"Hey, you're going without me!" "Don't leave me, come back!" "Master, take me with you,..." "I'm not a child afraid of the storm or his old soul!" "That child is going to drown!" "Help!" "Throw me a rope!" "Toss the rope to that kid, man, go on!" "~ Damn it!" "~ At your orders, Captain." "Look how stubborn you are, boy!" "You'll see what's good for you, since you wanted to come along..." "What are you laughing about, you old wolves?" "At my age you sucked your fingers." "Go on, sit down, come on, sit down." "We're going to sea, let's see some effort, boys." "Here we go!" "Put your backs into it!" "¤ Come here, my Rosario,... ¤ come here, Rosario girl,... ¤ I feel very alone without love and without protection." "¤ Look how good a brother I am, Rosario, my Rosario." "¤ Oh yes, oh no, oh my Rosario, my sprig of scent." "¤ Oh yes, oh no, let's go Rosario close together, just the two of us." "¤ It blows, the little wind sways you." "¤ It blows, come, Rosario, let me see you,... ¤ I want to see you coming, I want to see you getting here,... ¤ since you're crazy about me,... ¤ and I, Rosario, even more for you." "¤ You're crazy about me, and I, Rosario, even more for you." "¤ It blows, come, Rosario, let me see you." "¤ It blows, the little wind sways you. ¤" "Here." "Until tomorrow, this certifies that I've brought you good luck." "Come on, boys, pick up those nets there,..." "I threw it already, so get the fish." "Here comes your grandson, properly loaded." "Grandmother, how are you?" "You see..." "Oh, these old legs!" "As a storm threatened, they refused to carry on." "That's why I didn't go wait for you and I've been afraid for you." "Don't worry." "Look, there's sardines and everything." "I mean, if you're still not too old to be able to cook." "Oh, what do you think?" "!" "Give them here, I'll cook them so tasty as to make you lick your fingers." "He was lucky today." "The sea was calm and the fish plentiful." "The boss gave me a bit of money for my trip to America." "At this rate I'll do it when I'm older than you are,... and that's saying something." "Quiet, quiet, your father's annoyed me...!" "Sometimes I think I'll go to Heaven without seeing him." "That ingrate, he never writes!" "When did he pose for this picture as a bullfighter?" "I've never seen it." "I found it today, while digging sad memories." "How we enjoyed that day at the festival in the port!" "Your mother was still alive then, and you were very small." "Was he a bullfighter?" "He was crazy, he liked it a lot, when he was a kid he used to jump the gates!" "What are gates?" "They're part of fencing for livestock." "He fought by moonlight." "What a disappointment!" "But since he was so caring a son and loved your mother so much, he paid attention to us and gave it up..." "And why did he leave for America if he was so caring?" "Because he wanted to give her the best in the world and went to make his fortune." "Fishing provides very little." "He left to become a bullfighter, I bet, and he left us on our own." "And he didn't see my mother die." "If he'd been here..." "Shut up, kid, don't talk about your dad like that!" "Your father's a good man." "When the misfortune happened, surely something got into him... because as time passes he writes less, this way he'll take my life away." "Jesus, the sardines!" "Charcoal." "Now you ought to eat them like that, for having distracted me." "Is there a fire, Grandma?" "Is there a letter from my father?" "How's your rheumatism?" "Fuck the rheumatism!" "Where's the letter?" "Well, it's a letter, all right, but..." "Look, Grandma, take it." "Returned,... like the last two I sent." "Maybe he's changed his mailing address." "Without telling us a thing!" "He's forgotten about us." "He doesn't send any money, nor do we have news about him." "There's no reason to worry, woman." "Keep that chin up!" "You remember Paca, who spent over a year without knowing about her husband who left for Venezuela,... and then one fine day he showed up with a car as long as the distance from here to the lighthouse." "One day, when you least expect it, I'll bring you a big heap of all the delayed letters from him." "OK, bye." "I'll go chase him down and bring him back." "You'll see, Grandma." "I'll bring him to this very place." "Go on, quit crying and fry more sardines." "And you'll know who I am!" ""I'm going to America to fetch my dad." ""I'll bring him here to see you and end your suffering." ""I'm taking his portrait as a bullfighter." ""I won't be late." "Goodbye, Grandma." ""Kisses, Joselito."" "Excuse me, Virgin, but there's this uncle..." "I mean, my father,..." "Well, it's