Side-by-side with this narrative is a discourse on the region
as seen through the archetypal lens of its original Taino culture—especially
as expressed via feminine power and spirituality both then and in the post-Columbian period.
Decades of poverty-induced deforestation have devastated much of Haiti's ecosystem |
Marianela’s work has appeared in numerous journals and
anthologies throughout the Americas and in Europe, including Callalo 23.3
(Summer 2000), Sisters of Caliban: Contemporary Women Poets of the Carribean (New
York, Azul Editions, 1997) and Revista Surgai (Bilbao, Spain, December 1995).
Besides 2011’s Diosas, her own titles include Curada de Espantos/One Who Has Seen It All (Madrid, Ediciones Torrzaemos, 2002), Regando Esencias/The Scent of Waiting (New York, Alcance, 1998), as well as
Prietica, a children’s book to be released this spring.
“The Black Bellybutton of a Bongo” is her contribution to Callalo; also, click here to enjoy some live readings by her and Reggie and other details of their work from the June 12, 2012 PoemAlley blog entry, “A Call To Be A Bodhisattva: Poetry As The Art Of Healing”.
The Black Bellybutton of a Bongo
After contributing troops to the American revolutionary cause, Hatians repelled attempted re-colonization by Napoleon's forces in 1802 |
blue-black ears
used to tell tales of boogie men
of black boogie men
Stories of embroidered linen
white sheets
virginal sex
secrets of pots and beans
magic wand to cook good fortune
I lost my crystal slipper in the dust
And the prince did not soothe my bruises
Later it was all about cactus -- no tulips--
In the time set for war, grandmother
Your stories slid down my skin
-black not trigueƱa, grandmother
-woman not doll, abuela
Thunder came and lightning frayed the island
-it was the drum-
-cynical laughter bursting in curls
tough curls fighting chemicals
singing kinkily and happily in the air
Black mellow dark beautiful majesty
I stared it in the eye
a wide and indivisible geography
Since then I am a doubt planting questions
sharp arrow is my tongue
my entire body
Before the rust I found my voice
my eyelashes dusted time
I am a heroine in the jungle, grandmother
I see the night patrol
the palm trees
the fire
Yemaya with her belly made of water
the areito
Yocahu-vagua
a little black girl prays for water
the baquini multiplies flags
the box of many colors, did you forget it, abuela?
The hand closed to your bones
shakes a spring of twigs
-don't be afraid, abuela-
Lemba greets you kindly.
Below
is the trailer for the 2001 film adaptation of Julia Alvarez’ In the Time of the Butterflies (1994), the fictionalized account of the Mirabal sister’s courageous resistance movement to the terrifying U.S.-supported rule of Raphael Trujillo in the
Dominican Republic (1930-1961):
Hosted by Frank
Chambers and PoemAlley's Nick Miele, the Barnes & Noble's Open Mic Poetry
program meets the second Monday of each month in the cooking section on the
main floor of the bookstore (located in the Stamford Town Center), beginning at
7:15 p.m.
For more information,
contact:
Barnes & Noble
100 Greyrock Place
Suite H009
Stamford, CT 06901
203-323-1248
___
___
Additional Information:
A Continent of Islands: Searching for the Carribean Destiny
Mark Kurlansky
Da Capo Press, 1993
By Julia
Alvarez
Algonquin Books,
2010
Paul Farmer
PublicAffairs,
2011
" "
Common Courage Press, 2005
Mark Kurlansky
Da Capo Press, 1993
Irving Rouse
Yale University Press, 1993
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