- gusanosdelamemoria
Winning Piece: 1st Prize of Poetry in Indigenous Language "Gusanos de la Memoria"
Updated: Jul 15, 2021
Translated by Paul M. Worley and Melissa D. Birkhofer
When I was twelve I auditioned for the lead role in director Xavi Sala’s El ombligo de Guié’dani. For my work in this last film, I’ve been awarded an Honorable Mention in Best Actress category at Morelia’s International Film Festival and was recently nominated for Best Actress in the Diosas de Plata 2020, which is given by the Periodistas Cinematográficos de México (PECIME).
Winner in the Poetry Category (English/Diidxazá /Spanish)
English translation
I Buried Him
I buried him
a long time ago
under all of the places
we went together.
I buried him
under a tree
that shaded his house.
I buried him
under the market.
I buried him
at Vicente Beach.
I buried him
under a hill.
I buried him.
And I pulled him out
of my guts.
I buried him
in a grave.
He died
in my heart.
His memory
will fade
in time.
It doesn’t hurt anymore!
He died
so long ago.
I don’t feel
bad about it.
The wind
dragged him away.
The sea’s waves
dragged him away.
That was the end of him.
And me,
I don’t cry
like I did last year.
Original version in Diidxazá
Bicache’ laa’be
Bicache’ laa’be,
ma’ xhadxí’.
Bicache’ laa’be
xhana ca’ guirá’
layú’ rá uyudu’.
Bicache’ laa’be
xhana ti yaga rúdi’
bacaanda neza
rá’ lidxibe’.
Bicache’ laa’be
xhaguete’ luguiaa.
Bicache’ laa’be
rá’ nisado’ Xavicende.
Bicache’ laa’be,
xhaguete’ ti dani.
Bicache’ laa’be,
ne’ guxha laa’be
ndani ladxidúa’.
Bicache’ laa’be,
ndani ti guibá’.
Guti’bee ndani
ladxiduá’.
Zee’be ne ca’ dxi’
ca’.
Ma’ qui’ riuuba!
Guti’bee
ma’ xhadxí’
ma’ qui nuaa xilase.
Bi ma’ yee’né laa’be,
ne sacá’ca nisado’.
Rácaa biluxhe’bee.
Ne na’,
ma’ qui’ ruuna’dia’
sica biina dxique’.
Spanish translation
Lo enterré
Lo enterré,
hace mucho tiempo.
Lo enterré,
debajo de todos los
lugares que visitamos juntos.
Lo enterré,
debajo de un árbol que
daba sombra por su casa.
Lo enterré,
debajo del mercado.
Lo enterré,
en playa Vicente.
Lo enterré,
debajo de un cerro.
Lo enterré.
Y lo arranqué de mis
entrañas.
Lo enterré,
en una tumba.
Murió dentro
de mi corazón.
Su recuerdo
se desvaneció
con el tiempo.
¡Ya no duele!
Se murió,
hace mucho tiempo.
Ya no siento
melancolía.
El viento
lo arrastró.
Las olas del mar
lo arrastraron.
Ese fue su final.
Y yo,
ya no lloro como
antaño tiempo.
Reading of the poem in Sótera Cruz's own voice found here.
The jury was comprised of the Chiapanecan writer Balam Rodrigo and the Mazahua writer Susana Bautista Cruz.
About this piece:
Written in Diidxazá/Zapotec and Spanish, the poem “Bichache’” or “I buried him” recreates a luminous absence, maybe that of love, and leaves clues as to what is no longer there. The poem moves through a symbolic geography: the tree, the hill, Vicente Beach, and finally the voice’s own territory, the body. This poem enunciates, says without saying, creates, and recreates powerful images that sustain the poem’s structure, and give it rhythm.