We all have struggles in our lives, areas in which we are lacking. Why are some of us so resilient?
This is the first of three poems which were commissioned by Houston Grand Opera for Houston Artists Respond, based on videos from Baker Ripley Community Center in Houston, Texas. I selected the stories of three women who immigrated to the United States from Latin America and interwove their experience with my feelings.
This poem tells the tale of a woman from Nicaragua who received her first pair of shoes at the age of sixteen, a hand-me-down from her mother’s employer. Never did a pair of plastic shoes bring about such joy, although that joy was laced with trial, as you will see. Nubia’s humor and strength of character are inspiring. How many of us, who I daresay have enjoyed more advantages, are as grateful as she is?
If you would like to read the other poems in the set, we have shared them here and here.