Nuestro Juramento is a song by the Puerto Rican songwriter Benito de Jesús (1912-2010), which was popularized throughout Latin America by the Ecuadorian singer Julio Jaramillo (1935–1978), who gained international recognition in 1957 with this bolero. The following translation is an attempt to retain some of the poetic feeling of the Spanish language original, while conveying the meaning in English. Of necessity, both the English poetry and the literalness of translation here are imperfect. Enjoy.

Nuestro Juramento
Benito de Jesús (1912-2010)

No puedo verte triste porque me mata
Tu carita de pena, mi dulce amor
Me duele tanto el llanto que tu derramas
Que se llena de angustia mi corazón

Yo sufro lo indecible si tu entristeces
No quiero que la duda te haga llorar
Hemos jurado amarnos hasta la muerte
Y si los muertos aman
Despues de muertos amarnos mas

Si yo muero primero, es tu promesa
Sobre de mi cadaver dejar caer
Todo el llanto que brote de tu tristeza
Y que todos se enteren de tu querer

Si tu mueres primero, yo te prometo
Escribiré la historia de nuestro amor
Con toda el alma llena de sentimiento
La escribire con sangre
Con tinta sangre del corazón

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Our Bonding Vows
(a translation of Benito de Jesús’ lyrics for Nuestro Juramento)

I can’t bear to find you sad because it kills me
to see your little face grieving, my dear sweet love;
the tears that gush out your sadness so deeply hurt me,
drowning my heart in anguish, my little dove.

I suffer beyond description when you are saddened,
I don’t want a single doubt to make you cry.
We should swear to love each other till our lives end,
and if the dead can still love,
then after death to love even more.

If I die before you, give me this promise
that over my cadaver you will let go
of all of that sadness cascading out as teardrops,
and of your love for me let them all know.

If you die before me, I make this promise
to write out the history of our shared love,
and with all my heart infused with your remembrance
to write our tale with heart’s blood,
penned with blood-ink drawn from my heart.

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Julio Jaramillo sings “Nuestro Juramento”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=20cH30WXtFE

Daniel Santos sings Nuestro Juramento
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KHzZ5UoPimA

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