Fun with Translation: Lorca, Neruda, and Machado

I've called this a "Milton community website," and as I have written here and elsewhere, while I hope that it is a useful place for political discourse, I hope you also find it a useful place for everything else, too. I might have a view, after all, but I'm just one person: I want everyone to feel like they can post their views, sit for an interview, and so on. There is no specific agenda, other than building community.

One of my ambitions is that readers become posters, sending me their letters, essays, poems, fiction, photos, etc. So, in that spirit, I'm going to post here something that is not directly political: my own amateur translations of Spanish-language poetry.

Why? Why not?! I'm a native Spanish speaker always trying to improve my Spanish, and I love poetry (but haven't really tried to write any, and if you're a poet, you'll be able to tell right away that I have no skill whatsoever). Rather than hide my attempts in my notebooks, here are a few selections for your reading pleasure. I hope that, if you haven't encountered these poems or authors, my work here will pique your interest. Feedback always welcome – either from you Spanish speakers, poets, or both!