not right that Grandmother suffer so much, so we have to do something." "I'm going to America to get him, like it or not." "You have to help me, OK?" "Take care of my grandmother and tell her to wait for us, that I'll be right back." "To me, hail the boat!" "Help!" "Help!" "Hey, on the boat!" "Help!" "Help!" "Ahoy the boat!" "Ahoy!" "Help!" "Help!" "Help!" "Help!" "Help!" "Help!" "Help me!" "Hey, bird." "You better get below decks." "You've got no papers and I don't like having trouble with the authorities." "You'll have to go back to Spain, which is the best thing for you to do, anyway." "Can't I go ashore just to ask about my father?" "No, boy, not without documents." "Besides, America is very big." "It wouldn't be easy for you to find him." ""Opinion", "The Sun", "Universal", News, News!" ""Opinion", "The Sun", "Universal", News!" ""Opinion"!" "~ What do you want with me?" "~ Who, me?" "Yes, you, you've been following me from the dock, and if you insist, I'll give you a slap." "A slap?" "That's the funniest thing I've heard yet." "Your grandmother is funny." "She was very funny." "Don't tell me that you knew her." "No, I didn't know her." "Sorry for shaking you." "Now, if you were my size, you'd be toast." "I'd have thrown you to the ground and you'd be bleeding from the nose,... but like that, looking like a mouse..." "If you were my size you'd get black eyes and your guts dripping out." "Well, don't be angry." "We can be friends." "Here's my hand." "Shake, then, and as we say here, be dead the one who betrays." "Since we're friends, hell, what we have belongs to both, so we have to sell these." "What's your name?" "Joselito." "You?" "~ Pulgarcito, that's what everyone calls me." "~ Like Tom Thumb, the one in the tale?" "~ Yeah, for being "chaparro"." "~ For being what?" "For being chubby, for being short, for being small,... and as a newborn they say I was even worse, this size I was." "What's up with you?" "Nothing, I though it was a sailor." "The one you're looking for went that way." "I mean, the one you're running from." "I don't run away from anyone!" "Tell me the truth: are you a pirate or a smuggler?" "Neither, I'm a fisherman." "Don't mess with me, I saw you get out of the box where you were hidden!" "And so what?" "We're friends, right?" "Tell me your secrets and I'll tell you mine." "I had to escape because the captain would not let me leave the ship." "Grownups like to mess things up and they built up a "relajo" in no time at all." "A what?" "A total cluster-fuck, boy, a mess!" "Oh, I know, a mess." "That's how they are." "The trouble is that we grow up and become like them." "I won't ever be a man." "The Captain!" "Hide!" "Here's why I'm here:" "I have to find my father." "Look, here's his photo, in case you should see him." "Here fathers are older." "There, too." "My father must have grown mustaches by now." "You got a pencil?" "Yeah, here you go." "That's right." "If I had a mustache, I'd look just like him." "~ Look, "pícale"!" "~ What did you say?" "Already my guts are rumbling." "Don't you see it?" "~ Hi, Mother Chanta." "~ Hi, Pulga." "Don't get fresh with me, how you call me "Flea"?" "Pulgarcito!" "Oh, that's another story!" "Give me two fried cakes, two salads, and two tacos." "With lots of chili." "And give this guy whatever he wants." "~ What would you like, boy?" "~ I'll have what he has." "Well, after lunch we will begin to look for my father." "And where do we look?" "Here in America, indeed, where else?" "But we're not in America, we're in the port of Veracruz." "Those of us from around here are called "Jarochos", America's where the gringos live." "Gringos?" "What are they?" "Some guys who arrive in huge boats,... and they wear very strange shirts, like gardens." "And why do they come?" "I don't know." "They drink a lot and take heaps of photos,... nobody understands them, they don't understand anybody, and then they leave." "Oh, I know!" "There are some of them in my homeland, too." "They carry money worth tons of pesetas." "My dad doesn't live in an America like you describe." "We're in Mexico here." "Mexico, Mexico, that's it, that's where my dad is!" "In his letters, he said he lived in a big beautiful city,... much bigger than my home town." "I know where that is: there,... and there are trains and trucks which come and go." "The only bad things is that in Mexico there shouldn't be water,... because everyone comes here to swim." "Can we go?" "Sure." "At best I'll find a father...or a mother, anyway." "Or if worse comes to worst, a wife, since I'm tired of living alone." "You live by yourself?" "Well, not exactly