30 thoughts on “Asynchronous Assignment on Estamos Aquí, Poems by Migrant Farmworkers”

1. The poem I chose to discuss is ‘A Memory of My Childhood’ since it reminds me a lot of my family back in Bangladesh. What interested me the most is the shift of the author’s mood from sad to happy—it brings a sort of hope for the reader. Like I mentioned before, reading this poem reminds of my family back in Bangladesh since there was recently a flood there that made me worry for their safety. Just like the author, I felt helpless, but now know I can help by sending them things they need especially after the flood; and just like the author, I was happy to find out that luckily, my family in Bangladesh were well after the flood as it did not have a big impact on their village. I could “translate” this experience of longing to mine since I have longed to want my family in Bangladesh to not only be well over there but come to the United States so when a natural disaster occurs, we would not be separated and worried from abroad—especially since Bangladesh is a developing country where their resources are already scarce enough without any natural disasters. Here, we at least have a good number of resources to at least thrive on.

   1. I can relate to you when you mention that how that specific poem reminds you of your family back in Bangladesh because for me it reminds me of my family back in Mexico. You also mention how the author’s mood changes. At first, he sees the sadness in his childhood and then at the end he is thankful for his family. One line I related the most was “I felt desperate as a child, unable to do anything” because as a child I would hear how my family needed help back in Mexico and my parents had to send money. Although I have my immediate family living with me, I still have family in Mexico and now that I am older and work, I can support my family in Mexico financially. At times I do feel helpless especially when earthquakes occur in Mexico because it is a common thing to happen over there and can be deadly. I think we can both relate to the worriedness we both have when it comes to our family that live far from us because we can’t be with them and they can’t be with us. But at the end of the day if they are safe then that gives us a sense of relief.

   2. Hi there, Mohammed.

      I don’t relate as strongly as you do, as my family is alright back in the island. But I do remember seeing the interest and shared goal of many of my neighbours to move to the U.S. I particularly had a friend in preschool whose family tried really hard to move to the states but always returned after two or three months for different reasons. I didn’t hear of them again but something tells me they made it thanks to their insistence to be here. Also with granddaughters of my next door neighbours, one moved to here and she has been doing well for herself, and the other moved to Spain with her mother and they appear to be doing much better than when they were in DR. It’s sad to me because I saw cases where people were doing great back at home and also saw the lives of others who got better when they moved out, sad that there’s not as many opportunities back home and that people see the need to migrate left without options, even though I firmly believe that if politics were more organized in DR there wouldn’t be such a big diaspora, but that’s another topic.

      I really like the last lines. “I thank God for what He has given me, and also for what He has taken away.” Especially the “what He has taken away.” since many forget some things and circumstances are better off gone.

   3. I agree that the poem, “A Memory of My Childhood,” shifts from sad to happy in order to give hope to the reader. “I remember my childhood,/ the poverty/ of my people,/ wanting to get ahead,/ powerless to do so./ I felt desperate as a child,/ unable to do anything.” The poet felt helpless in the past because of his poverty-stricken community, so he felt powerless since he could not do anything about it as a child. Americans seldom experience this as children because childhood for privileged Americans is a time of innocence. Children should never experience this, but resources are drained from their communities in order to uphold the power of the western countries. After years have passed, the poet and his family pass these feelings of desperation. His family is all well due to his battered hands and his effort having not been in vain. The poet expresses hope because he managed to pull himself and his family out of poverty through hard work. The last two lines embody the poet’s feelings because the poet feels a sense of hope but also helplessness. “I thank God for what He has given me,/ and also for what He has taken away.”

