Image by Aaron Cabrera
Identity appears in the colorful clothing
Of a quinceañera.
Vibrations of my mother tongue.
Remind my tongue to roll its rr’s and
Body language that is unequivocally a limitless rhythm.
Far from inconspicuous
Identity rolls out the many 1-hour waits
of developed film,
Capturing childhood instances where
Food was the central piece.
Surrounded by siblings, cousins, aunts and uncles
and the occasional visit of the grandparents.
The ever present systemic oppressors menacing.
I must push forward and respect Mother’s journey
In leaving her home country
For a future she saw in me.
Whispers and lullabies, in Mother’s tongue,
make an appearance when
A child runs across the playground with open arms.
In this journey,
assimilation and acculturation
make an
appearance
at every turn.
Resisting it seems redundant.
Yet the hold of Mother’s hand is far stronger.
Its potency varies
Caressing my cheeks as she
smooths out spanglish words
that
have slipped in.
Battle Cries By Mayte Castro
Image by Ana Carolina Mantelli
Recall the backbone in the quilt
Of the fifty stars.
Valor and resilience
Black Lives
Intertwined in the development of
The Empire.
Attention!
Countless agonies
Imposed by master’s
On Black Lives.
The travesty must resign.
Black lives venerated!
For freedom spreads its wings and soars
When Black lives matter!
Mayte Castro
Mayte Castro is originally from Southern California (daughter of Mexican parents). She teaches youth and young adults ages 16-21 at an Open Doors program in Martin Luther King County. She writes poetry that focuses on immigration, culture, travel, and self-expression as a road to healing generational traumas. Additional published poetry can be found in Brave Expressions, Poems to Lean On, Under Review, and Azahares.