I’m proudest of the woman I became on Sept 8, 2023-my liberation day
I reflect a lot on who I was, who I am, and who I will be- and Iβve reach the conclusion that Iβm proud of all three versions of me Constantly fighting my demons no matter how viciously they came after me Constantly reinventing and rebuilding myself even when the chaotic earthquakes of life broke me apart I reflect on the goddess, the beast in me who always refuses to give up who continues to get and keep going no matter how hard life tries to break me down
reopening my pandoraβs of trauma makes me tear the old version of me apart makes me revisit parts of myself Iβd rather forget and makes me angry at how my insanity was enabled I know I should be compassionate, I know I should understand that the past can no longer hurt me but -oh-every time I open that pandoraβs box of trauma the fire of self loathing and rage threatens to consume me and while I could leave that pandoraβs box closed- I have no choice but to open it over and over again itβs one of the most important parts of my story Emotional scars need to be ripped open and analyzed to heal and make sense of who I am now
se que en las mejores relaciones hay monotonΓa pero lo que estamos viviendo me llena de ira me esta volviendo loca, esto se siento como el fin de nuestro cuento de amor y los dos somos demasiados cobardes para aceptar que la vida que hemos construida se estΓ‘ volviendo una montaΓ±a de resentimiento y desilusiΓ³n donde estamos atrapados por conveniencia
Consorting with this newfound empowerment is overwhelming and lonely at times I finally understand that never again do I have to depend on a man for anything- and I breathe a huge sigh of relief I no longer use them to determine my worth based on whether any of them pay attention to me I no longer use them for validation and no longer make myself small for their ego I now determined my own self worth and this is the moment Iβve been waiting for since the age of 15
I wrote a version of this poem in 2005. It was about my frustration with the relationship I was in at the time.
Drown in passion
Iβm hanging on to my last thread of sanity trying to accommodate to our new reality I know monotony happens even in the best relationships but this feels like the death of our love Where did your yearning for me go? You used to worship me and call me Godly now I can barely get you to look at me and when I say anything, you call me crazy so Iβm going to swallow my words and pretend Iβm okay with this charade of love
so I actually wrote this poem in December of 2022 after I got sick with COVID. This poem was actually inspired by the 2005 poem, “Here we again”- I was editing it to post it on instagram and something about it screamed turn into a poem about your ailment and this is what I ended with. God, my mind was extra crazy with COVID brain. lol.
Another unexpected surprise confirmed with the second pink line Is this Karma coming for me? for wishing this on my enemies this puts a pause on my life for a few days and I lay in bed in a fever haze soon I lose my sense of smell and taste Iβm humbled and make a promise to the universe Iβll be more careful with my words and stop giving into my rancor
we were another lesson in love lost and mourned I tried everything to make it work even where it was past our expiration date I never wanted our children to be products of a broken home but even my best efforts could not fight how different we were or our long term story of incompatibility it wasnβt your fault or mine we were just both too stubborn to see what was in front of us a friendship that shouldβve stayed platonic but you fell in deep for me and I was tired wanted to settle and we made it work until one day I realized it wasnβt enough
kid krow by Conan Gray-This album was on repeat in 2023 and it either hyped me up or destroyed me -it was wonderful
music and lyrics have always given me a sense of home- itβs how Iβve grown and evolved Itβs how I learned to express my emotions when I couldnβt make sense of anything it fills my soul with love and creativity it makes me feel a sense of belonging in this world that looks down on dark and tortured souls it eases off my loneliness that sometimes makes me crumble and leaves me in shambles
if I’m going to be a mess, might as well be a hot mess
does someone have a voodoo doll of me and stuck pins inside my head- inside my heart-because lately Iβm finding it hard to breathe as my emotions consume and control me- and I feel like the biggest failure and imposter for allowing it to happen even though I still function well enough to mask the mountain of turmoil and grief thatβs currently residing me
when it comes down to it, my mission in life is simple, it’s to be a good person and a good mom.βthat means being able to sleep at night with a clear conscious at night and knowing that I have done my best that day. that means giving my children the best of me most of the time.
my granddaughters will love me even as they rolls their eyes at me- as I try to awkwardly relate to their slang and taste in music- theyβll be like βabue-thatβs so specialβ and while Iβll know what theyβre trying to say Iβll annoy them even more out of spite or to make them laugh my granddaughters will appreciate that Iβm not like other grandmas
I wrote the poem above a year ago thinking about what kind of grandmother I’d be. One thing is for sure, I won’t be like my mom who goes above and beyond her role of mamacita and is the most wonderful grandmother to mine and my siblings kids. I’ll be different but in a fun way. If I’m blessed/cursed to live a very long life (which could happen because my grandparents on my maternal side have lived past their 90s), I want to be like my grandparents who had a very good quality of life until the end. I want to be as active as possible in my old age.
me with my grandmother in 2014
I also envision myself as a storyteller with my granddaughters gathered around me as I tell them about the olden days before the internet or when we had to take our pictures to the photo place to get them developed. I want to be as candid as possible with them about my misadventures in life and love so maybe they’ll learn from my mistakes and learn to have grace with themselves when they make mistakes. I want to be a safe space for my granddaughters when they have problems. I also want to be like my great-great-grandmother Mercedes who still smiled for the camera in her old age while holding her beer in her hand.
My great great grandmother Mercedes
It would also be kind of ironic if I did live to my 90s and beyond, considering how I’ve been romanticizing death since I was 15. However, at the end of the day, I do love being alive on most days and do try my best to be as healthy as possible to live a long live to annoy my loved ones, especially my granddaughters. I’m kind of excited to see what technological advances I’ll live to see. Like, will AI become part of our everyday existence? I mean, it already is part of mine with Alexa waking me up every day. Will men, gasp, finally do their part and take birth control pills instead of leaving it up to women to take responsibility? Will there be a magic pill for PMDD for future generations of women who can take it so they don’t go to crazy town every month? Will the internet read your algorithms so hardcore they erase any vestiges of anyone you have a falling out with from your phone/social media? I’m not sure if any of these questions will be answered, but it would be great if some of them were.
me at 8 in an itchy AF dress, couldn’t hide my RBF
to little me, Iβm sorry, lo siento Iβm sorry, lo siento There are no words that could make sense or give purpose to what you went through it was awful that your childhood was tainted by trauma that wasnβt acknowledged or that your feelings were invalidated by those who promised to love and protect you Iβm sorry , lo siento Iβm sorry, lo siento and while I know my words are insufficient to lessen the pain and trauma you experienced Iβm here to acknowledge it and make sure you can heal from it
I never asked to be born, much less to be a mosaic of trauma, insanity, and creativity I prayed many times to be normal-to be someone else but the day came when I had to embrace the masterpiece of duality and insanity that I am to understand not everyone will understand me to do the best I am with the deck of cards Iβve been handed
On new yearβs day of 2023,I have resolutions but theyβre simple a trip to my homeland thatβs been set in stone teaching my son to drive a divorce as a late birthday gift to myself keep my bangs because thatβs really who I am pushing my oldest son to be more independent Continue to share my poetry with the world unapologetically Be wary of anything that pollutes my energy try my best to ebb and flow with the turbulent waves of my emotions take any obstacles that might occur in life in stride make more time for my friends and family become a new kind of brave woman and continue to do things out of my comfort zone to help me grow and evolve become an example of determination, discipline, and creativity for my kids to follow- and continue to inspire others with my journey of self discovery 2023 will be chaotic with everything Iβm planning 2023 will be the year where Iβm the definition of bravery