2. I chose the poem “Remembering” because it represents the sacrifice migrants make to create a better life for themselves and their loved ones. The last two lines of the poem, “I left my family behind / I left behind a piece of my life,” evoke emotions of loneliness and isolation that let the reader understand the severity of their situation. The reason the speaker is a migrant in the first place is to provide for his family, yet his family is also a part of him that he misses dearly. This poem also expresses the emotions of those who remain after their loved ones leave; it is not easy for them to be apart from their family and, as the poem says, the speaker’s wife “tries to write to [him] every day,” illustrating how much they love each other, but also showing how difficult it is for his wife to be apart from him. The title “remembering” can also signify how migrant workers use the memory of their loved ones to combat the hard work they do, seeing as how many of them do not get to see their families for years on end. I found that this poem reminds me of a Youtube documentary called Bittersweet Harvest: America’s migrant farmworkers. The documentary follows the lives of migrant farm workers in the U.S and the conditions they work in. One worker they focus on is Jose Manuel, who like the speaker in the poem, talks about providing his children in Mexico a better future and the isolation he faces in the U.S. away from his family. Documentary link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p1lhHdfeHzw

   1. Hey Brianna, I can agree with your ideas about the sacrifices a migrant needs to make in order to create a better sustaining life for not only themselves but for their family that gets left behind in the motherland. I also agree that the use of the last two lines “I left my family behind, I left behind a piece of my life” encapsulates the essence of this poem. Brianna mentions that it evokes emotions of loneliness and isolation but it also demonstrates that migrant workers have no other choice than to continue working as otherwise their families back home won’t be able to support themselves with the poor wages provided where they reside. Despite being born in the United States, I am still able to relate this poem to my parents as both my mom and dad came to the United States in hopes of being able to sustain my grandparents from abroad. Although they are providing for my grandparents back in Mexico, I do see how both of them have essentially also left behind a piece of their lives in search of better opportunities here in the United States. Up until recently, they haven’t been able to go back to Mexico and have now spent more time in the United States than in their home country which also affects them mentally because they leave family behind and do not get to have those family moments that they used to which goes back to the point isolation. The use of this poem definitely displays an experience that all immigrants face when deciding to venture to the United States in hopes of economic stability for their families and it is important to show that this does not only affect them physically but mentally as well.

   2. Brianna,
      I really admire how you shine light on the hardships migrants go through to create a better life for themselves and the family who stay in their country. I feel that the two quotes you picked were extremely important to demonstrating the deep emotion of sadness and isolation migrants feel on a day to day basis. Moreover, you mentioned in your discussion that the title itself “Remembering” symbolizes a memory, a memory in which migrants recall to remind them why they continue to work hard. In reference to that idea, I was able to build a connection from my own experience. Specifically, when I worked with a colleague who still had family in Mexico and mentioned to me how difficult it is moving to a country other than your own. He also mentioned how his family is what drives him to work hard so one day he can reunite in the United States with them. Further I appreciate the visual you shared about migrant workers and the conditions they endure to make a living. Awesome discussion Brianna!

   3. Hey Brianna thanks for sharing that short documentary I’ll for sure give it a watch! It’s insane what majority of migrant have to sacrifice just to provide for their loved ones back home. I my self have worked with many migrant workers in the past and the story’s they’ve told about their journey getting to America and the daily struggles they face is very saddening. As you said many get up every morning with one mind in goal and that’s make enough money to provide for them selves but also to send back home to their family, love is a very strong motivator for these hard workers.

   4. Brianna, the poem that drew my attention most was “Past Times”, which has similarities to your analysis. I can relate to this personally; My grandmother immigrated to the US in the 70s and was responsible for bringing over the rest of her family. Now that she has retired, i’ve gotten to hear positive, uplifting stories about the good times in her life before she even knew she was going to immigrate. Being able to recall those times while you are struggling to start a new life can be extremely helpful. On the other hand, the last two lines of the poem that you brought up: “I left my family behind / I left behind a piece of my life”, is something I believe to be unavoidable. Part of you will always be able to recall times of your life in different ways once it is in the past.

      1. (Con’t) It is up to the individuals circumstances how they use those memories. Immigrating to that states is difficult no matter what path you take. The reasons to which people do so is also varying, which creates a sense of common understanding between immigrants and their families, and is a leading reason why poetry like this is created.

