La Mamancy [English translation]

Up, up, sun go up.

I found my heart,

on the shadow of my mother

under a sky made of cacti 1.

It was the time of bewilderment,

of following the sun's trails.

Up, up, my heaven, up

where the color got made.

From her hands I saw the birth

of the crafts of the laurel

and a whisper from the loom

that circled around my childhood.

Up,up, my dream, up.

My heart woke up

because sometimes it hurt

with both our sadnesses.

She was there, nurturing me,

little mother, my little mother, 2

she saw me grow up by her warmth,

lonelinesses put together,

and her roots inside my roots

always come back to sing.

She was there, nurturing me,

little mother, my little mother.

1. "Cardón" is the common name of the Echinopsis atacamensis cactus species, which grows in Argentina, Bolivia and Chile 2. "Mamá", "mama", "mami", "mamita" and another myriad of derivatives depending on the country and the zone are affectionate ways of referring to mothers (the "neutral" word is "madre")