>> Thank you so much, BJ, for your introduction.
It was amazing how you mixed both -- Yeah, amazing how you mixed the work of both of us,
because we never think about the connections in our work, so that's great.
But mainly, I would like to thank the Poetry Center for inviting me, or for inviting us,
to such an amazing place where from the first moment I felt so comfortable
and welcome and peaceful, mainly.
Because coming from New York, you come like completely hectic.
So you come here and it's such a relaxing and inspiring living place,
and thank you so much for having me here.
I don't know if you want to say --
>> Well, I drove here from El Paso, so I was already pretty relaxed
by the time -- Just got more relaxed.
But it's been wonderful being here.
It really has been.
And also to reconnect with Lila here in the southwest, and to talk a little bit
of our translations is always a pleasure.
So thank you for bringing us together.
>> Yes. Ok.
>> Can you hear me?
Oh, did I not turn it?
Did -- No one heard what I said right?
>> I think you have to put it here.
>> Hold on.
Can you hear me now?
Oh, it's this?
Can you hear -- No, you know, it wasn't turned on actually.
>> You are so relaxed.
>> I said something really brilliant, you just -
>> We could hear you.
>> Sorry about that.
>> Ok. So we'll be reading from Mauve Sea-Orchids, Malvas orquídeas del mar.
Cuando la flor se abre al pensamiento inquieto de las cosas,
un lenguaje celular sale de las porciones más recónditas en una concatenación de sonidos
materializados en procesos químicos que no pertenecen, en esencia,
al cerebro si no la conexión entre las terminaciones y los tejidos.
La emoción, como un cable que se encabrita en las noches de tormenta,
emite chisporroteos peligrosos, por ser lo inanimado, de repente anguila luminosa,
dragón fosforescente en la noche azulada y látigo de luz.
En ese proceso de sinapsis, en donde el destello renueva las señales,
los sonidos de lo inorgánico cumplen su función renovadora.
Agapantos, rabdomante, planetario, molecular, reticulado, cavernoso.
Cadenas de sonidos que estampan el milagro de transformar una sustancia en otra.
>> I'm going to read Mónica de la Torre's translations first
and later we'll come to mine, so this is Monica de la Torre's.
When the flower opens its thoughts to the restlessness of things,
a cellular language bursts from the most distant portions of a chain of sounds materialized
in chemical processes that, in essence, do not involve the brain but the connection
between the ends and the tissues.
Emotion, like a cable charged in an evening storm, emits dangerous sparks
as the inanimate suddenly becomes electric eel, phosphorescent dragon in the cerulean night,
whip of light in that synaptic process in which the spark renovates.
The signals the sounds of the inorganic fulfill their reinvigorating function.
Honeysuckle, water diviner, planetary, molecular, entwined, [? cavernous ?].
Chains of sounds, imprinting the miracle of the conversion of one substance into another.