alone." "I live with Federico." "Here they are, nice and hot." "I'm burning, I'm dying!" "This is a fire!" "That's chili, and it's not all that hot." "You can't handle anything." "Look." "This is a pepper, but a pepper from the devil." "Water, water!" "We'll go to Chencho." "He changes trains, and for sure there'll be some weird moves." "I got it already "eclachado", kiddo." "I don't understand you at all." "What, in Spain they don't speak Spanish?" "I thought so, but now I'm not so sure." "Either we speak it there or you speak it here." "~ And your brother, where's he?" "~ What brother?" "~ Federico." "~ Federico's my son." "~ Wow, at your age?" "~ Sure." "Look, there he is." "He's really very nice, but how come he's your son?" "Yes, my son." "I asked him if he wanted to be and he said yes." "Like me, he doesn't have any brothers or anything." "But does he speak?" "I'm a fisherman and I know fish." "They don't say anything." "He talks to me privately." "I could become his uncle." "Go on, ask him." "Not now, let him get used to you, because he's a bit shy." "Look how red he's become!" "~ Come on." "~ We're taking him with us?" "Sure, do you think I'm a bad father like those who abandon their kids?" "Don't worry, mine left me, too, because I think I had a dad,... but I don't even have a picture of him, unlike you." "But I knew my mom." "She was very pretty." "One day she went to Heaven." "Mine also went there." "I'm sure they are friends like you and I are, and so they're not alone." "This is my house and your house." "Let's leave the newspapers here, we've sold enough." "~ And your stuff, what are you going to do with that?" "~ Leave some of it here." "Wow, this is why I was so warm!" "I did so as to carry less bulky a bag." "I thought you were so overweight." "You're dressed like a small child." "And what've you got there?" "A knife." "I've never seen such a good blade." "It was my grandfather's, then my father's, and now it's mine." "One day it'll be my son's." "What, you're not too big to play with this?" "My dad made it for me, he used to craft nice stuff with the knife,... and now that the "Seagull" is gone, the rattle's all I've got left of him." "Grandma says she used to sing to me while sounding it and I'd fell asleep." "Shut up, Canary, and let's boogie, we have to hurry to reach Chencho." "Hurry!" "I could hide you, but..." "Is this enough?" "Oh, not even for one of the two!" "And this money, where did you get it?" "From Spain, they're pesetas." "But here only Mexican pesos circulate,... so according to the current rates you should pay me... two for tax, and excise duty, two, four, eight, thirty two... and two for tourism tax, 34." "10 pesos each, or no trip, because it's very risky." "Let's go for it." "What?" "I have friends." "Chencho." "What's up?" "We'll look for the money." "Take these seven pesos and take care of Federico, so we're not so loaded." "We'll be here before the train leaves." "Follow me." "Hang in there, buddy, your lyrics seller just arrived, the best song seller ever." "I have nice songs." "I've got "The Swallow",..." ""The Huapango Bullfighter", and "Jarocho Jarabe", "Crazy Jarabe", which is the same thing,... but up tempo." "10 centavos, friend, 10, 10, 10 centavos,... 10 for the sheet, just 10, 10, 10, 10." "Here is your presenter who brings you songs of today:..." ""Crazy Jarabe" that you're hearing now, with its crazy up tempo,..." ""The Huapango", "La Bamba" and "Balajú"." "~ That's it." "~ What's it?" "Everything's worked out, I say." "You'll see." "¤ To sing the Jarabe, that's what I'm good at." "¤ That's what I'm good at, to sing the Jarabe,... ¤ to sing the Jarabe." "¤ To sing the Rosary, my brother, who died,... ¤ he was saintly, not a rogue like me,... ¤ to sing the rosary." "¤ Lima bud, lime bud, laurel branch." "¤ My girl, how am I supposed... ¤ to come see you, girl, if I work late everyday,... ¤ if I work very late, I come from headquarters." "It's a long time,... ¤ without seeing you." "How am I supposed, girl,... ¤ how am I supposed, girl, to love you better, girl." "¤ This is the crazy Jarabe that brings the dead back to life,... ¤ leaving their graves shaking their heads,... ¤ leaving their graves. ¤" "Nothing like travel to whet your appetite." "You're eating more than ever, Ricardo." "I've hardly eaten a thing!" "I'm not complaining...it's good that you can eat a lot and still it doesn't show." "What do you think of those small pies from Santa Eduviges?" "Take it." "Eat." "Let's go!" "Come on, eat!" "Eat, my elephant's belly!" "How nice they are!" "Take one, kiddo." "They're great!" "Oh, Ricardo, you