My translation of one of Rosa María Roffiel's short story, These are things that I only tell myself / Esas son cosas que solo yo me cuento is now online at Palabras Errantes: http://www.palabraserrantes.com/these-are-things-that-i-only-tell-myself/
One morning we happened to bump into one another in Coyoacán and we sat down to have a coffee together. It was the first time you talked about yourself. Through the steam of the cappuccino I glimpsed a picture of you as a little girl, a sad girl, a lonely girl, a girl with a dead mother, a stepmother and wimp for a father. You spewed out your story, raging, your cheeks blazing, your hands knotted tightly together. I stored away each and every one of your sentences, taking possession of your past. I wanted to squeeze your shoulder, to hold one of your hands; to kiss this little girl who was pouring out the long story of her short life. But I did not do any of those things; I sat in my chair, not moving a muscle.
The story is taken from: El para siempre dura una noche, pp. 123-28, Editorial Sentido Contrario, México, D.F: 1999.
About the author: Rosa María Roffiel was born in Veracruz, Mexico in 1945. Her book *Amora*, published in 1989 and still circulating is considered the first lesbian-feminist novel in Mexico. She is also the author of *Corramos libres ahora*, a collection of poems and *El para siempre dura una noche*, a book of short stories.