Where I'm From

I am from the Middle East,
From deserts and ruins.

I am from the heavily guarded house, with four different guards and spikes surrounding.
From the smoke, who's scent has come from far off in the distance.

I am from the small patch of grass,
The oasis between the sand.

I am from the Colombian groups and Bolivian friends.

From being able to do anything,
And from being cut from the soccer team.

I am from the catholic family,
The family that goes to church once every two years.

I'm from Colombians,
And a long family tree painted with yellow, blue, and red leaves.
But I'm from kebabs and shawermas.

From the time my sister fell off a camel,
The time my dad rolled down a sand dune,
And the time we watched shooting stars deep into the night, on top of the orange boulder, listening to the howls of the coyotes.

I am from those moments.
A latin tree cast into the East.
Where I am from is not where my sprout emerged from the ground, but where my branches reached out to the world.

Book Review: Left for Dead

Beck Weathers titled his book “Left for Dead” mostly because on his expedition to Everest, he was literally left for dead. After being found and left on the cold ground with his dead friend, he got up as “a dead man walking” and stumbled back into camp. Although the title had a literal aspect, this event was reflected on his relationship with his wife and kids.

This memoir is about Beck Weathers, a middle-aged man trying to find a distraction from his suicidal thoughts. That is why Beck turned to mountain climbing. And although this was a way to keep him from killing himself, it was also tearing him apart from his family.
This book is put into several forms. It ranges from his encounters on Everest and his present tense thoughts. There are also parts where the people in the memoir write, such as his wife, the person who saved him, etc.

In his memoir, Beck realizes that he really does want to live, and that he has so much to live for. This memoir is Beck’s revival. Much like most details in this book, his revival can be related to his encounter on Everest and in his personal life.

This book would be recommendable to mountaineers, but not to those looking for a meaningful book that captivates them. To me, this book was slow and, even though I could relate to some of the places he went in Nepal, (e.g. The Ciwek Clinic.)it was also uninteresting.

Lines We Love:
“I had a lot of class, all of it low.” This was referring to how he acted around his family before his realization.

What I Believe

By Pablo E. Castillo

I believe in a beautiful sunrise,
But only when the world is still asleep.

I believe in dreams and nightmares,
But only because they both exist in the real world.

I believe in a better tomorrow.

I believe in mistakes,
Because the mistakes you make will define you, and make you a better person.

I believe we all lie to ourselves,
Because nobody likes the truth.

I believe that the smallest things can change a person,
Like a small tug of a pin can cause an explosion.

I believe in hope.

I believe in free speech,
But not when the words spoken are filled with threats.

And I believe in a peaceful battle,
Or a revolution,
Because the world will change for the better,
Past perfection.

The world will move forward,
Fueled by hopes,
And beliefs.

Once Upon A Time In Mexico

In Mexico, the people lived peacefully in their polytheistic society. One day, Spaniards came to the land of Mazatlan in ships, riding horses. The Mexicans did not know who these Spaniards were, and the regal creatures they rode upon were not familiar to the people. The Mexicans, although with some dissension, concluded that they were gods. They assimilated the Spaniards into their society and welcomed them into their land. The Spaniards decided to play along, but they knew they had to be meticulous with what they said or did, as they planned to conquer the land, and because of this conspiracy, they came to be known as the Conquistadors.

As the Mexicans came to know more about these Spaniards, they started to lionize them. They were fascinated by the technology they had in Spain. Because of this idolization, the people were fooled and deceived the day that the Conquistadors overthrew Great Mexico’s power.

Without A Gun

Morning comes,
My alarm goes off,
I get up off of those papers,
Those empty papers,
That I haveto turn in,
I slovenly put them into my binder.

Walking into the entrance,
I can't believe I have the audacity,
To go in unprepared,
My life in strands,
It's like walking into war,
Without a gun in my hands

Teachers tell me to take out the paper,
And I do as I'm told,
It rankles them,
As they watched my empty page unfold.

I stay there,
Lackadaisical as I came,
And take the rebuke,
My expressions the same.

She takes the paper,
He rebuffs my work,
It's like walking into war,
Without a gun in my hands.

Book Review: Among the Hidden

Among the Hidden

Margaret Peterson Haddix has started an intriguing sequence of books called the Shadow Children. The first book, Among the Hidden, is about a young boy named Luke Garner who is forced to live as a recluse because he is a third child. The thing about being a third child is that they are illegal in this dystopian society created by Margaret Haddix. This law is enforced by the population police, and it’s penalty, is death.

Luke, although completely terrified of the population police, has a thirst for adventure. He wants to go out and explore the world like the people in the books he read (the books that keep him entertained while locked up in the attic. His curiosity towards the outside world leads to him looking out of a small vent that he has in his room with a view of his whole neighborhood, where he analyzes all of his neighbors. Studying their homes and lifestyles, even though he doesn’t know their names. He fills this lack of information by calling the families by the attributes they consist of. A family that does sports everyday is the Sports Family, a family with a lot of birds is the Birdbrain Family, a family with all blond hair is the Gold Family, and so on. So after weeks of familiarizing himself with his neighbors, he sees something very odd in the Sports Family’s house. A child, in a house where two others, already live…

This is a start to a great series of books. If you’re looking to be entertained for a long time, I suggest you start with Among the Hidden by Margaret Peterson Haddix.

My Sister

Is a peacemaker,
Stopping me from being infuriated.

A savior,
Picking me up when I'm down.

An executioner,
Hurting all that hurt me first.

She is a fragile glass,
One push,
And she breaks.

She is a strong wind,
Pushing against my back,
Urging me to keep on going.

Because of her I'm resilient,
Because of her I'm resistant,
Because of her,
I'm stronger.