make me afraid!" "No, no, no, no." "This can't be." "My son, your tummy is going to explode." "But it wasn't me, Mom!" "~ That wasn't you?" "~ I just ate one." "You eat everything." "You're very greedy but you blame me." "Ricardo: guff and lies to your pretty-looking mother, no, no way." "I'm not hungry." "You ate everything." "As you say." "And on getting to Mexico City I'll take you to the doctor, Ricardo, because you got a tapeworm." "You spilled Federico's water!" "Ricardo!" "Bad Ricardo, disgusting brat!" "That's inappropriate!" "~ Come on, piglet, come on!" "~ It wasn't me!" "Spoiled brat, filth!" "What's going on?" "No idea." "But they're gone, now we can unhide." "I can't explain it." "I knew you were a decent and well-brought-up child,... not like the others." "But who could have poured that water out?" "It wasn't you, wasn't it?" "Wasn't it?" "Come here, you bastards!" "Conductor!" "Conductor!" "Oh, Conductor!" "Conductor...!" "Oh, but where are you going?" "That pair of crooks were hiding here and ate my pies..." "~ Don't throw us off!" "~ Don't throw us off!" "You, on the train, don't leave us behind!" "Good thing we ate several times and aren't hungry anymore." "But I'm very sleepy." "Me, too." "At sea, you can sleep wherever you are." "At the beach, in a boat, but here, with such a bunch of vermin..." "I bet there are even wild beasts." "And if we sleep on the way, I'll tell you how our day will dawn!" "We should travel on a bit." "Maybe we'll find somewhere better." "If I fall down it'll be not because I stumbled down, but because I fell asleep." "Federico, Federico!" "Answer me, Federico." "Federico, Federico!" "If you're still there, don't leave!" "Come back, Federico." "~ Come back, Federico." "~ What's the matter, did he slip away from you?" "I saw it in a dream, when it jumped and went into the river." "You were changing the water?" "No, I swear to you I saw it in a dream." "We were both asleep." "No way, not even a dolphin could jump that far." "I saw it." "I don't know how to eat chili, Pulgarcito, but I know about fish,... and I tell you that couldn't happen." "Let's investigate." "It just couldn't have happened, you were dreaming." "It should be somewhere near." "You lit this?" "Not me." "Then someone's been here." "Federico!" "Federico!" "Federico!" "And Lord, may Your will prevail on Earth and in Heaven." "Take Federico's soul to my mother and to Pulgarcito's mother,... so they take care of him and give him some shrimp powder,... so he can be happy forever and ever, amen." "¤ Gold shines from the sand... ¤ and decorates the arena... ¤ with the olé!" "off the gate... ¤ of some woman's lips." "¤ In Spain he captivates them... ¤ by his grace and color... ¤ the applause that comes alive... ¤ for the Spanish bullfighter." "¤ Spanish bullfighter,... ¤ romance of courage,... ¤ Spanish bullfighter,... ¤ carnation of my homeland." "¤ Spanish bullfighter,... ¤ blood and glory of laurels... ¤ Spanish bullfighter,... ¤ on an arena covered on carnations. ¤" "Come on, relax and forget Federico, we're almost there." "¤ You are echoes of the Alhambra,... ¤ courtyard of the Guadalquivir,... ¤ beautiful spell of the Zambra,... ¤ flower that adorns the month of April." "¤ And you're a song on the wind... ¤ and you're golden like the sun,... ¤ and you're the cross of suffering,... ¤ you, my Spanish bullfighter." "¤ Spanish bullfighter,... ¤ romance of courage,... ¤ Spanish bullfighter,... ¤ carnation of my homeland." "¤ Spanish bullfighter,... ¤ blood and glory of laurels... ¤ Spanish bullfighter,... ¤ on a circle of carnations." "¤ Spanish bullfighter,... ¤ bullfighter. ¤" ""MEXICO CITY 400 km."" "El Sábalo." "Veracruz is 100 km." "~ That sounds awful." "~ Awful?" "It's terribly awful!" "If we don't get each one a father from this business, we'd better throw ourselves into the river." "The only thing we're missing now is a dog pissing on us." "Hey, is it raining?" "You're crazy, of course not." "Well, I'm wet." "That's all I needed." "This will bring us luck, you'll see." "You, what are you doing here?" "You ought to be in the capital." "They threw us off the train." "But we're not claming back the 10 pesos we gave you." "I like that: you are honest and macho since your young days." "And what about the grownups?" "You said it would cost 10 pesos to take us to Mexico City." "And I stand by that." "This very minute I'm mounting you on the very locomotive." "Come with me." "This is Mexico City, so now what?" "Keep heading to the bullring." "Which street do you prefer we to get there through?" "Let's ask someone." "That lady should know." "She