History
Ricardo was born in the village of Jocotenango, near Antigua, Guatemala to Ricardo Arjona Moscoso and Noemí Morales de Arjona. When he was three years of age he and his family moved to Guatemala City.
He spent some time as a teacher at a rural primary school, where he reputedly said he spent three hours giving lessons and the rest of the day playing football. This earned him a visit from a Ministry of Education representative, who was sent to evaluate the level of education amongst Ricardo Arjona's pupils. The representative found that the students' level of education was actually above average.
Ricardo Arjona was a talented basketball player, and he played for the team Leones de Marte. He also toured Central America as a member of the Selección de básquetbol de Guatemala (Guatemala's National Basketball Team); until recently he held the record for the most points scored in a single game by a Guatemalan player.
Although he initially enrolled in architecture and engineering subjects, he eventually graduated with a degree from the School of Communication Sciences at the Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala (USAC).
At USAC there is a library hall that bears his name. There is also a street named for him in his birthplace, Jocotenango, Guatemala.
La Nena
Ricardo Arjona Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
La nena arruga los ojos pa que no entre la luz
Recita la oración de siempre para cumplir con dios
Acto seguido en el pecho se dibuja una cruz
De quien es el auto que espera dos cuadras al sur
Armada con libros de texto la lleva el chófer
Mamá la despide en la puerta agitando los brazos
Que hace mas de cuatro meses que le siguen los pasos
Y el auto que espera a dos cuadras enciende el motor
Un tiro en la sien al chófer la nena va a la deriva
Un árbol detiene la inercia ellos la tienen rodeada
Su frente dio contra el cristal y le ha abierto una herida
Los vecinos se encierran con llave nadie a visto nada
Y la mano que mato a su chófer ahora le opaca los gritos
La nena es un uno con ceros a partir de hoy
La nena ya no arruga los ojos no ha visto la luz
En la sucursal del infierno no existen ventanas
Su suerte cotiza en billetes de otro país
Su vida es un trueque vulgar parecido a la muerte
La nena no va a ir esta tarde a su clase de ingles
La nena es un bulto amarrado en un chrysler café
Un zapato le oprime la espalda, un pañuelo la boca
La nena esta muerta de miedo y no entiende porque
La nena no sabe que a veces también dios se equivoca
La nena es desvelo y noticia, la nena no esta
Su planeta cambio de tamaño, y mide 4 x 3
Su sol es la luz que se cuela debajo de una puerta
La nena ya no ve diferencia entre un día y un mes
La nena no sabe si duerme o se mantiene despierta
La nena ya lleva 3 meses buscando un porque
Seis kilos de menos la nena tiene llagas rosadas
Papá casi loco, mamá de nuevo en los hospitales
Se pacta la entrega con una voz manipulada
La misma que ha venido ofreciendo souvenirs corporales
Y el miedo se ríe de todos y se frota las manos
El futuro pone cara de perro si se le da la gana
La nena ya no arruga los ojos no ha visto la luz
En la sucursal del infierno no existen ventanas
Su suerte cotiza en billetes de otro país
Su vida es un trueque vulgar parecido a la muerte
La nena ya lleva 10 meses sin ir al ballet
El día indicado el dinero esta debajo de un puente
La nena por fin sale del cuarto donde estuvo guardada
Todo marcha como pactaron no hay ningún pendiente
De pronto el jefe irrumpe en la casa sin cubrirse la cara
La nena reconoce en el rostro alguien familiar
Los planes después del incidente han debido cambiar
The song "La Nena" by Ricardo Arjona tells the heart-wrenching story of a young girl who is abducted on her way to school. The opening lyrics describe the ordinary morning routine that sets the scene for the tragedy, with the girl being woken at 6:42am by her nanny and reciting her prayers before heading out the door. However, it soon becomes clear that someone has been following her for months, and after her chauffeur is shot dead, the young girl is kidnapped and held captive in a small room for months. The lyrics paint a vivid picture of the physical and emotional toll this has on her, with her losing weight and her parents becoming increasingly desperate as they search for her. Eventually, the girl is released by her captors, but only to find that the person behind her kidnapping is someone close to her, leaving her with a sense of betrayal and lingering trauma.
Throughout this song, Arjona captures the sense of loss and helplessness that comes with unimaginable tragedy, and the powerful impact it can have on a person's life. The lyrics highlight the many ways that the girl's life is changed by this traumatic experience, from the physical scars on her body to the emotional scars that never fully heal. As the song progresses, the listener is left with a sense of sorrow for what the girl has lost, as well as a feeling of outrage at the injustice of what has happened to her.
