Poem #17 - 30/30

Borders and Crossings



When the border crossed us did you suddenly remember?
Stories of people, prayers, and lights behind hidden doors
Did your mind's eye conger a vision of your famila, surrendered
Tossed from Andalusia to the Nueces River, forever more

Stories of people, prayers, and lights behind hidden doors
Your abuelos hiding kippahs under Spanish sombreros
Tossed from Andalusia to the Nueces River, forever more
Praying on Sundays to a forced God, made them Conversos

Your abuelos hiding kippahs under Spanish sombreros
Las abuelas lighting the soul of Friday night light in secret
Praying on Sundays to a forced God, made them Conversos
Always recalling that other exodus from Egypt

Las abuelas lighting the soul of Friday night light in secret
Hoping to pray away the ugly flames that fired hatred and sin
Always recalling that other exodus from Egypt
Wishing never to feel the fiery tongues that did the old believers in

Hoping to pray away the ugly flames that fired hatred and sin
When the Inquisitors killed Indios and familas merely for their faith
Wishing never to feel the fiery tongues that did the old believers in
Generations of grandchildren, try to learn the truth before it's too late

When the Inquisitors killed Indios and familias merely for their faith
Later history repeats, and we the descendants can not be defenders
Generations of grandchildren, try to learn the truth before it's too late
When the border crossed us did you suddenly remember?


© Odilia Galván Rodríguez, 2009


notes:


familia(s) - family, families

Andalusia, Spain - A region of southern Spain on the Mediterranean Sea, the Strait of Gibraltar, and the Atlantic Ocean. The area includes the historic towns of Seville, Granada, and Córdoba.

Nueces River - The border of one of the major Spanish Settlements in the "New World" called Nuevo Santander.

abuelo/abuela - grandfather/grandmother

kippah - A kippah is a thin, slightly-rounded skullcap traditionally worn at all times by observant Jewish men, and sometimes by both men and women in Conservative and Reform communities.

sombrero - In English-speaking countries sombrero typically refers to a type of hat originating in Mexico, although the word covers any other traditional hat, such as the Sombrero Cordobes from Spain. The English word sombrero is a loan word from Spanish, where the term is used to refer to any hat with a brim. It derives from the Spanish word sombra, meaning "shade" or "shadow"; a literal English translation is "shade maker".

Conversos - Conversos (Secret Jews) and New Christians were targeted because of their close relations to the Jewish community, many of whom were Jews in all but their name. Fear of Jewish influence led Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand to write a petition to the Pope asking permission to start an Inquisition in Spain.

In 1483 Tomas de Torquemada became the inquisitor-general for most of Spain, he set tribunals in many cities. Also heading the Inquisition in Spain were two Dominican monks, Miguel de Morillo and Juan de San Martin. More than 13,000 Conversos were put on trial during the first 12 years of the Spanish Inquisition. Hoping to eliminate ties between the Jewish community and Conversos, the Jews of Spain were expelled in 1492..

The Inquisition was not limited to Europe; it also spread to Spanish and Portugese colonies in the "New World" and Asia. Many Jews and Conversos fled from Portugal and Spain to the "New World' seeking greater security and economic opportunities.

Indios - literally: Indians but here also means First Nations peoples from U.S. and Mexico.