El Abuelo

The grandfather one day
When he was very young
There in his Galicia
He looked at the horizon
And thought that another path
Perhaps existed
And to the northern wind
Which was an old friend
He spoke of his hurry
He showed his hands
That gentle and strong
Were empty
And the wind told him
Build your life
Beyond the seas
Beyond Galicia

And the grandfather one day
On an old ship
He left Spain
The grandfather one day
Like so many others
With so much hope
The beloved image
Of his old village
And of his mountains
He took engraved
Deep within his soul
When the old ship
Took him away from Spain

The grandfather one day
Climbed onto the cart
Of climbing life
He grasped the plow
Fertilized the land
And time passed
And he fought serenely
To plant the tree
That he so desired
And the grandfather one day
Cried beneath the tree
That finally bloomed
He cried with joy
When he saw his hands
Which a little older
Were not empty

And the grandfather then
When I was a child
He spoke to me about Spain
About the northern wind
About the old village
And its mountains
He liked so much
To remember the things
That I carry engraved
Deep within my soul
That sometimes quietly
Without saying a word
He spoke to me about Spain

The grandfather one day
When he was very old
There in Galicia
He took my hand
And I realized
That he was dying
And then he said to me
With very little strength
And with less hurry
Promise me, son
That to the old village
You will go someday
And to the northern wind
You will say that his friend
To a new land
He gave his life

And the grandfather one day
Fell asleep
Without returning to Spain
The grandfather one day
Like so many others
With so much hope
And over time the grandfather
I saw him in the villages
I saw him in the mountains
In every morning
And in every legend
Through all the paths
That I walked of Spain