surface | mountain, hill, mount, alps |
| música (n.) | aesthetically pleasing or harmonious vocal or instrumental sounds | music, melody, song, tunes, harmony |
| musical (adj.) | having a pleasant sound | musical, tuneful, melodic, melodious, sweet-sounding |
| nido (n.) | structure or place made or chosen by a bird for laying eggs and sheltering its young | nest |
| pajarito (n.) | a small egg-laying animal with feathers, wings, and a beak | little bird, birdie |
| para (conj.) | indicates an aim or objective | in order to, so as to |
| pecho (n.) | the front surface of a person’s or animal’s body between the neck and the abdomen | chest, breast |
| por (prep.) | indicates the origin of a movement | from |
| porque (conj.) | indicates a reason or cause | because, due to the fact that |
| que (conj.) | expressing a result | that |
| rocío | tiny drops of water that form on cool surfaces at night, when atmospheric vapor condenses | dew, condensation, water droplets |
| se le ha salido (phrase) | from the verb salir, meaning to go away from | it has left, it has disappeared, it has vanished, it has departed, it has exited |
| sensación (n.) | awareness of or sensitivity to something | feeling, sensation, impression |
| si (conj.) | indicates circumstances that must exist in order for something else to happen | if, whether, supposing |
| sierra (n.) | an elevated region characterized by remoteness and inaccessibility | mountains, mountain range, hills, alps, sierras |
| su (adj.) | belonging to a person or thing previously mentioned | its, his, her |
| tuviera (v.) | from the verb tener, meaning to contain or own something | had, possessed, enjoyed, held, carried |
| un (art.) | only one | a, an |
Artistic Elements
I. About Quatrains
A quatrain is a four-line stanza, rhyming with various forms for example:
- ABAC or ABCB (known as unbounded or ballad quatrain), as in Samuel Taylor
Coleridge’s “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner.”
It is an ancient Mariner,
And he stoppeth one of three.
Now wherefore stopp’st thou me?
The Bridegroom’s doors are opened wide
And I am next of kin
The guests are met, the feast is set:
May’st hear the merry din.
- AABB (a double couplet); see A.E. Housman’s “To an Athlete Dying Young.”
The time you won your town the race
We chaired you through the market-place;
Man and boy stood cheering by.
And home we brought you shoulder-high
Today the road all runner come,
Shoulder-high we bring you home.
And set you at your threshold down,
Townsman of a stiller town.
Bio
Alfredo Espino is one of El Salvador’s most beloved poets. He is known for his extraordinary poems about nature. Hortensia, his sister, explained that nature was Espino’s most powerful and generative muse. When they were children, their father took them for long walks in the countryside. Espino drew great inspiration from these adventures, producing marvelous poems filled with images of his experiences both real and imagined.