Te Tengo a Ti (Quinceañera)

Listen to Te Tengo a Ti (Quinceañera)

Te Tengo a Ti (Quinceañera) Lyrics

Hoy desperté y nada pareció igual,  me di cuenta que sin poderlo evitar todo comenzó a cambiar.

Ya no se encuentran mis zapatos de niña.  ¿A donde ha ido mi muñeca preferida?

Ya no es la misma esa ropa pequeñita que mamá escogía por mi, ya no se encuentra ahí.

Pues ya pasaron los días, los años, haciendo evidente que todo es vanidad;

Que lo único que es para siempre es tu verdad.//

Pues el cielo y la tierra pasarán, y todo lo que tengo se agotará.  

Aún mis días de niña y de juventud se escaparán de mi//  Señor, pero te tengo a ti.

Hoy me preparo, pongo en mis pies zapatillas.  

Cuido que el maquillaje sea resistente a lágrimas y sonrisas.  

Y al mirar el vestido pienso en tus maravillas, y poco a poco sin poder evitarlo caigo de rodillas.

Pues ya pasaron los días, los años, haciendo evidente que todo es vanidad;

Que lo único que es para siempre es tu verdad.

Pues el cielo y la tierra pasarán, y todo lo que tengo se agotará.  

Aún mis días de niña y de juventud se escaparán de mi//  Señor, pero te tengo a ti.

Señor, te tengo a ti.  El cielo y la tierra pasarán, todo cesara, pero te tengo a ti Jesus.  

Mi roca eterna, amigo fiel, aun te tengo a ti mi Dios.

Te Tengo a Ti (Quinceañera) Lyrics, translated

I woke up today and nothing looked the same, I realized that inevitably everything started to change.

My little girl shoes are no longer there, where did my favorite doll go?

The tiny clothes mommy chose for me is not the same anymore, it's no longer there.

Days, years have gone by making it evident that everything is vanity, 

That the only thing that will last forever is your truth//

For heaven and earth will pass and everything I have will run out.

Even my childhood and youth will escape from me// Lord, but I have you.

Today I prepare, I put on high heels.

I make sure the make up is tear and smile proof.

And as I look at the gown I think of your wonders, and little by little, I can't help to fall on my knees.

Days, years have gone by making it evident that everything is vanity, 

That the only thing that will last forever is your truth.

For heaven and earth will pass and everything I have will run out.

Even my childhood and youth will escape from me//  Lord, but I have you.

Lord I have you.  Heaven and earth will pass, everything will end, but I have you Jesus.

My everlasting Rock, faithful friend.  I still have you my God.

As many might already know, there is a hispanic tradition in which young ladies are presented before God and before society when turning fifteen years of age.  This may be compared to a Sweet Sixteen celebration for Americans.  As I have mentioned before in this blog, my family was not a wealthy one.  A few months before I turned fifteen we moved to a modest apartment complex in the east side of town.  By this time I had, not two, but three younger siblings.  Besides that, my birthday is in the middle of January.  Typically during winter, in Kansas' weather, the income for many working families decreases, as low temperatures don't allow many jobs to continue their normal operations.  Also, December holidays sort of cause a little extra spending, so, a January birthday is not usually good news monetarily speaking.  I was aware that being my mother's first daughter to reach the age of fifteen, she really wished she had the means to make a very special celebration.  Understanding that this simply could not be done, I was content and had no issue just doing our usual instant mix homemade cake in the family kitchen.  One night, about a year later, I began to reflect on this.  I thought about how not having a Quinceañera translates to social humiliation for some, and total embarrassment for the young ladies who tend feel as though their Quinceañera party had to be the most notorious event, surpassing everything anyone else had done.  From my point of view, all this could be a beautiful thing, but did not replace the joy and peace of having a family, having a home, having a place where my faith and knowledge of God could grow and simply feeling blessed.  I asked myself what I had missed in not being able to have a Quinceañera.  My reply to self was: "nothing, for I feel just as happy."  

I wrote this song as proof that my joy was left untouched, and that if there had been enough money and I would have had a Quinceañera, I wouldn't be more or less happy.  As the song implies, all of this is temporary and does not compare to an eternity with God.