A Secret Second Post

The opposite of the narrator removing themselves from the narrative

Hello all,

I hope you’ve been enjoying our start into Ante-Purgatory so far. Today happens to be my birthday, so I wanted to send out something extra to mark the occasion. I unfortunately can’t read or speak Italian, but I do read and speak Spanish, and one of my favorite Spanish poems is the short but sweet “¿Qué es poesía?” by Gustavo Adolfo Bécquer from his Rimas. I’ll include the original Spanish first, and then a translation courtesy of this website.

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¿Qué es poesía?

¿Qué es poesía?, dices, mientras clavas

en mi pupila tu pupila azul,

¡Qué es poesía! ¿Y tú me lo preguntas?

Poesía... eres tú.

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What is poetry?

What is poetry, you say, while

your blue eyes sink deep into mine.

What is poetry? You ask me this?

Poetry... is you.

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And so we continue. ¡Adelante!