The following poem I wrote is dedicated to an awe-inspiring woman who has taught me that every day is a day worth watching. The day can bring new discoveries that can only be seen through patience and an inquisitive mind. This exceptional, beautiful woman happens to be my grandmother, Luz. Her heart of gold and selflessness inspired me to explore the ideas in my mind and allow them to flourish onto any canvas I came across.
Today I learned how to paint
With just four colors and my mind
Blue, brown, green, and white acrylic paint
With imagination as my paintbrush
I kept my eyes closed as Abuelita painted
With only memory to guide me,
I described each color as a scent;
Each scent connected to my own perception of the world
The color blue
Aging mold thriving on wet, rotting plywood harbors
Mingles into the ocean's stagnant, salty waters
A surprisingly humble abode to the fresh algae and creatures of the sea
The color brown
The fetid odor of decaying worms and manure
Embedded to give fertility to the earthy soil
A home for the living and the deceased
The color green
A release of petrichor during last night's heavy rainfall
A sweet scent of syrup produced by crisp cut grass
This morning's first and final breath
The color white
Lillies, daisies, and baby's breath in full bloom
Their aromas wafting through the sunny cotton fields
The comforting memory of a loved one gone too soon
I opened my eyes
And it was not the world I described
The painting revealed a different setting;
We both saw the world in Abuelita's mind
The colors blue, brown, green, and white
Depicts a mother giving birth to her child
The child glowed at the center as she felt the universe surround her;
"You are my world," Abuelita announced to me
Today I learned how to paint
With just four colors and my mind
Today we were going to paint the world
And painted it we did
