Pena Mulata

Mulatto sorrow
That breaks free
Under the robe
Of embroidery

Pain of the milonga
That barely lingers
With a sad complaint
The night of April

Like a mirror
Polished and old
Shines the skin
Of the dancer

Scarlet carnation
That reveals desire
Trembling in the robe
Its crimson stain

Your mother died of love
In the Drum Neighborhood
She opened paths of absence
With the knife of a mugger

Your father died in the shadows
To avenge that betrayal
Mulatto, your star was born
In a sky of mourning

Light of madness
Shines in the dark
Hard gaze
Of the dancer

Alcohol of longing
That to the rhythm of the dance
Heats up revenge
Under the mane

Poor dark-skinned girl
A serene
Crimson flower
Sprouted in your veins

Resentment on the prowl
Brush of spite
Painting on your chest
The crimson stain

Your mother died of love
White soul and coal skin
Mulatto, her lips were
The resentment of a mugger
Your father died in the shadows
To avenge that betrayal
Mulatto, your star was born
In a sky of mourning

Mulatto sorrow
That breaks free
Under the robe
Of embroidery

Pain of the milonga
That barely lingers
With a sad complaint
The night of April