Al lado de una roca se encontraba el cuerpo de Ángel, minúsculas gotas de lluvia se deslizaban por su cara mientras un halo de vida se paseaba por su delgadez. El pantalón rasgado dejaba ver algunos raspones, su corazón palpitaba pausadamente, un leve susurro salía de su boca semiabierta: Bendición, mamá.
Next to a rock lay Angel's body, tiny raindrops slid down his face while a halo of life wandered across his thinness. The torn pants showed some scratches, his heart was beating slowly, a faint whisper came out of his half-open mouth: Blessing, mom.
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Otra noche sin dormir, Ángel se sienta en la cama con la mirada perdida. Permanece allí hasta que la luz solar se cuela por una rendija de la ventana. Vuelve en sí, pero el torbellino de imágenes sigue en su cabeza. No recuerda cuando la cotidianidad se volvió asfixiante. Se debate entre ir a trabajar o renunciar. Su juventud agoniza y siente que la ciudad le aborrece.
Another sleepless night, Angel sits up in bed staring blankly. He remains there until sunlight streams through a crack in the window. He comes to, but the whirlwind of images is still in his head. He can't remember when the daily routine became suffocating. He is torn between going to work or quitting. His youth is dying and he feels that the city abhors him.
Las redes sociales presentaban el emigrar como única salida, tantos relatos y caras risueñas que hablaban sobre cambios de vida en el exterior le convencieron de marcharse. Con algo de ropa y el dinero que pudo conseguir tras vender sus pertenencias, salió de su casa de madrugada rumbo al muelle. Consideraba preferible asumir el riesgo de lanzarse a la aventura a ser esclavo de su realidad.
Social networks presented emigration as the only way out, so many stories and smiling faces talking about life changes abroad convinced him to leave. With some clothes and the money he could get after selling his belongings, he left his house in the early hours of the morning for the pier. He considered it preferable to take the risk of adventure rather than be a slave to his reality.
Su vigor le concedía esperanzas mientras su sensatez permanece en pausa. El bote se desplaza vía Trinidad y Tobago junto a otras personas que también desean salir del país. Ya su mamá debería estar leyendo la carta que dejó sobre la mesa del comedor, Ángel podía escuchar los latidos en su garganta, respiraba profundo para evitar pensar en un naufragio. Al llegar a su primer destino, se embarcó en otro bote a Nicaragua, para entonces la idea de regresar aparecía de forma intermitente, por más rápido y barato que sea ir por mar, ahora quisiera estar en un autobús con ruta a Colombia para enfrentar al Darién.
His vigor gave him hope while his sanity remains on hold. The boat travels via Trinidad and Tobago with other people who also wish to leave the country. By now his mother should be reading the letter she left on the dining room table, Angel could hear the throbbing in his throat, breathing deeply to avoid the thought of shipwreck. Arriving at his first destination, he boarded another boat to Nicaragua, by then the idea of returning appeared intermittently, as fast and cheap as it would be to go by sea, now he would like to be on a bus en route to Colombia to face the Darien.
La odisea marítima de catorce horas no luce emocionante para Ángel, otros viajeros ilegales le acompañan, ninguno le transmitía tranquilidad. Siente hambre y sed, sensaciones que se ocultan detrás de la incertidumbre de no saber dónde pasaría la noche. La logística sugerida por internet no contemplaba anochecer en un paraje desconocido sino en Isla de Maíz. Pensar en su madre, las carencias y lo que haría para revertir su situación al llegar a Norteamérica mantenía viva la esperanza. El bote apagó sus motores y se aproximó a una orilla desconocida, a un muelle clandestino.
The fourteen-hour maritime odyssey does not look exciting for Angel, other illegal travelers accompany him, none of them transmit tranquility. He feels hungry and thirsty, sensations that are hidden behind the uncertainty of not knowing where he would spend the night. The logistics suggested by the internet did not contemplate nightfall in an unknown place but in Isla de Maíz. Thinking about his mother, the shortages and what he would do to reverse his situation when he arrived in North America kept hope alive. The boat turned off its engines and approached an unknown shore, a clandestine dock.
No sabía dónde estaba, las imágenes que concibió antes del viaje no se parecían a lo que estaba viendo. El bote carecía de sistema de navegación y radio, además, nadie les esperaba para un trasbordo. Sintió que había perdido su dinero y su camino verde se volvió gris. El capitán hizo descender al grupo, advirtiendo que llegaron a su destino y caminando unos minutos por un sendero de tierra encontrarían un autobús que les llevaría hasta Bluefields.
He did not know where he was, the images he had conceived before the trip did not resemble what he was seeing. The boat lacked a navigation system and radio, besides, no one was waiting for them for a transfer. He felt he had lost his money and his green road turned gray. The captain lowered the group, warning that they had arrived at their destination and walking a few minutes down a dirt path they would find a bus that would take them to Bluefields.
Algo en la mirada de sus acompañantes le indicaba que no todos eran migrantes, malas sensaciones se apoderaron de su ser, tenía ganas de llorar y de correr. Cuando volteó, el bote se había ido y apenas siete de las nueve personas que descendieron a tierra permanecían a su alrededor.
Something in the look of his companions indicated to him that not all of them were migrants, bad feelings took over his being, he felt like crying and running. When he turned around, the boat was gone and only seven of the nine people who had gone ashore remained around him.
No sabe cuánto tiempo transcurrió, venía soñando despierto cuando un disparo de escopeta lo devolvió a la realidad. Otra detonación, esta vez más cerca, le impulsó a correr en la oscuridad, escuchaba gritos y súplicas, estaban robando a los viajeros. El tercer disparo le hizo entrar en pánico porque los alaridos dieron paso al silencio. Su sueño americano estaba herido de muerte. Las piernas le temblaban, se desprendió de su bolso, lo dejó en medio del camino e intentó huir.
He doesn't know how much time passed, he was daydreaming when a shotgun blast brought him back to reality. Another detonation, this time closer, prompted him to run in the darkness, he heard screams and pleas, the travelers were being robbed. The third shot sent him into a panic as the screams gave way to silence. His American dream was mortally wounded. His legs trembled, he threw off his bag, left it in the middle of the road and tried to flee.
La ira se apoderó de sí, ahora rodaba cuesta abajo por un terreno pedregoso. Abrió y cerró sus ojos varias veces, escuchó otras detonaciones, no podía moverse. Permanecía tendido boca abajo, apenas podía ladear su rostro para respirar. Después de una larga pausa, pudo divisar que el bote regresaba, dos hombres que le acompañaron en el viaje se dirigían al muelle cargando con el equipaje de los migrantes. Comenzaba a llover.
Anger took hold of him, now he was rolling downhill on a rocky terrain. He opened and closed his eyes several times, heard other detonations, could not move. He lay on his stomach, barely able to tilt his face to breathe. After a long pause, he could see that the boat was returning, two men who had accompanied him on the trip were heading to the dock carrying the migrants' luggage. It was beginning to rain.
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✓Texteo traducido con DeepL.
✓Text translated with DeepL.