Cross
My old man’s a white old man And my old mother’s black. If ever I cursed my white old man I take my curses back. If ever I cursed my black old mother And wished she were in hell, I’m sorry for that evil wish And now I wish her well. My old man died in a fine big house. My ma died in a shack. I wonder where I’m gonna die, Being neither white nor black?
Cruce
Mi viejo es un hombre blanco Y mi vieja, mujer negra. Si alguna vez maldije a mi viejo blanco Retiro mi maldición. Si a mi vieja negra llegué a maldecir Y a los infiernos la envié, Lamento ese mal deseo Y hoy le auguro todo bien. Mi viejo murió en gran casa. Mi mama en un cuchitril. Me pregunto dónde iré a morir yo, Que ni blanco ni negro soy… Translation by Patricia Bejarano Fisher
Author Information
“Langston Hughes was a central figure in the Harlem Renaissance, the flowering of black intellectual, literary, and artistic life that took place in the 1920s in a number of American cities, particularly Harlem. A major poet, Hughes also wrote novels, short stories, essays, and plays. He sought to honestly portray the joys and hardships of working-class black lives, avoiding both sentimental idealization and negative stereotypes” (Poetry Foundation)
Sources
Spanish Translation by Patricia Bejarano Fisher
Poetry Foundation. “Langston Hughes.” Poetry Foundation, Poetry Foundation, 2014, www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/langston-hughes.