looks like the wife of a picador." "~ Do you know how to pray?" "~ A little." "Well start praying, because we're lost." "Lost?" "Didn't they tell us this was the Street of the Insurgents... on the way to the bullring?" "It seems to me that you're going crazy, guy." "It's just seeing those chickens with an empty stomach." "Don't mention eating, because the Indians are going to eat us like chickens." "Do you think they're savages?" "They're dancers, silly." "In Veracruz they're always going to some fair,... and always frightening outsiders like you." "Enough jerking me around." "You know, you go one way and I'll go the other, right?" "Fine." "¤ While the heifers are in the corral... ¤ simply there for the bullfighters,... ¤ out of the ring, by the way of stones made,... ¤ a boy sitting crying, sat weeping in silence." "¤ The bullfighter wipes away his tears with his stave,... ¤ he wipes away his bullfighter tears with his stave." "¤ The night falls silent, full moon shines far away,... ¤ as they begin to accommodate the stars in the sky..." "¤ and right toward the corrals the boy is going,... ¤ he wants to fight a bull, his life is worth the price." "¤ Silently,... ¤ the watchmen are sleeping,... ¤ the bulls, the bulls in the corral are nervous." "¤ A cape in the night,... ¤ he wants to fight by moonlight." "¤ Silently. ¤" "¤ Suddenly the beautiful night sees something, and she starts crying... ¤ doves, white doves come from heaven, come down." "¤ No, not that, they're handkerchiefs, white handkerchiefs filled with tears,... ¤ falling like white frost on the boy who was agonizing." "¤ Bull, killer bull, may Hell take you!" "¤ Bull, killer bull, may Hell take you!" "¤ Silently,... ¤ the capes are crying. ¤" "Hey, Joselito, be careful!" "What are you doing here?" "How did you get in?" "~ I'm here to look for my father." "~ Who's your dad?" "My dad's a bullfighter." "Didn't you know you can't come in without permission?" "I ought to throw you two into the corrals, along with the bulls." "Let me go, let me go!" "Oh, oh, how tough you are!" "Well!" "What kind of livestock are you?" "I'm not some bull, you donkey!" "Either you dispatch him, or I will." "OK, you won." "Do you want us to be friends?" "Here's my hand." "And my friend's." "Fine, now who's your dad?" "If he's a bullfighter, I ought to know him." "His name's José Jiménez." "Here's his picture." "I came all the way from Spain to look for him." "Do you know him?" "But this is you..." "And you don't look like your dad?" "Then I look like mine, too." "Look, there!" "But I don't have a mustache." "OK, don't get angry, I don't know your father... but if you come by on Sunday maybe one of the matadors will know him... and anyway, I'll let you in for free." "Don't you like bulls?" "Sure." "Mr. Matador, I have to talk with you." "I beg you by the Virgin of Macarena." "Listen to me." "OK, kiddo, what's on your mind?" "I want you to tell me where my father is." "He's a matador like you, you understand?" "His name's José." "You'll have to tell me more." "Be right back." "Might he know your dad?" "Man, my father should be one of the best, of course he'll know him." "The guy who let us in didn't know him." "He's just some poor guy who only knows the bulls." "Kid, what were you saying?" "I want to know if you know my dad, his name's José Jiménez." "~ What did you say his name is?" "~ José Jiménez." "I've never been to the corrida." "Out in the street by the plaza plenty of times, but in here..." "I have." "The boss took me to two shows at the fair in Jerez." "~ I don't like the ones on the horses." "~ Me, neither." "~ Savages!" "~You don't know half of it!" "Why do they do that to the bull?" "I don't know, but a matador has to have laborers and picadors,... just like a general needs sergeants and privates." "But they should be good, this guy doesn't have a clue." "I wouldn't want to be a picador or a soldier, just a general." "Of course, you smarty boy --- generals don't get killed... they only get medals." "I'm going to be a pilot and a bullfighter." "I don't know yet." "I like lots of things." "You'll be my brother, and the brothers of lords don't need to work." "That I could go for." "What, you like them?" "Yes, sir, but that picador is pretty bad." "I think so, too, he hurt my bull so badly that it wouldn't fight." "My father would have thrown him away out of the plaza." "Oh, yeah, your dad...who did you say he was?" "José Jiménez, the best bullfighter in Spain." "Here I don't know." "José Jiménez..." "José Jiménez...no, I can't bring him to mind." "He came from Spain ages ago." "Maybe he doesn't work as a