      2. the poem I mentioned is actually “A Little Sadness”.*****

3. Hi Brianna, I agree with your notion of the poem you chose because it does indeed symbolize the sacrifices that Latino migrant farm workers had to make for better opportunities so that they can provide for their family. Even though I was born here in the United States, I still saw this poem as relatable to my life as a Latino-American because my grandparents from both sides of my family migrated here from the Dominican Republic to the U.S. to have better opportunities to provide. And even though my family lives here in the United States they are still communicating with their families who reside in their home country. But this also shows how different times are because it was very difficult for migrant workers to bring all of their close family all at once emphasizing the life of poverty they were living in Mexico or in Central America.I think you did a great job explaining and going into debt with great details. I also found the video you posted interesting,it compliments your response very well as it still shows not only how migrant workers were decades ago but how they’re still living today, trying to survive through their hard labor.

4. One poem that I thought exemplified some of the main themes present across the entirety of “Estamos Aquí” was “Un Recuerdo Triste/A Sad Memory.” A theme present in this poem and almost all others is the idea of national identity and home, often synonymous with family members who remain in the cities and villages they are leaving. In this poem, Francisca Camacho C. recounts risking her life to cross the border with her children, thinking about how she was “leaving [her] country—so rich,/ and at the same time so poor” (27). This quote made me think back to the first poem in the collection, “Para México/For Mexico,” where Jaime Trejo speaks of her beautiful and “fearless” country, lamenting that it is “so far from God/ and so near the United States” (17). Camacho, Trejo, and the other poets in the collection did not leave their countries to willingly escape, but because they were forced to leave the places they called home and the nations they identified with. One of the biggest tragedies migrants endure is having to leave their homes, countries, and families behind, and for many — including the poets featured in this collection — these three are inseparable. While my family has not endured the same hardships and experiences detailed in these poems, I’ve noticed them express similar sentiments regarding family and homeland. Both sides of my family do not identify with the U.S. and came here only to better their financial circumstances, and I’ve also noticed several of my relatives often lament about not being able to see their family in Puerto Rico or live where they grew up.

   1. Hi Gabriel,
      I agree with your thoughts and the examples provided to support the idea of reconciling with cultural identity and your native country when leaving home. There is a reoccurrence of the idea that each migrant must face the decision of enduring the journey to the US to provide for their families to escape hardship. Similarly, my parents also came to the US to avoid poverty in El Salvador, and came here to better their financial circumstances. The collection of poems touches upon the emotional implications of these difficult processes and what the motivating factors are for migrant farmworkers to come to the US.

5. Although my mother is Dominican and not Guatemalan, the poem “When I Came Here” by Roman Belasques reminds me of my mom. Belasques talks about how he still thinks about his family while he’s in the United States. There’s this song called “Extraño Mi Pueblo” by Frank Reyes, (translation: I miss my town) which reminds me of this poem because it mentions missing where you’re from and your family. it’s a song every Dominican who emigrated from the Dominican Republic sing from the top of their lungs. Frank Reyes sings, “Today I am far away. I miss my town, where I was born. My family thinks I’ve forgotten them, but no, it’s not like that. I would like to go back, but I cannot. I have dreams to meet. I suffer a lot without them, but I want to make them happy.” There was a time I interviewed my mom for a project and she told me almost exactly what the song says. She misses D.R. and her family but she had to leave because she wanted a better future for herself and her future kids. I feel like if my mom read Belasques’ poem she would be able to resonate with it and also draw similarities between the poem and Reyes’ song.

   1. It’s difficult to leave behind your native country because you’re always going to feel like you’re missing something. My parents are the same way, they are very grateful for the opportunities they have here in the U.S but they always worry about the family back home. My parents are always remembering where they came from and they try to give back to our family as much as they can. Your post was very well put Amanda and I could agree that my parents would also relate to the poem like your mom will.

