For FXA, February 21, 1954 -
January 15, 2015
our mother water | cleared this day
a greener path | came down in thick ropes
ayer rituales | from that
cradle where you grew | all your traditions
rooted in some strong | long ago
red earth pregnant | possibilities
of that son you are | true to all
you have become | in this world of spines
that would sooner pierce | than
heal soul bodies with food | sacrificed from flesh
and the heart of it | is that life
is just like that | thorny to shield soft
and vulnerable | though we mimic
the strongest | ones rooted firme
deep in the forest | of our lives
that don’t last long | we make our own way
don't regret the turns | taken to
get to ends | that always come too soon
watch you breathe ragged | breaths
from their shallow nests | you eye me and see
my soul reaching out | to soothe
you hermano | as you struggle through
a warriors death | you are present
for it all | strong in your resolve
to experience | your passing like
your life | to the fullest
now you have taught me | one more
thing eye didn’t know | to die with courage
worn out your machine | called a
body a temple | and you want to dream
we demand dreaming | to take you
into next world | light to guide your way
we pray for comfort | want no fear
for your journey | in that place that calls you
near or far not gone | now the
people want to flock | to your side to touch
that flame before it goes out | but
not everyone | can be invited
to witness your flight | only the
very dearest | for it’s your journey
eye am close but far | or a little
distant | for fear of trampling
yesterday as you slept | eye read
you Snake Poems | your eyes flew open
you recognized | your own
incantations | spilling into the room
like watercolors | of our mother
blue | splashing the walls
with our laughter | we chased away
the shadows | tears became happy
eye am writing this | how we
communicate | curando con palabra
changing their lead | into spun
golden prayers | showers of pollen
to sprinkle hope | onto the heads
of this world | some so hard can’t see
you take your book | out of my
hands and recite | you channel from there
body in flames | a different sort
of burning | you down to ashes
| waiting to fly out of them |
resplendent in your journey
eye can’t imagine | a world without
you in it | brother born of word
you a love warrior | fighting to
stay present | to your last breath
eye struggle to know | what to say
now that words | no longer matter
| except as prayers | except as
incantations
we communicate by breaths | each
one marks pain and promise | you still here with us
when eye read your words | tears
spring to my eyes and fall | silently streaming
we are about the word | a business
that is not one | blessings upon all
you’ve left Francisco | body that
housed your spirit | now you’re all angel
beyond borders | you fly home to
ancestors | who wait with open arms
Davis, CA 12 - 15, Enero
Copyright © 2016 Odilia Galván
Rodríguez. All Rights Reserved.
