by Mireya Perez Bustillo
To: Paloma
It stood there guarding
…..that corner so close
…..to its boardwalk home
But the darkness kept me away
Maybe I peeked in once
But the dark waters
…..Pushed me out
I heard beauties swam there
But the waters made the darkness
…..fill me
But today when la familia said
they were going there
and the little one feeling
…..my fear
Said she’d hold my hand
I knew I would enter the waters
Mireya Perez-Bustillo writes poetry and fiction in Spanish and English. Her poetry appears in MOM’s EGG; Caribbean Review; Americas Review; Dinner with the Muse, IRP/LP2 Voices, among others. Her novel, Back to El Dorado (Floricanto Press, 2020), a Latina coming-of-age story, is available on Barnes and Noble and Amazon sites.