(To Dr. Adelina A. Barrion,
September 9, 1954-July 10, 2010)

You expertly explained to me
sources of variation,
and the role of mutation,
much of the raw material
for the mighty driver - selection
and along the way
I also learned acceptance.
Everything, everyone
can be the same and unique
at the same time
And it’s perfectly alright
to be different.

You demonstrated
how encoded messages
for passing on traits
within populations
change in frequencies
and distributions,
how nature makes blind choices
how the fittest survives
and I learned deeper
my evolution.

Unconsciously, you made
aspiring for genuine honor
and excellence
more deeply rooted
in the loci of the heart
and the helices of the mind.

You taught me genetics
but you made me learn
Life is to be enjoyed,
much, much greater
than its four letters.

You proved -
great teachers never die,
they always live
in the lessons they give.