To those who say
Our voices must conform
To proper English
And/or Spanish,
I offer you this
Humble poem—
This jaguar roar:
Mezclado,
With love and squalor…
I was born
To a proud
And ignorant
Mother who
Bravely immigrated
From the bucolic
Fields of Guanajuato;
After crossing to El Norte,
She stumbled as she
Landed on
The dry, gringo soil—
She spoke to me
With heavy chains of
Broken English—
But her turquoise heart
Was always full of love;
Her tranquil song
Reverberated in
The belly of
The sun.
...Please,
Cuauhtémoc,
Do not weep...
When I was placed
In ESL classes
In elementary school,
I yearned to join
The American students
In traditional courses—
I wanted to say
The pledge of allegiance
Without a hint of
A Chicano accent—
When that day
Finally arrived,
I was filled with
Yankee pride;
Today, I cherish
The memory
Of my Aubelo’s machete
Swiftly cutting the
Tuna del nopal—
At times,
Subtle sounds
Are more profound
Than the rigid
Perils of language.
...Por favor,
Cuauhtémoc,
No llores...
Tomorrow,
With the coming
Of the Sixth Sun:
I yearn to
Speak the
Silent language
Of sun-burnt peasants—
With a vibrant accent,
Colorful with
The pulse of
Ancient myth:
This serpent tongue—
This pride—
Cannot be colonized.
...Tlatlauhtilia,
Cuauhtemoctzin,
Amo ancoconetzitzintl…
Comments
Highhat | August 30, 2011 - 14:18
" this pride cannot be colonized"- such a poignant line.
I enjoyed this poem Jose.
" the silent language of sunburnt peasants "
and then "turquoise heart"- it could just have been a lilac heart - would have been just as beautiful but your poems are really so full of colour and folklore- they are truly a joy to read
;)Pia
Silver Spun Sand | August 30, 2011 - 16:36
Wonderful, Jose;-) Tina
Cavalcaderl | August 30, 2011 - 16:51
new JoseHdz
Just beautiful and very interesting.
Thankyou
julie
barryj1 | August 30, 2011 - 19:14
This poem wouldn't be half as powerful or meaningful without the Spanish references. I wouldn't be surprised to learn that other Hispanics can relate to this and the poem which follows with a tremendous sympatico and empathy.
Straddling two cultural fences is a good thing. You get to selectively choose the best of both worlds, which makes you a better man (and poet) in the bargain.
JoseHdz | August 30, 2011 - 19:56
thank you, Pia.. YOU KNOW WHAT, I initially had written 'lilac heart'... but then, i thought, no, I usually refer to 'lilac' romantically in my poems.. might be weird writing that about my mother.. hahahah
thanks again for your insightful words..
cheers,
jose hernandez diaz.
JoseHdz | August 30, 2011 - 19:56
thanks, Tina~!
JoseHdz | August 30, 2011 - 19:57
thanks, Julie~!
JoseHdz | August 30, 2011 - 19:58
thank you, Barry~!
I always appreciate your insightful comments. You are very helpful~!
You can check out some of my work in today's version of La Bloga.. a Latin American literary website..
cheers,
jose hernandez diaz.
ScoZen | August 30, 2011 - 22:09
Hola JH.
Barryj has said it all for me "...Straddling two cultural fences is a good thing..."
ps re the line "...With heavy chains of Broken English..."
I have that problem - I'm from Scotland
JoseHdz | August 31, 2011 - 00:18
Glad you liked this one, Zen..
I actually have the opposite problem where English is my native language and my Spanish is a little shaky, hahah...
thanks for reading,
jose..
tcook | August 31, 2011 - 18:03
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JoseHdz | August 31, 2011 - 19:45
Thank you, Tony~!
I had a lot of energy writing this piece...
Glad to see it paid off :)
Cheers,
Jose Hernandez Diaz.
Beeme | August 31, 2011 - 22:05
I agree- this is wonderful :)
Beeme xx
JoseHdz | August 31, 2011 - 23:31
many thanks, bee mee~!
barryj1 | September 2, 2011 - 16:43
Poem of the week - not bad!
celticman | September 2, 2011 - 17:11
great stuff. I always enjoy your poetry, but this is one of my favourites, the Spanish sounding words stick on my tongue and give extra ooomph.
Beeme | September 2, 2011 - 22:46
well done for getting poem of the week :)
beeme xx
JoseHdz | September 2, 2011 - 22:54
Thank you Barry, Celtic and Beeme!
Thank you, ABCTales for Poem of the Week~!
It is a great honor.. this site means a lot to me :)
cheers,
jose hernandez diaz.
JoseHdz | September 3, 2011 - 00:07
thank you, BR, nice of you to say ~~!
cheers,
jose hernandez diaz.
fatboy74 | September 4, 2011 - 01:07
a masterclass jose - well deserved POW. :-)
MaggieG | September 7, 2011 - 23:35
What I like about this the most Jose is you recall more the "Native" tongue (serpent? Mayan or Aztec ? I am leaning toward Mayan) then the European one. There was life before the Spanish Conquest wasn't there ? I adore Frido Kahlo's love affair with such as well.
"Mezclado,
With love and squalor…"
As a Lakota, I know that feeling well :)
JoseHdz | September 8, 2011 - 00:51
Thank you, FTB~!
Kind of you to say; appreciate your time in reading/responding to this piece.
hope all is well, friend.
jose hernandez diaz.
JoseHdz | September 8, 2011 - 00:54
Thanks, Maggie~!
Yes, this poem refers to aztec serpent mythology but i have used mayan mythology in my poetry as well..
I actually have more Purepecha (tarascan) ancestry in my blood, though..
thanks for reading~!
jose hernandez diaz.