Poems from Cuba, in Spanish and English

Four poems, read in Spanish and English, from “Passport to Cuba,” a special section of the March/April 2015 issue of Orion.

Read an excerpt from “Passport to Cuba,” here; subscribe to Orion to read the special section in its entirety. Our thanks go to the Christopher Reynolds Foundation for its generous support of this project.

Comments

  1. Here’s a poem I read as part of a talk I gave in Havana in 2014:

    THE UNREPENTANT BATHER (90 MILES OUT)

    My love swims alone
    in an ocean of sharks
    circling to starboard
    circling to bow
    waiting their moment
    off guard, stroke falters
    gnashing their teeth
    flexing their jaws
    wearing the defenses down

    Swim for your life, sweetheart,
    Swim for your life!
    Don’t give up an inch,
    Don’t fall for the trap!
    The sharks are all circling
    ‘Round History’s bones
    You swim there alone
    Under attack

    My love swims alone
    paradoxically dreams
    of lush old-growth forests
    & crystalline streams
    but industry dangles
    “development’s” lures
    gnashing their teeth
    flexing their jaws
    baiting the bloodlash
    of “Progress”

    Swim for your life, sweetheart,
    Swim for your life!
    Don’t give up an inch,
    Don’t fall for the trap!
    The sharks are all circling
    ‘Round History’s bones
    You swim there alone
    Under attack

    swim faster
    keep swimming
    keep swimming

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