6. I chose “A Dreadful Journey” by Valentín Lucas because it highlights the struggles of an immigrant. The many struggles of an immigrant start with the journey into the U.S. before facing other issues such as racism, lack of good work opportunities, pathway to citizenship, etc. In the poem, Valentín discusses how 150 people were stuffed in a trailer for 32 hours without leaving the trailer the entire time, not even for the bathroom. This poem reminds me of my father and grandmother’s experience migrating to America, they traveled here separately and differently but both were difficult to say the least. The journey was very long and brutal as they migrated from the center of South America, Bolivia, to New York. The poem states, “Because of our ambition to arrive here, in the United States, we endured it. Then fresh air, a little town. We arrived.” This closing line resonated with my family because they were happy to make it safely and start their new lives. I love hearing the stories from my family members on their journey into the United States because it’s a reminder of the strength and determination that runs through our people and is very inspiring to know that this was done for the safety and prosperity of our family. A film I can relate this poem to is “I’m No Longer Here” on Netflix. The film shows the difficulties of an immigrant boy migrating to New York for his safety. The protagonist endured many challenges that show a dreadful journey in America in order to escape the dangers of his homeland. I believe it takes a lot of courage to leave everything you know behind and start over in an unknown place for the greater good.

   1. Emily,
      Your explanation about this poem resonated with me because my dad’s family also migrated here except they all came together. They traveled from El Salvador to New York and struggled, but they arrived safely. The closing line definitely hit different because it conveyed the relief the author had at arriving and it made readers feel exactly that, relief. This poem was strengthening in a way because they endured a hard journey because of their ambition. The movie you mention in your discussion, I have never heard of, but I’ll have to watch it because the synopsis you gave piqued my interest to say the least. And I agree with your statement that it does take a lot of courage to leave everything you know behind in order to start anew.

7. For Mexico by Jaime Trejo is such a great account for having pride for where you come from. The writer did a great job establishing the love Latin people have for their birth place, their home. Being half Dominican I didn’t really have the privilege to visit DR due to not really associating with that part of the family much. This poem set my mind to go to the homeland anyway and dive deep into that part of my identity I haven’t fully grasp yet. Jaime Trejos writing brings out emotion’s behind the feelings you get when talking about where you grow up. His creative choices show that Latin Pride is real and the bed stuff about those communities are not always highlighted.

   1. Dasia, I definitely agree with you in the sense that the poem For Mexico by Jaime Trejo is about having pride in where one comes from. Personally, for me this poem reminds me of my immigrant mom. My mom unlike many other immigrant parents is lucky enough to be able to visit her home country because she was able to receive her citizenship. However, unlike other people my mom doesn’t consider herself American first. She is grateful to have had the opportunity to be a citizen, and pursue a safer life than the one she had in Colombia but she is immensely proud to be Colombian. She lives and breathes Medellin, and even isn’t fond of us speaking English at home. She wanted us to be as connected as possible to her home country, and even though she can only visit for two weeks a year because of work, she’d send my sister and I every single summer. One part that truly stood out to me was where it says, “Mexico lindo y querido, si muero lejos de ti, que digan que estoy dormido y que me traigan a ti”. My mom has always said that she wants repatriation if she were to die before her time, or that if she gets to old age she wants to live out her retirement in her home country with her siblings. I think it’s interesting how you can take the immigrant out from Latin America (in this case) but not the Latin America from the immigrant.