bullfighter in Mexico." "He came to Mexico years ago, and I've come to look for him and take him home." "Hang on, maybe my buddies..." "Hey, lads, anybody know a José Jiménez?" "~ No." "~ No, I don't think so." "Jiménez, I don't know him." "He looks just like me, except with mustaches." "He could be Ponciano Díaz." "This is nothing to joke about, the kid's looking for his father." "I'll give him a card he can take to the matadors' union tomorrow." "If his dad's a matador, they'll know where he is." "Are you his brother?" "Yes, sir, but I don't have a father or mother." "You're not Spanish, either." "I'm a Jarocho, but I met Joselito and we became brothers." "Do you guys have any money?" "What do you think?" "This is for you, kid, so you can find your father, and may the Virgin help you both." "Olé!" "Olé!" "Say "olé", man!" "~ Olé!" "~ Olé!" "~ Olé!" "~ Olé!" "Where'll we go to sleep now?" "Same as last night." "We have the money the bullfighter gave us,... we should buy some newspapers against the cold, right?" "I'll hardly go to sleep." "I'll just wait for the night to pass by so to go to the matadors' union tomorrow." "Are you sad?" "You said your boss told you it wasn't good to live like this." "I'm thinking that maybe we'll go to the matadors' union but they won't know him." "Maybe on getting here, he became a fireman or a doctor or a bricklayer... and if so, how'll I find him?" "There's someone who can help us." "Who?" "The Virgin." "Even the bullfighter said so as much." "As soon as we get up tomorrow, we'll go see the Virgin de Guadalupe." "But I don't know her and she doesn't know me." "If it were the Virgin of Macarena..." "Fool, the best in the world is the one of Guadalupe!" "But you don't know the one from Macarena." "Didn't you see they play her song even at the bullfight?" "But the one from Guadalupe is the one they pray to." "Music is better than prayer,... that's why when there's a party at the churches they play and sing." "But at the bulls they didn't sing anything to the Virgin." "You're a pure storyteller." "But they played it, you donkey!" "Didn't you hear what they played when they did their march?" "Olé!" "Olé, the Virgin de la Macarena!" "But we're going to the Guadalupe one, right?" "Let's go." "Virgin de Guadalupe, you already know me,..." "I'm your son, Pulgarcito." "This is Joselito, and since we're already brothers,..." "I think you can be his mother, too,... just like I became Federico's dad." "Now YOU talk to her." "Hello, Madam Doña Virgin de Guadalupe,... this is the first time I've seen you, and even if it's impolite of me..." "I want to ask you something." "If it's true that you're like my Virgin de la Macarena,... you should already know what's up with me." "Yeah, that's it, the thing about my father." "I ask you because you're this kid's mother,... and since he speaks wonders of you... and the truth that since my Virgin is out there in Spain, she won't hear me,... so I'm asking you to help me find him,... then I'll make myself your son, and this kid, let him make himself son of my father." "Yeah, man, you're boring her." "Now we have to present her with the candles." "OK, what do we do now?" "Start traveling and hope the Virgin'll do something for us." "Look, brother, "Novedades"!" "I tout this newspaper in Veracruz." "Come on, Joselito, I just got a great idea." "What idea, to sell newspapers?" "See the editor, he's a Jarocho like me." "He's so small?" ""Jarocho", not "chaparro"." "We Jarochos are people from Veracruz." "Haven't you ever read a newspaper?" "They carry pictures of people who are lost." "The editor can put your father's picture in "Novedades"... so anyone who gets to see him will notify the paper, and that's how we'll find him." "Now I get it!" "Run, kiddo, surely the Virgin talked to you!" "What do you want?" "We want to see the editor." "He's very busy." "Don't mind him, come with me." "Hey!" "Where are you going, kids?" "Come back here." "Come here, boys!" "~ Miss, the editor, where is he?" "~ Inside, what do you want?" "A lion's chasing us, it escaped from the circus!" "Gentlemen counselors, I think given the success we have achieved with..." "Who are these boys, what do they want?" "They came in without permission, sir, they ignored my screeching." "A machine could have snared them, they were in danger." "Who are you?" "What do you want?" "We want to see the editor, who's a Jarocho just like me." "You're from Veracruz?" "Yes, sir." "This is Joselito, my brother,... he came from Spain to find his father." "You're a Spaniard?" "Yes, sir, I left Spain alone on a boat and came to Veracruz." "From Spain