To be vulnerable about my experiences and to speak them out loud has been a huge challenge of not only figuring out what I was feeling but also to then express it out loud in as constructive a way as possible. These past weeks have been beyond devastating, bringing me back to reflect on my life and my upbringing as a Mexican-American girl of Mexican-American parents whose first language was Spanish and whose first jobs were in the fields as migrant workers.
Processing words for this blog post has been the most difficult to do after having learned of the atrocities that are being inflicted on my people. I learned early on about myself that spoken word made me uncomfortable, so I found a way to tell my stories through artistic expression, where I best felt a sense of safety. I’m absolutely angry. I’m beyond heartbroken. I have not been able to work as usual. I had to take time away from my flowers to teach myself something new and as a result I have been consumed on my sewing machine, making cosmetic bags. I want to help my people, my community. These cosmetic bags are going to be hygiene bags for those who need them. In times like these, when there are feelings of helplessness, I only want to help in the best ways I know how. I think back during my most vulnerable times and remember that care packages of personal hygiene products were so helpful.
We must come together to help each other in the best ways we know how. Stop listening to the rhetoric that our brothers and sisters are anything other than good.