Mireya Perez Bustillo

Mami’s Homecoming

Took us a lot to get to
because a single request
“I want to be with papi”
is not so simple
if you live in different countries

But there we were
your three black clad children, your sister and cousin Juana
the furry green Andes in the West
the spongy field ‘neath our feet
the awning marking the spot dug up
in the double plot
papi there over ten years
the snowy marble stone ready
the crisantemas tia sent
the pink roses and lirios bending
waiting
the red roses your first granddaughter handed to all

the blessing of the priest
the Chopin waltz wafted
as our hands caressed your cherry red urn

I signaled the attendant
whispering
“Mami, ya estas con papi.”

Born in Colombia, raised in New York, Mireya Perez-Bustillo’s works in English and Spanish challenge silence, seeking an “other voice” to break through oppression. Her poetry appears in Mom Egg Review, Anthology of Colombian Women Poets: Diosas en Bronce, NYU Poetry Review, Caribbean Studies Journal, and New School IRP Voices, among others. She recently completed a novel, Back to El Dorado. An Associate Professor Emerita from The College of New Rochelle, she is a Coordinator in the New School IRP program.