Carta – Bilingual Lyrics Spanish/English

• By: Silvana Estrada

Lyrics & Translation

Dive into the poetic beauty of the Spanish language with Silvana Estrada's 'Carta'. This song is perfect for learners who want to explore expressive, emotional vocabulary and the soft, melodic cadence of Mexican folk-pop, making it a soulful gateway to understanding the nuance of intimacy in Spanish.

[English]

I know that you are free to leave, just as you are to stay

Until we refine our gestures and forget about language

That a look is enough to say that I love you

That a sigh is enough to decipher your fears

Maybe that's why you leave, maybe that's why you come back

Because of the unbearable new seriousness that terrifies us

That's why we keep forgetting about loneliness

But the thing is, when we leave, we both look back

And it may be true that one day I will also leave

That love doesn't last a century and the river doesn't flow backward

And they might be wrong, and fear might play us badly

And to spare ourselves the pain, the wind might leave us behind

Ah and ah, uh-uh

I know you'll surely find a kiss that tastes the same

As my lips that now name you quietly so as not to face the truth

...

That I'm proposing a deal to you because I can't take it anymore

With this constant attempt to run away only to come back

I propose we look at each other slowly and make our skin our home

To run away under the open sky and remake our idea of the sea

To reinvent time, to leave our weapons at peace

To give meaning to the movement of a step that doesn't go backward

And it may be true that one day I will also leave

That love doesn't last a century and the river doesn't flow backward

And they might be wrong, and fear might play us badly

And to spare ourselves the pain, the wind might leave us behind

And it may be true that one day I will also leave

That love doesn't last a century and the river doesn't flow backward

And they might be wrong, and fear might play us badly

And to spare ourselves the pain, the wind might leave us behind

...

Leave us behind

Leave us behind

Mmmh...

...

[Spanish]

Yo sé que eres libre de irte, como también de quedarte

Hasta que afinemos gestos y olvidarnos del lenguaje

Que baste con la mirada para decir que te quiero

Que baste con un suspiro para descifrar tus miedos

Quizá por eso te vas, quizá por eso regresas

Por la nueva seriedad insoportable que nos aterra

Por eso este mantenerle olvido a la soledad

Pero es que cuando nos vamos los dos volteamos atrás

Y puede que eso sea cierto y un día tambien me iré

Que el amor no dura un siglo y el río no corre al revés

Y puede que se equivoquen, y el miedo nos juegue mal

Y por ahorrarnos dolores el viento nos deje atrás

Ah y ah, uh-uh

Yo sé que seguro encuentras un beso que sepa igual

A mis labios que ahora te nombran ca'ditos pa' no afrontar

Que yo te propongo un trato porque ya no puedo más

Con este constante intento de huir para regresar

Propongo mirarnos lento y hacer de la piel hogar

Fugarnos a cielo abierto y rehacer nuestra idea del mar

Volver a inventar el tiempo, dejar las armas en paz

Dar sentido al movimiento de un paso que no va atrás

Y puede que eso sea cierto y un día tambien me iré

Que el amor no dura un siglo y el río no corre al revés

Y puede que se equivoquen, y el miedo nos juegue mal

Y por ahorrarnos dolores el viento nos deje atrás

Y puede que eso sea cierto y un día tambien me iré

Que el amor no dura un siglo y el río no corre al revés

Y puede que se equivoquen, y el miedo nos juegue mal

Y por ahorrarnos dolores el viento nos deje atrás

Nos deje atrás

Nos deje atrás

Mmmh...

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
libre libre A2	adjective - free, unrestrained
afinemos afinemos B2	verb - to tune, to refine
gestos hestos B1	noun - gestures
suspiro suspiro B2	noun - sigh
descifrar desifrar C1	verb - to decipher, to interpret
miedos miedos A1	noun - fears
seriedad seriedad B1	noun - seriousness
insoportable insoportable B2	adjective - unbearable
aterra aterra C1	verb - to terrify
soledad soledad A2	noun - loneliness
afrontar afrontar B2	verb - to face, to confront
trato trato B1	noun - deal, agreement
constante konstante B1	adjective - constant
huir uir B1	verb - to escape, to run away
hogar oar A1	noun - home
fugarnos fugar-nos B2	verb - to run away together
rehacer reaser B2	verb - to redo, to rebuild
armas armas A2	noun - weapons
movimiento movimiento A2	noun - movement

Key Grammar Structures

• Yo sé que eres libre de irte, como también de quedarte

  ➔ Adjective + 'de' + infinitive

  ➔ The construction "libre de" is used to link the adjective with an action (infinitive).

• Que baste con la mirada para decir que te quiero

  ➔ Subjunctive mood in a subordinate clause

  ➔ The verb "baste" is in the present subjunctive, expressing a wish or requirement.

• Quizá por eso te vas, quizá por eso regresas

  ➔ Adverbial expression of probability

  ➔ "Quizá" indicates uncertainty or a hypothesis about the subject's actions.

• Y puede que eso sea cierto

  ➔ Phrasal structure of probability + Subjunctive

  ➔ "Puede que" triggers the use of the subjunctive mood ("sea") to express possibility.

• Yo sé que seguro encuentras un beso que sepa igual

  ➔ Relative clause with Subjunctive for unknown/indefinite objects

  ➔ "Que sepa" uses the subjunctive because the "kiss" is hypothetical/unspecified.

• Que yo te propongo un trato porque ya no puedo más

  ➔ Idiomatic construction of inability

  ➔ "No poder más" is an idiom meaning "cannot take it anymore".

• Propongo mirarnos lento y hacer de la piel hogar

  ➔ Infinitives as the direct object of a verb

  ➔ The verbs "mirarnos" and "hacer" act as the content (direct object) of what is proposed.

• Dar sentido al movimiento de un paso que no va atrás

  ➔ Relative clause with negative polarity

  ➔ "Que no va atrás" functions as an adjective phrase modifying "paso" with a negative verb.