When the Time Came

When the time came, they did what they had to do.

They witnessed attempts and failure.

They picked up her seventy-five years
and taking a few scraps of masonry
went on to complete the task.

His eyes saw his mother’s mussed hair.

His eyes saw his mother’s burning lips.
His eyes saw his mother body and soul,
the only one he had had
and would always have.

Traslated from Spanish by Rowena Hill