JUAN

Prison, of course,

    no matter that the bracelets

    should have been

    mine

A kind man comes

    and sets me free

    he shares his food

    and lets me sleep

    in the stable

    with horses,

    dreaming

    of wild manes

    and flying hooves

Soon La Marquesa comes to visit

    and the kind man has to put me

    in chains

Pretend, he whispers,

    pretend you have suffered the whip

    and the work

    and the weeping

    she expects

When nine days have passed

    she brings me a new set of elegant clothes

How weary I am of being rescued

    by my tormentor!

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