to Veracruz on a boat?" "A big boat found me at sea and took me there." "I know my father's in Mexico and I have to find him." "Fine, but what's all this got to do with me?" "You're the editor?" "Yes." "You're expecting your father to be here, in the news desk?" "Is he a journalist, maybe?" "No, sir, we just want you to put in a notice so that he'll show up." "This is a photo of my dad." "Quick, stop the presses." "A photographer and a reporter." "You, Miranda, this could be a sensational story,... a child who comes from Spain crossing the Atlantic looking for his father." "From this moment, the paper will take care of you." "The incredible and poignant story of Joselito Jiménez." "A child comes from Spain in a small boat to find his father." "What do you think, do you like it?" "~ Yes, sir." "~ Yes, sir." "I think he'll show up after this." "This evening all of Mexico will know about your arrival." "Meanwhile, you're coming home with me." "I also have kids like you, and they're expecting you." "Shall we go?" "Come on, come on, kids, don't be reckless, come on." "~ And now, boys, take a bath." "~ No." "Come on, you're filthy." "Come on." "You'll sleep here." "And you, go out so they can rest." "Quit flirting, girl." "What barbaric children!" "Do you think my father will have a huge house like this one?" "It would be boring, maybe he has many children and they won't want any more." "Maybe." "~ You know what I've thought many times?" "~ No." "Well, I've thought that maybe the same thing happened to him as happened to Federico." "What, that he's been eaten?" "No, silly, that he's died." "Don't think about sad things." "You know what your boss said." "We go to sleep." "~ See you tomorrow." "~ See you tomorrow." "~ Joselito." "~ What?" "Do you think we'll be able to sleep?" "I doubt it." "The bed's like jelly." "~ Should we get off?" "~ Let's do it right smartly." "~ What a difference!" "~ This feels better!" "¤ You, colorful bird who in the morning... ¤ perch singing at my window,... ¤ with your sweet trills you awake me... ¤ and to listen to you, I attend your performance,... ¤ because I'd love, love to learn your song,..." "¤ but no one can sing it like you." "¤ Sing, bird, sing, to sweeten my throat,... ¤ give me from your golden tongue the rich treasure in your song." "¤ Tell me, little bird, tell me who gave you the sublime art of singing,... ¤ but, bird, I wish my voice had your heavenly gift." "¤ You, colorful bird, you who take flight... ¤ and wear the colors of the sky on your wings,... ¤ come to my window, because when you perch... ¤ singing, carnations and roses bloom." "¤ Because I'd love, love to learn your song,... ¤" "Mr. Jiménez?" "Are you José Jiménez?" "Yes, sir." "That's him, right?" "~ How do you know?" "~ Well..." "Surely you must have read about your son expecting... that his father was a great bullfighter, or at least..." "Yes, yes, or at least an important man like you,... like many of the Spaniards who come to México." "But don't worry, sir, I'm not going to say I'm his father." "Why are you here, then?" "I don't know, either." "A strong impulse drove me to come." "I don't have anything to offer my son." "He's been looking for me with such high hopes..." "What have you been doing in Mexico?" "How did you get into such a state?" "It's a long story." "At first things went well for me." "I thought I had the strength to win a position, but... then..." "All I know is that I've wronged my mother and my son,... and I am a wretch not worthy of being looked at." "Hang on, I'll go get your son." "At least see him, and then do what your conscience dictates." "Do you have a passport?" "Yes, sir." "Wait." "Joselito, come along." "A man's been asking about you." "He wants to talk with you." "My dad!" "It's my dad, right?" "He, we've got a father!" "Wait!" "Do you know my dad?" "Yes." "So, he doesn't know anything?" "He doesn't know I'm here?" "No, he's always pretty busy." "I work..." "I work with him." "It's better he doesn't know anything." "Take me to his side right now and I'll give him a surprise." "No..." "I'll tell him and he'll come." "Is something wrong?" "Doesn't he love me?" "Of course he does." "He loves you with all his heart,... and is keeping for you all the love that he couldn't give you all these years." "Then take me." "Let's go, Pulgarcito." "Take him." "May God reward you, sir." "Good luck, and remember that my newspaper is responsible for the kid and his happiness." "What my father does not know is that I have a brother." "~ A brother?" "~ Yes, that's him." "Ah!" "This boy who accompanied you from Veracruz?" "Yeah." "Listen, what's