I wrote this poem in February of 2023.

I give you the gift of my heart with everything in it
so please be careful with it
I donβt want it to be broken apart again
if you decide to leave on a whim
I wrote this poem in February of 2025.

With a fiery madness, she survived and made it out alive
tragedy after tragedy, diagnosis after diagnosis
she questioned how or why she did it
Many stood astonished at how she kept herself together
and composed even as her life and her body fell apart
but after a while it was easy for her to triumph
after every devastating plot twist
she was something else
a mixture of manic pixie girl and goddess
she was special
I wrote this poem of February of 2025.

one day Iβll meet a man who wonβt be afraid to take my hand
and declare his love for me in public
one day Iβll meet a man who wonβt have eyes for another body
other than mine
One day Iβll meet a man whose values aligns with mine
One day Iβll meet a man whoβs always looking for ways
to evolve and better himself
One day Iβll meet a man who wonβt run away from his emotions
and confront them head on even when it hurts
one day Iβll meet a man whoβll want to make me his
for the rest of his life without blinking an eye
and say Iβm one the best things thatβs ever happened to him
I wrote this poem in February of 2023.

Iβm looking for the rhythm of a new heartbeat to fall in love with
A heartbeat that goes with the flow of my intense intimacy
A heartbeat who doesnβt call me angel or princess
only calls me by my name
a heartbeat whoβll fall in love with the real me
and not the idea they have of me
or the persona I play on social media
A heartbeat who can handle my crazy and chaos
A heartbeat who accepts and understands me
and never tries to change me
I wrote this poem in February of 2025.

rose gold cross ripped from her neck
handcuffs cutting into her smalls wrists
mami and papi canβt explain why
theyβre nowhere to be found
she thought officers were supposed to be good people
but they hurl insults at her and call her a criminal
and at 10 she can hardly grasped
the severity of the situation
they tell her over and over again
βweβre taking you back to where you came fromβ
and itβs beyond her compression
because her birth certificate says Illinois
because America is the only home sheβs ever known
I wrote this poem in January of 2025.

el tio Julio always spoke English to us, the kids
didnβt matter who we were with or where we were
I think he was an advocate of assimilation at an early age
I think he wanted all of us to have a fighting chance
in our adopted homeland
perhaps this was an act of kindness on his part
he knew that in order to survive in the USA
we had to leave behind the part that made us seen as a foreigner
and become as American as possible
I wrote this poem in 2021.

Even after sheβs destroyed
she goes to work the next day
plasters a fake smile on her face
Even after sheβs devastated
she gathers the pieces of her heart
and reluctantly shows up
where sheβs needed
Even after sheβs knocked down
she gets up cloaked in strength
and continues to move forward
with a brand new determination
I wrote this poem in November of 2024.

I found God as a poet sang on stage sang
βDonβt be scared little child, youβre no demonβ
it was a moment of triumph acknowledging
that all of this time, I had been lying to myself
I was never a demon, or the monster larger than life
I had made myself out to be
I was just a flawed and imperfect child of God
I wrote this poem in October of 2024.

in 2021, I ventured from the moon and landed on the ace of pentacles
never expecting to experience a revolution of self love
never expecting to one day feel like I was enough
but when I found myself down and alone
with no one to lift me up
I had to find my inner strength, my queen resilience
to slowly lift myself up and walk and eventually run
towards the light my ancestors turned on for me
it became a marathon of healing with ugly twists
where I stumbled at times
but eventually I found a rhythm in my routine
that was conducive to my healing journey
and I learned to dance with life
life no longer happened to me as I sat quietly
and in my misery
this time I danced with life stomping my feet
loudly and dramatically
no longer caring what others thoughts of me
from that moment on
I became the heroine and my own muse
in my life movie
owning everything that happened to me
Understanding the power and magic
I always held within
had been and will always be too much for others
but it will always be right for me
I wrote this poem in October of 2024.

i found heaven on friday after 6 months of waiting and anticipating
my heart felt like it was going to burst with happiness
I found hope on tuesday night in his arms
I remembered what it was like to desired and wanted
and I didnβt realize how much I missed heaven and hope
until I found them again the first week of october
now I donβt want to let go of both
now Iβm filled to the brim of my soul
with excitement for what comes next,
for what impossibilities Iβll make into possibilities
into realities in the next stage of my life
I will no longer live life vicariously
and stand on the sidelines
Iβll step out, take risks, fall and stumble many times
Iβm ready