“Look at that beautiful olive-colored skin!” 

A white woman admiringly tells me.

My child self looks at her surprised– 

Why the hell am I surprised? 

I stare at my skin in the moonlight wishing it to be paler. 

Now a woman,

I run towards the embrace of the sun–

No longer ashamed or self-loathing in the night. 

My skin is worthy to be loved. 

“Rarely burns, always tans” is the description. 

Mi sangre indígena breathes in the desert–

A Chicana en su natural habitat.

My gold is the sun that burrows deep into my skin and makes itself at home.

I am not confused; I know who I am–

Una reina who belongs in the most luminous of light. 

Crowned by my own warmth and radiance, 

Brought to life by mi padre—el Sol.

Shadows cannot hold me back–

I am worthy; no longer surprised.

—

Writer Bio:

Cristina Amaro is a Chicana writer and spiritual director who finds herself to be equally at home whether she’s in the deserts of central Mexico eating delicious, cooked cactus or by the beaches of SoCal eating an açaí bowl.

Photo by Airam Dato-on on Pexels.