my father like?" "Is he as tall as you, or is he shorter?" "When he's sad, he's a little smaller,... and like this when he's happy." "Like the rubber man in a circus?" "Is he a circus performer?" "No, no, although he's had to perform a lot." "Working at everything, trying everything,..." "Always bouncing back and forth like a ball, from failure to failure." "So he's not a bullfighter or well off like the editor." "No, but he also doesn't have six kids, a wife, or a home." "You see?" "And you thought he didn't send money because he had other kids." "We were just floating the idea." "Well, he didn't send what he wanted because he didn't have anything to send." "~ Is he that poor?" "~ Worse than me?" "Come quickly, it's very far away." "~ Good afternoon." "~ Good afternoon." "Is this where my dad lives?" "Yes..." "I mean...no." "No, he couldn't live in such a beat-up dirty room." "Then where is he?" "We'll wait for him here,...we'll go get him." "I'll make you some coffee." "Yeah...coffee." "This guy's my dad, Pulgarcito." "Every time I glance at him he looks more like the photograph... without the mustache." "Even if I was very young when he left, I still remember something." "Does it matter to you that he's just as poor as we are?" "If he's my real dad, no." "My father is my father, and grandmother taught me to love him." "You remember the rattle I showed you at home?" "Yeah." "I'll sing the song, and if the guy knows it, then it's him." "¤ In an abandoned corner... ¤ of my house I found... ¤ a silver rattle... ¤ and I sounded it with love." "¤ Hints of beautiful songs... ¤ bloomed from its cheerful sound... ¤ and a magical heaven of stars... ¤ shone on my heart." "¤ Rattle, stars and light,... ¤ I want to sound you, I like your song... ¤ rattle of my tender infancy... ¤ which has the scent of a snowflake." "¤ Rattle, a past... ¤ without bitterness or sin comes alive again with your song... ¤ rattle, a past time... ¤ without bitterness or sin comes alive again with your song..." "¤ My rattle is a reliquary... ¤ with it my mother cooed,... ¤ it sounds like Glory on a Rosary prayer... ¤ where her kisses are enshrined." "~ ¤ A lullaby revives... ¤ ~ It looks like he's crying." "¤ from its soft ring,... ¤ an angel down from the moon... ¤ with a restless flutter." "¤ Rattle, stars and light,... ¤ I want to sound you, I like your song... ¤ rattle of my tender infancy... ¤ which has the scent of a snowflake." "¤ Rattle of my tender infancy... ¤ which has the scent of a snowflake." "¤ Rattle, a past time... ¤ without bitterness or sin revives with your song..." "I stole them from my grandmother,... and then they were very useful,... because thanks to them I lit the lantern and the boat found me." "The Seagull burned." "Do you know the Seagull?" "Mr. Editor, I could say lots of words of thanks, but..." "Don't say anything, man, just give me a hug and have good luck!" "On the contrary, it's me who should thank you on behalf of my paper... for being able to start this beautiful journey." "All Mexico has its eyes on you and the boys." "Now wave goodbye, your plane's going to leave." "Thank you." "Thank you, ma'am." "It was nothing." "Goodbye, my love." "Have a good trip." "¤ Where could be heading for, so fast and tired... ¤ the swallow which is leaving here... ¤ or if the wind led him astray... ¤ seeking shelter, and not finding it." "¤ Dear bird,... ¤ beloved migrant,... ¤ I'll hug your heart into mine." "¤ I'll hear your song... ¤ on listening to the swallow I'll remember it... ¤ I'll cry your name." "I'm not going." "What, are you crazy?" "You're not coming?" "No, sir, I've thought it over, and like you said after your crying out... everyone should work in their own land." "In your land, and for your land." "OK, but in Spain you'll have a family." "In a short time you'll feel like a Spaniard." "It'll be your land, too." "You're still a child." "I always want to feel like a Mexican,... don't you want to feel Spanish?" "Yeah, yeah, sure." "I don't know what to tell you, Pulgarcito." "It's better, because it's easier." "Here, I'll leave you the knife." "Instead of being for my son, it'll be for yours, and that's the same thing." "That's all I have to give you." "They don't have chilies in your land, and these are the hottest I could find." "Chilies, Dad!" "I can't eat without chilies anymore." "We'll sow the seeds on our plot,... so we'll have just a little bit of Mexico." "~ He who cries..." "~ He who cries." "He who cries." "You're crying again." "No, dad, it's the chilies." "They really are the hottest ones on Earth." "~ He who cries." "~ He who cries."