8. The poem “Because of Poverty” by Ademar Pérez Gálvez, accurately depicts the story of immigrants that have to leave their families behind; seeking for a better future for themselves and for their families. They know that it will be extremely difficult leaving them all behind, but there is no choice, as poverty forces them to leave. This poem is something I identify with, as my dad was in the United States as me and the rest of my family stayed back in Mexico. As a child I struggled to understand why I didn’t have a father figure, when most children my age did. But what my childhood mind did not understand is that my dad was struggling being in a new country, where he didn’t speak the language, where he felt alone and was alone. He recounts the countless stories of him crossing the border, and having to hide as he crossed illegally back in the 90s. One of the stories which he often retells is when him, his brother and a few other men were taken hostage by a cartel, and told that they would kill them all. They threatened my dad to kill his brother in front of him, to get him to settle down and shut up. This is one of the many stories which immigrants often tell, the stories of the struggles and pain they had to go through in order to provide their family with a better future. Thanks to this sacrifice my dad made, I along with my sisters have a better life than him and my mom ever had, and because of his sacrifices we now have a way better future ahead of us.

9. From “Estamos Aqui,” I chose to discuss the poem “Lo Primero Que Hice” by Alberto Sactic. I chose this poem because of its analysis of the conflicts involved in the difficult decision to leave your home country and immigrate to a new country in search of better opportunities. Alberto Sactic, just like previous poet Roman Belasques of “Cuando Me Vine,” discusses that despite it being a decision he made together with his wife and them both agreeing that it was for the best, it was still painful to know he was leaving behind his family. I am able to relate this poem to my personal experience because my father is actually also from Guatemala. Back in Guatemala, my father worked 3-4 jobs at a time to put food on the table for his family; as a result, he decided to leave Guatemala for better job opportunities in the US. Like Sactic, my father found comfort in the idea of knowing there were other Guatemalans like him in the US; he was actually fortunate enough to have brothers in the US to support his transition. Yet despite the allures of the US, it was still incredibly difficult for him to remain here, knowing that his two year old son and then wife were back home in Guatemala. After about a year and a half or two in the US, he decided to return to Guatemala to be with his family.

10. The poem “Trabajando/Working” reminded me a lot of my best friend’s experience coming to this country. I think this poem highlights the conflicting feelings many migrants must face, as it’s extremely difficult to be away from your home and from your loved ones, but you know that by leaving you’re benefiting them more than you can back home. In this poem, Emigdio Morales describes why he wants to back home, to finish building his house and finally meet his newborn daughter for the first time. However, he knows that if he does not continue working, he will not have enough money to stay for as long as we would want to and do everything that he wants to do when he gets back home. So he is forced to stay longer, missing his family, but he knows that is what he has to do.
    This story reminded me of my friend, who came to New York with his father to start working in order to provide for their family back home. He would talk all the time about missing his baby sister, who he hardly had time with, and missing being back at home. He is now able to visit home regularly, but it was much more difficult for him and his father to be away for months or years at a time when he was younger because they had to stay here and work.

    1. Great work Taina! I loved how you compared and shared the experience of your friend’s journey coming to the U.S. I most definitely agree with your statement that it is extremely difficult to leave to drop everything and leave behind your friends, family, and anything you may have owned. My dad is an immigrant and when he fled his country, his had to leave his own farther behind because he was a doctor and doctors were not allowed to leave the country. Everyone individual case differs in its own way but many immigrants of different countries have similar journeys when fleeing and coming to America.

11. I chose the poem ‘ A Dreadful Journey’, in which the narrator describes the journey of undocumented immigrants into the United States. I chose this one because this is a topic that really impacts me. While reading the poem I could not help but think of all the news stories about similar journeys that have gone wrong. Journeys in which immigrants full of hope end up losing their lives, and just because the people they entrust their futures to, take advantage of them. this is truly a dreadful journey, but it is also a journey full of hope, which really resonates with me. I am a hope driven person, and even at the darkest moments, I rely on hope to make it through. So, while I hate that people have to go through such a horrible thing in order to be in a better place, I am also glad that they never lose hope. Another sentiment from the poem that resonated with me was that of ambition. I believe that ambition is an important part of life, because if we never strive for something, then we will remain stuck for our entire lives. ambition is what drives us to better things, and ambition is what drives immigrants to risk their lives and leave everything behind.

