El Proyecto de la literatura puertorriqueña

I have the 9 to 5 stapled to my nape

and a few extra hours stain

my tie as I roam the halls—

these empty hours—of the supermarket.

Perhaps the obscene abundance on the shelves,

the false florescence of the light and the impossible color

of fruit and vegetables is a refuge,

an inadequate escape.

But I have not seen the sun all day and the city

lights cancel the stars and tonight

there is a new moon.

(where I live not even a lamp awaits my return)

If I am lucky the cashier will want me

to have a good night and the manager will

remember my name.

Translator's Note

Every word in a Mario Belaval poem is important, which is why this translation was difficult despite its deceptive simplicity. The last two stanzas were particularly challenging. "Luz" here means the light in one room or a lamp. I chose the latter because it seemed to capture the loneliness of the light in English. I also added "my return" because "for me to come back" felt clunky in English. Capturing the flirtatiousness of the final stanza was also a challenge. The cashier "wishes/ me a good night". but in Spanish the line break allows for a different reading in which the cashier desires the speaker. This is why I translated it is "will want me/ to have a good night" even it is slightly less elegant.