Poesia: Mi Culpa

Here’s the English version of this poem:

Poetry: Pathetic Games

la culpa es mΓ­a por confiar en ti,
la culpa es mΓ­a por casi acostarme contigo
entonces no deberΓ­a sorprenderme que ahora
juegas con mis sentimientos
evadiendome un dia y llamandome al dia siguiente
y estoy harta y agotada de ser una vΓ­ctima
de tu toxicidad
es mejor acabar con lo nuestro
y que empieces a olvidarme
porque es obvio que un niΓ±o como tΓΊ
nunca estarΓ‘ preparado para una reina como yo

poetry: i’ll always have your back

me and my oldest son in 1998

In the beginning, it was just me and you –
and it was hard making sense of being a mom
the heavy weight of caring for another human
felt like it was going to crush me at times
and I tried my best with my lack of knowledge
with my lack of judgment
so your lullabies were the goo goo dolls and sugar ray
and your bedtime stories were stephen king and cosmo
the pediatrician did tell me to read to you-
at 17, I thought he meant anything
at 17, I was far from June Cleaver
and I felt so inept at times
and while other moms read parenting books
on how to become mommy dearest
I focused on school books to graduate from high school
so we’d have a fighting chance
so while you never had a typical mom
you still lucked out with a mom
who’ll always fill you up with love and strength
a mom who’ll always have your back

poesΓ­a: potencial

Here’s the English Version of this poem:

Poetry: No Clue

Fui una estΓΊpida al pensar que tu serias algo diferente
alguien que se quedarΓ­a
pero repetΓ­ el mismo error
enamorarme de otro hombre confundido
enamorarme de potencial y cerrar los ojos a la realidad
esto me pasa por seguir creyendo en cuentos de hadas
donde el prΓ­ncipe salva a la princesa
donde el prΓ­ncipe se queda para siempre
y no se va cuando le da la gana

poetry: raining in paradise

I wrote this poem in September in 2022.

me in Hawaii in 1994

without a care in the world-we danced in the rain
enjoying the last vestiges of childhood
feeling the wet ground against our feet
stomping and laughing
and enjoying the miracle of this moment
as it rained in paradise

poesΓ­a: encerrada

Here’s the English Version of this poem:

Poetry: On My Mind

me encierro en sueΓ±os y fantasΓ­as del pasado
porque mi presente estΓ‘ lleno de amargura y odio
sin saber cΓ³mo convertir la tragedia de mi vida
en una historia de victoria
por eso prefiero encerrarme en la nostalgia
de mi pasado romΓ‘ntica cuando todavΓ­a tenΓ­a esperanza

poesΓ­a: una carta a mi ex-amante

Here’s the version in English:

Poetry: Letter to My Former Lover

Ahora veo que tu tenias razΓ³n en acabar nuestro cuento de amor
Ahora veo que tu adiΓ³s fue una bendiciΓ³n
y no es que porque te odio o porque te tengo rencor
no, al contrario te deseo lo mejor
te deseo que el universo te bendiga con felicidad y paz
entiendo ahora que lo de nosotros no podΓ­a continuar
por que tu nunca fuistes y nunca serΓ­as el hombre
que me ayudarΓ­a evolucionar
o que apreciara mi creatividad
o que pudiera luchar a mi lado cuando la realidad de la vida
se vuelve un huracΓ‘n difΓ­cil de navegar
me hiciste un favor al irte para espacio para alguien
con la fortaleza y valor que tu nunca tuviste

poetry: sinning

I wrote this poem in September of 2022.

me at my first communion in 1989

I used to lie about my sins when I went to confession-
to have something, anything to confess to arouse interest in the priest
to not feel the burden of goodness on me-
and the priest gave me prayers and rosaries to atone for my made up sins

poesia: Sinchi Warmi

Here’s the English Version of this poem:

