I AM

I am from a teacher, a bus driver, a factory worker, and a sarcastic student

I am from the tropical arid heat, hard working days in the hot sun, and lazy nights under roofs made of cardboard

I am from eating hot soup to stave away the heat, from hiding away, watching quietly as guerillas and soldiers patrolled the streets

I am from sunny skies with cool winds, from springs and summers spent at the park and beach, from fall and winter spent watching icy breath steam the air in a land with no snow

I am from sitting in a car, laughing at the skies while a city of owls spoke of dancing fireflies

I am from lounging in front of an empty fireplace listening to an old man sing while an old lady tells him once again not to burn the beans

I am from a lonely grandfather clock that never worked but every hour let out a loud gong

I am from Pide me La Luna, from Leo Dan, from Casas de Carton and many other songs the old man sung

I am from an empty parking lot, taking secret lessons in how drive as a sarcastic student would sit in the passenger seat making snarky remarks

I am from wrestling an old pit bull, laughing too loud in class, running home from school to see the old man on Wednesdays before he went to work

I am from crying quietly as La Mama Eva slowly died, from worrying about the old man when his car flipped in the air, from laughing as he showed off a tattoo that in reality was a scar

I am from wandering the house, yelling for keys, getting lost on the highway to places we'd been to a million times, and getting snowball to the face that was really ice

I am from watching the Grinch on Thanksgiving and Nacho Libre at Christmas, from playfighting every time I saw my cousin

I am from playing on a PS2 and arguing with a dwarf over the controller every time he would come over, from late nights hiding under covers reading books

I am from a crazy family, from a group of friends closer than brothers, from people who would die for me and I for them