Rara Avis

By Angela Acosta

I am not some rare bird,
a criticism masquerading as a compliment
thanks to your private school Latin.

Habito un universo plurilingüe de las lenguas romances.
I inhabit a multilingual universe of romance languages.

Am I still a bird
for my wings were clipped
and the songs I sing go unheard?

Mírame a los ojos.
Look me in the eyes.

My face is memorable
even when other Latinas
carry my same name and similar histories.

No me doy por vencida por tu fragilidad.
I am not giving up on account of your fragility.

I learned Spanish after generations of disuse,
but my feathers have a long lineage
of flocks flying high like the Andean condor.

No soy quien piensas, soy quien sueño ser.
I am not who you think, I am who I dream to be.

Angela Acosta is an emerging bilingual Latina poet from Gainesville, Florida. Her work has appeared in ¿Qué Pasa, Ohio State? and Rainy Day Literary Magazine with forthcoming Spanish poems in Pluma.