Borderlands

To live in the borderlands means you

Walk the earth with a hyphenated existence

Neither here nor there,

With memories of the motherland disappearing year after year

And replaced by colors of red, white, and blue

To live in the borderlands means knowing

The language of your Lola

But not being able to speak it back to her -

You makes noses bleed as your mother tongue

Is replaced by the American dream

Cuando vives en la frontera

You must calm down your mind

Stop your heart from beating out of your chest

As you stand amongst a group of people whose eyes you can’t look at

For fear that they might hurt you

To live in the borderlands means to

Replace pork, beef, chicken, and fish with tofu

Even if you crave your mother’s dishes,

Even if it’s what connects you to home -

You build your own home now, your own future

Where you love ​both​ your mothers

Living in the borderlands means you fight hard to

Keep yourself afloat in a sea of ignorance

And to find your voice so others don’t have to be silent -

You put that pen to that paper,

And point that camera to those in the shadows

To live in the borderlands means

You are aware of the eyes on your back

As you hold your white partner’s hand;

Ashamed of the desires in your mind

And afraid of saying the word, “girlfriend”

To survive in the borderlands

You must play along to a game that wasn’t built for you -

You smile, suppress, and nod along in silence;

You try to protect yourself

To thrive in the borderlands

Means you learn to beat them in their own game;

Where you live a life that honors those who came before you and those after you -

A life where you use your pain to create beauty,

A life where you’re finally at peace with yourself.