Poetry: Lost Cause

Sinchi Warmi es mujer poderosa en quechua

Siempre soy una perdedora en el amor
y esto me agobiaba, me hacΓ­a sentir menos
pero despuΓ©s de investigar las razones
de mis rupturas amorosas
DescubrΓ­ que la culpa no era mΓ­a, ni de mis exes
ni del destino-
lo que pasa es una mujer poderosa y fuerte como yo
se va a demorar y demorar para encontrar a alguien
que me sepa apreciar y amar como la reina que soy

poetry: middle child problems

me and my brother circa 1987

stuck between two divas-I was never meant to stand out
my older sister shouted cries of continued injustice
my younger sister just cried over any little thing
my parents tried their best to give us individual attention
but sometimes I got left behind between the shuffle
of my sisters’ hysterics
and while I hold no ill will towards my sisters or my parents
I wonder what my life would have been life
if I had been the first or last born

poesΓ­a: tiempo

Here’s the English version of this poem:

Poetry: Not Just Lust

hay que tomarnos tiempo para conocernos
antes de brincar en otra tragedia de amor
hay que ver que encajamos de verdad
antes de profesar β€œte amos” y β€œte quieros”
y no apresurarnos en empezar algo
que algΓΊn dΓ­a nos destruirΓ‘

poesia: mami tiene razon

here’s the English version of this poem:

Poetry: Hard

basta de tanto esperar ha alguien que me sepa apreciar
mami me dice que es porque no me dejo respetar
porque me dejo llevar por la pasiΓ³n del momento sin pensar
y a lo mejor mami tiene la razΓ³n
deberΓ­a de dejar de escuchar
a los deseos temporΓ‘neos de mi corazΓ³n
y empezarme a valorar

poetry: slightly damaged

I wrote this poem in September of 2022.

me with my mami in 1981

mami cocoons me in her warmth, holds me carefully so I don’t break
I’m her porcelain baby doll
she nurses me back to health with devotion and dedication
I’m a gift from the heavens-
an unexpected surprise sent to complete our family
and she doesn’t care if I came slightly damaged

2 Years since my BPD diagnosis-Part 3: Healing through Storytelling

me at open mic sharing my story through poetry

As far as what my future holds for me, I’ve been doing a lot of long term goal planning and manifestations the past few years and that’s been working for me. Here’s a recent blog post I wrote about it:

goal setting

The past 2 years was me trying to find out who I was and what I wanted out of life. I had this very vague idea, almost like a sketch but now I have a clear picture of what that is exactly. Getting out of survival mode was crucial for this development and I’m excited about the future. One thing I can tell you is that there will definitely be more storytelling. In fact, for the month of September, I’m telling my story chronologically with some of the moments in my life that most impacted me. This came about organically as I was planning blog content for that month and I said, β€œfuck it, let’s do this” and β€œlet’s see what happens”. I think that so much of my healing happened because of my storytelling. It was important for me to retell my story because that’s how I took ownership of it. It helped turn me from a victim to heroine in my story and this has been monumental to my healing process. Of course, sometimes that looks crazy and messy but it only proves what a resilient and powerful Queen I am to still be standing despite the chaos and trauma I’ve been through. Here’s a poem I wrote in April about it:

Sharing my story

I’ve taken off my mask and stop repressing my true self-
And while it’s terrifying at time, I show the world my authenticity
and vulnerability
I share the parts of my story that are terrible, happy, sad, lovely, crazy, beautiful, and tragic
so others don’t feel alone and find solidarity
in my chaotic and bicultural story of love, rage, defeat, hate, and resilience
And bring to light my rich and vivid experience of the duality of being a rooted and rootless,
Peruvian and American, a hateful and kind woman living her life fearlessly and shamelessly

I restarted this blog a couple of summers ago as a way to cope with my mental breakdown and at the time I had only 17 followers and now I have more than 300 followers who have been incredibly supportive and encouraging throughout this self discovery journey. Thank you to all of you who have given me this safe space on the internet to share my story through blogging and poetry. This has been incredibly instrumental in helping me in my recovery from BPD . It’s given me a sense of love through community that I didn’t know could exist and I’m incredibly grateful and humbled by it. Anyways,if you’ve made it to the end of this blog post, you’re the best. I’m not sure what year 3 after my BPD diagnosis but I hope I continue to evolve and live a life with purpose for the betterment of myself and my kids.

It’s Bichota Season and like Karol G says, “La Vida es Mia”-it’s me and my meds against the world