Clare Sullivan is a Professor of Spanish at the University of Louisville, and translates the poetry of Natalia Toledo, a Zapotec poet from the Oaxaca region of Mexico. Clare fell in love with the Spanish language growing up in Chicago, and became a student of literature and Spanish in her graduate studies. As a translator, Clare listens to the weaving of sounds and rhythms as she strives to maintain the playfulness, beauty, and complexities of Natalia’s poetry. In our conversation, we explore the many ways language is a reflection of culture and how poetry is a vessel for the sounds of tradition and evolution.