-For my grandmother-

You came to me
Like a wolf.
Wounded and limp,
Yet so firm within

You knelt over
And welcomed me
Into your territory.
An alien wasteland
So barren, and yet
So rich with life;
Like the cacti
That blossoms
Effortlessly,
Yet without ease.

They are born
Under the eye
Of a loving spirit,
Who works,
Ceaselessly
Always feeding,
Always giving,
Always nurturing;
Yet is still so distant.
So foreign.
So unknown from me.

Let me be the one
For you in this
Looming dusk.
Let me clean your wounds
And brush your fur.
I don’t need to speak.
I never do.

Let me give you thanks
For this land of color.
This beaming plain of
Sorrow and vigor.

Let me be your spectrum
As the shade draws near
Keep me abreast
Always and forever
As the eyelid folds
To bring twinkling
Tears of grief
For all to see.

-Juan Carlos Gomez