Line by Line Meaning
La nana la despertó a las 6 con 42
The nanny woke her up at 6:42
La nena arruga los ojos pa que no entre la luz
The girl squeezes her eyes shut to keep the light out
Recita la oración de siempre para cumplir con dios
She recites her usual prayer to fulfill her religious duties
Acto seguido en el pecho se dibuja una cruz
Then she draws a cross on her chest
De quien es el auto que espera dos cuadras al sur
Whose car is waiting two blocks to the south?
Armada con libros de texto la lleva el chófer
The driver takes her, armed with textbooks
Mamá la despide en la puerta agitando los brazos
Mom sees her off at the door, waving her arms
La nena tiene 9 años como iba a saber
The girl is 9, how was she supposed to know
Que hace mas de cuatro meses que le siguen los pasos
They've been following her for over four months
Y el auto que espera a dos cuadras enciende el motor
And the car waiting two blocks away starts the engine
Un tiro en la sien al chófer la nena va a la deriva
A shot to the driver's temple and the girl is adrift
Un árbol detiene la inercia ellos la tienen rodeada
A tree stops the motion, and they surround her
Su frente dio contra el cristal y le ha abierto una herida
Her forehead hit the glass, opening up a wound
Los vecinos se encierran con llave nadie a visto nada
Neighbors lock themselves inside, no one has seen anything
Y la mano que mato a su chófer ahora le opaca los gritos
And the hand that killed her driver now mutes her screams
La nena es un uno con ceros a partir de hoy
From now on, the girl is a one with zeros
La nena ya no arruga los ojos no ha visto la luz
The girl no longer shuts her eyes, she hasn't seen the light
En la sucursal del infierno no existen ventanas
There are no windows in the branch of hell
Su suerte cotiza en billetes de otro país
Her fate is bought with foreign money
Su vida es un trueque vulgar parecido a la muerte
Her life is a vulgar exchange akin to death
La nena no va a ir esta tarde a su clase de ingles
The girl won't go to her English class this afternoon
La nena es un bulto amarrado en un chrysler café
The girl is a bundle tied up in a brown Chrysler
Un zapato le oprime la espalda, un pañuelo la boca
A shoe presses against her back, a cloth covers her mouth
La nena esta muerta de miedo y no entiende porque
The girl is terrified and doesn't understand why
La nena no sabe que a veces también dios se equivoca
The girl doesn't know that sometimes even God makes mistakes
La nena es desvelo y noticia, la nena no esta
The girl is a concern and a news item, but she is not here
Su planeta cambio de tamaño, y mide 4 x 3
Her planet has changed size and now measures 4 by 3
Su sol es la luz que se cuela debajo de una puerta
Her sun is the light that seeps through a crack beneath a door
La nena ya no ve diferencia entre un día y un mes
The girl no longer sees the difference between a day and a month
La nena no sabe si duerme o se mantiene despierta
The girl doesn't know whether she's asleep or awake
La nena ya lleva 3 meses buscando un porque
The girl has been searching for a reason for 3 months now
Seis kilos de menos la nena tiene llagas rosadas
The girl is six kilos lighter and has pink sores
Papá casi loco, mamá de nuevo en los hospitales
Dad is almost crazy, and Mom is back in the hospitals
Se pacta la entrega con una voz manipulada
The delivery is negotiated with a manipulated voice
La misma que ha venido ofreciendo souvenirs corporales
The same voice that has been offering bodily souvenirs
Y el miedo se ríe de todos y se frota las manos
And fear laughs at everyone and rubs its hands together
El futuro pone cara de perro si se le da la gana
The future puts on a dog's face if it wants to
El día indicado el dinero esta debajo de un puente
On the appointed day, the money is under a bridge
La nena por fin sale del cuarto donde estuvo guardada
The girl finally leaves the room where she was kept
Todo marcha como pactaron no hay ningún pendiente
Everything goes according to their agreement, and there are no loose ends
De pronto el jefe irrumpe en la casa sin cubrirse la cara
Suddenly, the boss bursts into the house without covering his face
La nena reconoce en el rostro alguien familiar
The girl recognizes a familiar face
Los planes después del incidente han debido cambiar
The plans have probably changed after the incident
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: RICARDO ARJONA
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Mayra M.
on Mesiáš
Esta canción no es más que una triste burka. Se presta para muchas interpretaciones y al final no dice nada.