New Latino Poetry: Naomi Ayala

Naomi Ayala is a Puerto Rican poet who moved the continental United States as a young child. When she lived in Washington, D.C., she was able to establish herself as a poet and an environmental conservative. In addition, she also acted as an advocate for cultural affairs and co-founded a number of organizations involving social and cultural justice. Her poems, which are written in both Spanish and English, emphasize life as Latina living in the United States. Throughout her collection in The Wind Shifts (here), there are overlapping themes, but they all reflect her personal experiences, even if the speaker of the poem is not necessarily her. This is to say, in the poems "This Breathless Minute," "It Was Late and She Was Climbing," and "Within Me," not only act as bridges between Ayala and her audience, but also demonstrates a connection between having a Latino past and an American future. Without her poetry, readers would possibly not be able to understand such a relationship/struggle that many Hispanics experience--in conclusion, her poetry helps to break down boundaries that may have existed prior to her inclusive reflections about her life. 

Beginning with "This Breathless Minute," the poem mentions blood and how smooth and consistent it is. I believe that this image is to be taken literally. The first four lines state, "Our blood runs free forever before we ever / do. Do this, do that, but our blood glides / smoothly the way we sometimes wish / we could--." Relating this back to Ayala's personal experience, with Ayala being from Puerto Rico and immigrating to America in her adolescence, this may refer to the author's personal feelings involving her relocation. In clearer words, it means she is reflecting back and wishing that she never had to move in the first place. The next few images involve being "sick with the cancer," which I believe expose the author's strong feelings regarding the idea of assimilation with American culture. This image is reinforced with the verses starting on line 19: "but everybody's blood / is mixed into the blood that runs through here / and I can't tell my left foot / from my right hand." When Ayala moved to the United States, she may have felt that her individual culture was being removed as she became more "American." Because America is considered a "cultural melting pot," one may lose their sense of individuality and uniqueness that their community and heritage creates, thus causing the individual to feel as if they are losing themselves. A similar instance of "losing one's self and culture" is also mentioned in Richard Rodriguez's autobiography, in which he states that bilingual education led to the destruction of his family construct within his home. Once he was forced to start to speak English in his own home (due to the prompting of his instructors/nuns), he ultimately lost a personal connection between him and his parents. However, the speaker of the poem still has some hope and desire to want to become apart of her new community, especially when she states "I am trying very hard. I am trying very hard to stay inside this country." This country refers to America, and perhaps when she takes this breath (taking this based off the title), she does find herself losing part of her culture (and getting sick, as it's put) but she also gains a new one. 

Moving to "It Was Late and She Was Climbing," this may refer to her mother or another influential female figure in her life. Because the speaker of the poem is a mother, I am inclined to believe that this is not from Ayala's perspective, considering Ayala was a child when she moved. The poem simply states that the subject is climbing up a hill, but gives no location. I do not find this to be a literal statement-- rather, I would like to believe that the mother is attempting to overcome some sort of obstacle. Obstacles are often referred to as mountains, and so when someone overcomes an obstacle or difficult circumstance/situation, it is called "climbing the mountain." I believe that this individual might have been influential because of the imagery of light "[spilling] out from her belly." The poem goes on to say "she went on blinding birds / & men & children / & women showed up to her house wearing visors." This light could represent hope and so she is sharing it with everyone. Perhaps, then, it would be safe to say that because she is such an important figure, she might even represent (to the other individuals in the poem) perseverance and act as some sort of a saint. By being humble, however she gains the ability to "grow small enough / to fit into her climbing." This line could then represent that the subject of the poem did not become the experience; rather, she simply overcame it and has become just another individual rather than an extremely important one that should be recognized. 

Finally, in "Within Me" (audio located here), the speaker is expressing some frustration she holds with the world and states that she has some sort of friendly connection with war. It is probably more appropriate to say anger. With the line, "I see her weapons in the eyes of a child," I am inclined to believe that the speaker is reflecting on her childhood. This also leads me to believe that the speaker is most likely Ayala herself. If we are to connect this poem with "This Breathless Minute," the war that she would like to experience and/or befriend may simply be the frustration involved with moving from Puerto Rico to the United States and being forced to assimilate into a new culture. This frustration may also lead Ayala to becoming the cultural advocate that she eventually becomes later on in her life. This anger seems to envelop the speaker, especially when she says, "It is with me that war begins / right here on my street / in the small showers of bullets / in an empty garbage can / in what I say and do not say / in the bewitching ivy of tedium / in the soap I use to bathe. / She is in my fingers / in the shadow of my eyes / in my lover's hair" (lines 17-26). However, linking the two poems, she takes a breath to allow herself to understand the new American culture she has become apart of before "sing[ing] to her so that she may leave / so that war leaves me." This breathing allows understanding and then the singing allows all the anger to disappear so that Ayala can become a successful member of her new community.

In summary, these above poems all link to Ayala's personal experience in some format. To be more specific, in "Within Me" Ayala reflects on her feelings about assimilating into a different culture through a child's perspective; in "It Was Late and She Was Climbing," Ayala reflects on her mother and relies on  her in order to learn how to overcome her inner conflict regarding being a New Latino in American society; and in "This Breathless Minute," Ayala speaks of the whole process of assimilation and how she is learning of understanding her new community. These series of poems help to educate readers outside of any international/foreign body about how an individual may feel from moving from one location to another and the struggles that are involved, thus eliminating the boundary that had been set previously. These poems also help to bridge different communities of immigrants to show similarities between cultures. Ultimately, this project shows that connections can be formed no matter what someone's ethnicity or race may be and helps to form a more cosmopolitan experience for everyone.