12. When reading the poem from Estamos Aquí one that really stood out to me was the poem “Dia de los Muertos”. Being Mexican-American, and growing up with immigrant parents this day brings our community together in the same way the poem describes. The title initially drew me in, but the author’s explanation of the event as “the anniversary” is something I never considered describing it as. Further, the middle stanza uses emotions to express the importance of unity in this day, which is particularly significant in many Latinx traditional events. Lastly, I enjoyed the line “reciting prayers for the dead in the smell of the candles on the table” since it uses poetic sensations, allowing the reader to imagine the sentiments behind this day, and what it means to those who celebrate it. This connects to my personal experience, and this is a day that we prepare by gathering specific objects, flowers, and offerings for our altar. One of the many reasons why this day holds so much meaning is that it is a way for migrants to stay connected to their roots. Additionally, this idea of longing for a country or place that you had to move from, is a common feeling for immigrants and migrants. In Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) commemorating those you have lost and couldn’t see before their passing is can bring comfort. Overall when analyzing this poem a lot of components contribute to its significance.

13. After reading some of the poems from “Estamos Aquí” the poem “Un Recuerdo Triste” by Francisca Camacho C. reminded me of my parents and what they risked and left behind to cross the U.S border. This poem represents the sacrifices many take in hopes of achieving the American Dream of having a better life for themselves and their family. The lines, “I crossed over the U.S Border…risking it all. All I thought about was that I was leaving my country– so rich, and at the same time so poor.” Many immigrants like my parents, didn’t leave their country because they wanted to, they left because they needed to. Both my parents being the eldest among their siblings made the tough decision of coming to America to work and help provide for their families back home. This poem reminded me of my parents’ stories of how they crossed the border I grew up listening to. Their stories of having to work multiple jobs to have enough money to pay the coyotes and having to leave their homeland at such a young age. Reading these poems also reminded me of a movie I grew up watching called “La misma Luna/Under the Same Moon.”

14. The poem that stood out for me was “Lo Primero Que Hice.” Unfortunately I know a few people that have left their family behind to find something better in the United States. I used to work in a supermarket and these men worked long hours to come home to no one. One of them was Rocky; due to some much time being away, he was only seen as a provider and father of the children. He has told me he is dying to go back to Mexico. But a part of him wants to stay because he has spent half of his life here. He has two homes. This poem and along with the others connect to everyone. Either because they’re living it or seen someone suffer through it. For example, Luis Miguel left Espana to come to Mexico because Mexico had a stronger record label for start ups.

15. The poem I chose was “Remembering” it reminded me of the immigrant experience while I did not experience it well enough it definitely is a big part of who I am today. My parents left their whole history and their identity in Bangladesh to come to the United Arab Emirates then eventually to America. My mother did not get to see her father at all even while he was slowly passing away because she had to leave Bangladesh and stay in the country they were in to maintain a visa/earn a citizenship. It required various sacrifices. Having to learn to be a completely different person without having any connections is terrifying as you have no existence when you do not have connections. If someone to do you wrong in a new country, you would literally have no-one to protect you as well as no-one to turn to. It is all worth it whenever everything works out but until then it is suffering. Not having to see your family for long extended periods of time. My dad did not see his family for nearly 20 years having to slowly hear his family dwindle away as it was impossible to afford a trip back without jeopardizing the family. This poem is about risk but also about love. You are doing this for someone and using the memory of someone to be able to keep pushing forward. Hold the old moments close as they are fleeting

16. I chose the poem “When I Came Here” and “I Came From Guatemala” because of the connections I see in these two poems. In the beginning, the narrator says that he is always thinking about his family and how he will also miss them while he is in the United States. In the last poem, he mentioned he will be leaving the U.S., but not because his homeland is getting better or there are new opportunities for him, but because his parents are getting old and he is the only child so he had to go back to look after them. These two poems have the same idea behind them, that family is most valuable to the narrator, which is why he is willing to endure 32 hours in the trailer and willing to leave the U.S. just for his parents.

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