Assignment, by Julio Cortázar

"Don´t let me rest, don't you ever forgive me.
Harass me to the blood, every cruel thing shall be
you returning.
Don´t let me sleep, don´t give me peace!
Then, I will earn my kingdom,
I will born slowly.
Don´t lose me like an easy music, don´t be caress
or soft-glove;
shape me as a silex, vex me.
Set aside your human love, your smile, your hair. Give them away.
Come to me with your dry wrath of matches and scales.
Shout. Vomit sand into my mouth, brake my jaws.
I don´t mind ignoring you in broad daylight,
to know you're playing facing sun and men.
Share it.

I ask you for the cruel ritual of the gash,
what no one asks you for: the thorns
to the bone. Tear me off this infamous face,
force me to say, at last, my real, truthful name."
--Julio Cortázar.