por un tiempo eras un rompecabezas siempre tan misterioso siempre tan cauteloso nunca hablastes acerca de tu pasado aunque yo compartí de más de mis trastornos y aunque me cansaba, seguí tratando porque mi mamá no crió a un derrotista pero nada que hice trabajo nunca pudiste ser vulnerable conmigo
I pay tribute to the women who came before me women who sacrificed so my parents could exist my mami who had to leave behind her culture, traditions, and language to give me a better life to make sure I grow up safe and well educated and taught me what strength and resilience means as she worked long days to make ends meet as she showed initiative to move our family forward and with her example I was able to follow it except I change it up some to live a life full of love, community and creativity
always restless and wild from the start nothing could contain me or dim my spark leg braces, overprotective parents it didn’t matter I always found a way to make trouble, to investigate, always too curious for my own good and too dramatic and emotional for mostly everyone always good at making people uncomfortable sometimes it’s a curse, sometimes it’s a blessing can’t change this part of myself I have, am and will always be like this
at 17, the pregnant bride to be got a telegram from her groom sorry, but I’m betrothed to another and am getting married at gun point maybe it was the heavy feeling of rage or her aries nature and hormones the jilted bride with a silent fury went to her closet and took out her ostentatiously beaded wedding dress and with matches in her hand she went outside and set fire to it in front of the family home one of the younger siblings saw the insanity as the bride stared at it mesmerized by fire that grew and grew she walked towards it all sense of reality gone from her not hearing the screams from her abuela who ran towards her and just before the bride step foot in the fire la abuela shook her and slapped her across the face until the bride reacted, let out a loud wail heard across the farmland and fainted
wonder how it happened- the transaction between beatriz’ papi and luis did beatriz have any say in her future betrothal did she have dreams as a little girl about her future husband did she even love Luis or just tolerate him because it’s what was expected of her how did it happen did she wish for a different life for her daughters one where they loved their husbands one where they were treated like humans and not treated like cattle
I scream watching the dominoes fall once again I don’t know who I am I want to be this version of myself a while longer ideally forever but the universe has other plans she laughs and says “Honey, he wasn’t the one” and I’m pissed and lose my shit go crazy for weeks, that turn into months that turn into a year until 13 months later mama killa comes to me revealing the last piece I needed to form a stable identity and sends me back to my homeland where I recover hidden bits of myself and laugh like a child once again where I’m reunited with the mountains, coast, and the city where the universe tells me “I told you so, you couldn’t have done this with him by your side dimming your light, you needed to be alone to embrace your magic And find your real identity under layers of american conditioning and reconnect with your homeland, it was the most important part in your heroine’s journey to integration
forgotten dreams remembered in a bout of depression I wanted to be much more than this an overwhelmed mom of two trying her best but still failing an chaotic mess who doesn’t know who she is underneath the burdens and expectations placed on her
man sets himself on fire for gaza woman murdered just for existing babies starved to death for being born Palestinian young adult dies at dorm of the local university collective grief rattles our communities don’t know what to make of so much loss happening within a matter of days all we can do is hold on to each other as senseless madness and violence takes place all we can do is tell our stories build our sanctuaries within each other remind ourselves of our warmth, our humanity when the world is heavy with cruelty and toxicity
the sky fell on me on that tuesday morning when you ended me with a 5 minute phone call for weeks I cried on the carpet until I fell asleep for weeks I wanted to fade away into an abyss of nothingness and even though it’s been almost decade I still think about that Tuesday morning the morning I lost the small piece of innocence I had left
overwhelmed by the sights and sounds at jorge chavez airport fast castellano coming from everyone with cumbia in the background machu picchu advertisements everywhere my mind is trying to process everything in real time I’m here, I’m here, I’m here the land of inca cola, ceviche and my ancestors land that I haven’t seen since the age of 9 and didn’t fully appreciate it happy and completely elated euphoria and goosebumps felt from my bones to my skin I never thought I’d see it again poverty kept me away but I’m here, I’m here, I’m here my beloved Perú the land I left without consent the land I was taught to menospreciar I’m here, I’m here, I’m here and I can’t wait to get reacquainted with you mi tierra-once again
I still watch our video, we were so cute together (sends pic of us naked in bed) your pussy is fire I’ll wait for you until you change your mind I guess loving you is a crime these are the things said to me by the men I send to block island exes and lovers who continuously disrespected me and never could listen to my no or respect my boundaries when we tried to be friends one of them I had to threaten to expose with the story Of how I broke his dick the rest made me feel a deep sense of guilt and covered me with toxic shame for letting them near me and I yell at that sick version of myself asking her “What the fuck girl, what was wrong with you” she responds, “I was mentally ill and impulsive,lol” and I try to find forgiveness for all of us trying to not victimize or villainize but the fire of anger rises up and I hate them and me for ever exchanging energies with them the only lesson learn in this is be careful, be wary of the nice guys the guys who talk a big game about respect and still make you an object of their obsession they’re the ones most likely to break you apart
all eyes on taylor as she ignites a battle between the sexes men triggered by her existence women coming to her defense sharing memes and articles to validate her popularity and Taylor she just want to love and support her boyfriend like any ordinary girl except she’s she taylor mutherfucking swift our it girl of the 21st century
many took bets on how long they’d last between the age gap, the difference in cultures they didn’t stand a chance yet, they kind of made it work for more than a decade yet, they still raised three fine young men for almost 20 years and while their incompatibility caught up to them and they had to end their love story they rebuilt it on the foundation of the love they once shared and in the best interest of their children and evolved into a healthy story of friendship where any resentment and anger has been buried and there are no hard feelings over past grievances where they support one another and are finally the parents their children always deserved
it’s the wild wild west inside my head it’s where my demons decide to come out to play they dance with traumatic memories making my fears and insecurities come out to the surface it’s the wild wild west inside my head being insane becomes my personality and aesthetic scaring away any potential love candidates it’s been a long time since I held someone’s hand much less been in someone’s bed It’s the wild wild went inside my head And I wonder when will the demons get tired and leave so maybe one day I’m not so jaded so maybe one day I give someone the chance to take me out on a date
In bridging the gaps of my story that have remained unresolved every story, every poem leads to pieces of healing and closure I’ve been desperately search for since I can remember Whatever my child self , my teenage self couldn’t voice back then My middle age self brings to the surface and while at times it’s difficult and terrifying it’s needed in the process of healing and evolving