[John Whitworth]

The Spanish Ambassador’s Daughter

The Spanish ambassador’s daughter
has taken the room next to mine.
Oh, honor unending!
The thought of befriending
near-royalty seems near-divine!
I hope that the other girls spot her
conversing with me. What a coup!
Tener amiguita
tan fina, bonita,
y rica...I’ll seem like that, too!

The Spanish ambassador’s daughter
is surely my ticket to fame.
I’m in her good graces,
for cocktail-dress space is
the one thing my closet can claim.
She’ll visit me daily! She’s brought her
vestidos to fill mi armario.
Pues me debe favor,
which is what friends are for,
¿verdad? No quiero oír lo contrario.

The Spanish ambassador’s daughter
is juggling three majors. (Such skill!)
Compared to my neighbor’s,
old Hercules’ labors
were nothing. Through sheer force of will
she carries a courseload to totter
a Kinsey, a Kant, and a Keynes:
la psicología,
la filosofía,
y la economía. What brains!

The Spanish ambassador’s daughter
is juggling three boyfriends as well.
It seems that she studies
with each of these buddies,
and that’s why her grades so excel.
Yet none of her trio has caught her
off guard, at that breathtaking pace:
la cena con Uno;
con Dos, el desayuno;
y siempre el almuerzo con Trés.

The Spanish ambassador’s daughter
can ransack my closet whenever.
(It’s now her dominion.)
She’ll ask my opinion
of this or that outfit, but never
can chat, because someone has bought her
a ticket to something—a show...
un baile...un juego...
Con <<Bien...¡hasta luego!>>
se va. We’re like sisters, you know.

The Spanish ambassador’s daughter
is making me feel a bit steamed.
I thought she would take me
to parties and make me
accepted in circles I’d dreamed
of moving in. Really, I thought her
affection would have to be worth
un puño de joya,
mas se desarolla
así: I’ve a fistful of earth.

The Spanish ambassador’s daughter
got kicked out of college this week!
It seems that her smitten
young novios had written
her midterm exams. She would speak
not a word when she came by and got her
lamés. (Adiós, Tutankhamen!)
Su crimen...¡profundo!
¡Subirse en el mundo
por otros! We’d nothing in common.