Poetry by Erica Leal
Edited by Naomi Acosta & Velondra Melendez
To the world she embodies a grace beyond compare,
One that never falters or loses its light.
Built from the backs of the people before her,
She carries their dreams– their esperanzas;
The songs of a million souls contained within one.
From the infinite sea of light emerges new tribulations,
The same world that admires her drains her.
She finds shelter in the shadows, hiding in the echoes of laughter from those around her,
Providing a troubled sense of comfort.
Buried in the vastness of loneliness,
She shoulders the weight of the world.
Away from the noise, away from the world’s expectations,
The question of self emerges.
Who is she to me? Who is she to you? Who ought she be?
¿Quién es ella?
In searching, all she finds is pressure,
Her color diminishing into the gray of conformity.
Mourning a life lost to the collective,
A life never truly lived.
As she hides, she finds flickers of unexplored dreams,
Left behind in fear of disappointing others or maybe even herself.
They taunt her like mariposas in the wind,
Eagerly trying to take flight, but struggling to make it off the ground.
Unsure whether to turn back or continue onward,
She stands at a borderline,
Between who she wants to be and who she thinks she should be.
An aching heart in the eye of the storm,
She decides to step into the sun.
Free from the hands of the sculptor,
She no longer molds herself to fit expectations;
She simply exists.
With her newfound power, she emerges in gorgeously vibrant color,
Her radiance beaming into the darkest of corners.
Unapologetic she stands,
Her soul ablaze with esperanza of her own.
A sweetness in the air, the air of liberation, guides her;
In the ever-changing world, her story begins.
No tengas miedo mija,
Es parte de la vida.
Abre tus alas y vuela como las mariposas:
Ve a buscar quién eres.
Artist Statement: “Mariposa” is a poem that explores the sense of expectation and pressure that one places on themself by trying to carry forward the dreams of others, rather than their own. Coming from an immigrant family, this pressure is familiar– there’s a want to do right by your family because they’ve made it possible for you to be where you are today. However, there comes a time when one learns that it is okay to choose yourself. At its heart, “Mariposa” expresses the fear and excitement of finding who you are, rather than who you are expected to be.