What's going on, Albuquerque?

The Sunday Poem: Maria Leyba... Las Madrecitas

Maria L. Leyba was born in The Women & Children's Hospital that once stood on Central & High. She was raised in Barelas where she still resides in her childhood home with her husband, Jerry. Presently she teaches preschool at A Child's Garden. She was born into a Mexican family of weavers & storytellers & has been writing all her life.

Las Madrecitas

Keep rising
lighting fires in
cold casitas rolling
tortillas ignoring
aches in elbows / hands.
They keep rising
singing “Buenos dias
de mi tata dios."
An unexplained joy
warms their hearts
knowing their familias
are fed before going
to work.
Madres from Barelas
keep rising wearing
those colorful bandanas
red lipstick / ugly shoes
singing their way to
the bus stop in front
of Woolworths.
All domestic workers
soaking up hope / dreams
laced in their chismes.
Buses will soon roll in
taking them to forbidden
homes of rich gringas,
still they keep rising
to greet the beautiful day.
Spanish flows from
their joyful lips, as they
tenderly embrace
each other like sisters.
This madre lost a son
to pachucos, another
has two sons in La Pinta
the one with the
curved back has cancer

the stoic one has a pregnant
14 year old. Some
try hard to hide their
bruises no one talks about
the boracho husbands,
one can’t stop crying her
oldest son just left for Viet Nam.

They embrace hermanas
with sons on the
football team
cheer for daughters
on the drill team
pretend to mock the
the brainy daughter
secretly wishing it
was their jita.
She’ll never be a
housekeeper or a slave
to her familia.
In those few minutes
at the bus stop on Central & 4th
they are comadres, hermanas
y vecinas who still love
life! Who need each
other to begin their
wretched day.
In their blissful chatter
they are renewed, energized
can face just about
anything.
As the last one enters the bus
their brightly colored bandanas
a sign of solidarity become
flags of peace/ hope waving
for all of Burque to witness
the day las madres de Barelas
rose on fumes of city buses
angels rising on days when
their familias lost all hope
breathing salvation wiping
away desperation
“Buenos dias de mi Tata Dios”

--Maria L. Leyba

Poetry submissions are welcome. Email theditchrider@gmail.com. The whole Sunday Poem series is available from the front page of the DCF by clicking on The DitchRider in the left-hand sidebar. Poems early in the series are archived under "previous post" at the bottom of The DitchRider blog.

Tags: Leyba, poetry

0 members like this

Comment by cc on December 20, 2009 at 8:53am: Oh Maria. I still say your voice, craft and what you say is the best.
-Cirrelda

Comment by Margaret Randall on December 20, 2009 at 9:29am: Great message and great poem! Thank you, Maria!

Comment by Ben Moffett on December 20, 2009 at 11:20am: As a South Valley kid and Albuquerque High student in the fifties, I can relate to this poem, the language, images and place names especially, and to a lesser extent the trials of doing domestic work for rich gringas. Well done. Do you write essays, too? They could be powerful.

Comment by Adelita on December 20, 2009 at 7:22pm: This poem speaks to me in ways you cannot imagine. Thanks so much!

Comment by bg on December 21, 2009 at 7:26pm: yes.

the day las madres de Barelas
rose on fumes of city buses
angels rising on days when
their familias lost all hope
breathing salvation wiping
away desperation

Comment by Barelas Babe on December 21, 2009 at 8:23pm: Magnifico as always, Maria! It was lovely to see you during Las Posadas de Barelas and to meet your familia. Thank you for enriching our barrio with your words and wisdom - we in Barelas are so fortunate to have a poet such as you in our midst.

Comment by Zachary Kluckman on December 26, 2009 at 11:23pm: Always a pleasure to read or hear your work Maria! Beautiful verse, crafted with the care and passion that makes you such a unique voice in an already richly talented community!