El amor [English translation]

Love is a beam of refracted light;

A brief moment of peace, a faith that awakens.

A buzzing sound in the air, a lost point in the fog;

An outline, a shadow, a pause, a long wait.

Love is a soft noise that creeps closer...

A sharp sound in the distance, a light breeze,

A voice that breaks the silence, the scent of peppermint;

A hereafter, a "maybe", a single time, a purpose.

Love begins to sprout between the air and the soil

And it can be touched and felt and there are some who can see it;

And it wakes you up and makes you think of It

And it beckons you slowly, caressing your skin.

Love hypnotizes you, it makes you dream

And you dream and succumb and you let yourself be taken.

And it moves you inside and it makes you a better person

And it drives you forward and it defeats and drags you down.

And, suddenly, it lifts you, it throws you out, it burns you...

It brings light into your soul, it lights a fire in your veins

And it makes you scream, as you feel that you're burning to death:

It dissolves you, it evaporates you, it obliterates you, it creates you!

And it makes you travel beyond time

Across the centuries of countless universes

And it lets you reach God's glory, and it gives you the whole earth

And it looks at you, understands you and then, it thinks and thinks!

And, suddenly, love is the light of a flame

That starts to fade and it falters and it goes out completely...

It is a small island lost amidst the fog;

It's a droplet, it's intangible, a stain, a grimace.

Love is a dry leaf that falls on the ground;

An indeterminate point at sea, a mist that rises...

It weighs down on your soul, it's a sun that disappears

An inquiry, a brief second, cognizance, a complaint.

Love starts to descend step by step

With its fists clenched and a languid demeanour.

It asks you who you are so that you will know

That it barely knows you; what do you want from It?

Love mocks you, it laughs at you

While you stand there in shock, completely speechless.

And you wish you could go after it and say "no";

Beg for It to stay, to come back to you, for it was all a mistake!

Love does away with your great plans.

It tears you apart, breaks you down, rips you out, it crushes you

And it turns you into that person you never wanted to be

And it forces you to be evil and it makes you feel like shit.

And it casts you down, on your knees, into the deepest ring of hell

And it rips your soul out and it stomps on your body

And, when the desire to go back into the Void suffocates you,

Love stops, looks at you and feels compassion...

• Artist:Yolandita Monge
• Album:Sueños (1983)