From “Speaking River” by Rodney Gomez

From "Speaking River"
by Rodney Gomez

I used to be you, declaiming
              use the jowls
              muscle my brown protest  out
easier to expel
than imbibe
              saying without saying

A lot of local poets write about the river. The River. It is a part of our anatomy, especially those of us with familia en la otro lado. The river quenches the thirst of our roots, nourishes it. It is a beautiful sight.

And yet, it has been colonized and marred with the title of border. The fascists want to cut off access to its beauty by building a wall. It’s a type of terrorism on the Valley, on the River, on Nature herself.

You can read “Speaking River” in full in Mouth Filled with Night by Rodney Gomez.