Y después de amamantarlos tanto a unos como otros

And after nursing them each one like the other

Captions 45-46, José Luís Acacio - Simón Bolívar

 Play Caption

BANNER PLACEHOLDER

José's patriotic tune personifies Venezuela as a mother and in so doing introduces us to some great words for motherly attention.

Amamantar means "to nurse" or even more literally "to breast feed" (coming from the root for mammary glands, mama), and so here we have "And later to nurse them...". This really reinforces the notion of amor carnal ("bodily love") that Madre Venezuela shows her people.

Con ese amor tan carnal meciéndolos en su hamaca

With such a carnal love rocking them in her swing

Captions 47-48, José Luís Acacio - Simón Bolívar

 Play Caption

Mecer means "to cradle," "to swing," or "to sway." So here he sings of Madre Venezuela cradling or swinging her children "in their hammock."

Los dormía y arrullaba con nuestro himno nacional

She put them to sleep and lulled them with our national anthem

Captions 49-50, José Luís Acacio - Simón Bolívar

 Play Caption

Arrullar means "to lull" or "to coo" (refering to the noise made by pigeons and that made by mothers to lull their babies). Therefore, "She put them to sleep and lulled them."

So a late afternoon routine for a mother might go like this:

BANNER PLACEHOLDER

En la tarde, la madre amamanta el bebe si tiene hambre. Después para que sea quieto, le arrulla en sus brazos. Entonces, cuando ya está más quieto, ella pone el bebe en la cuna ("cradle") y le mece hasta que entra el sueño.

In the afternoon, the mother breastfeeds the baby if he is hungry. Then for him to be still, she cradles him in her arms. So, when he is more still, she puts the baby in her crib ("cradle") and rocks him until he falls asleep.