his parents left la isla
to return to Brooklyn.
No palm trees there.
How different his life would have been
if he stayed in that tiny casa,
in that tiny village,
surrounded by coconut trees,
and gallinas,
aunts that called him
“patas calientes.”
Maybe he would have married
una puertorriqueña,
their children raised to want
independence for that beautiful,
dreadful
island. At least it’s an island.
Author Bio:
Claire Aviles is originally from Austin, TX. She is a current senior at Boston College, where she is earning a Bachelor of Arts in English, with minors in Economics and in Music. She is also a freelance writer and editor for NaturallyCurly.com, a website dedicated to curly hair. She hopes to pursue a career that, in some capacity, involves writing and editing.
Claire’s work has been published at Marco Polo Arts Mag, Dead Beats, and *82 Review.