Maria

by Christine Liwag Dixon

They called our mothers Maria:

Maria for the stars,

Maria for the sea,

Maria for the rebellion stirring in our wombs,

Maria for the bitterness that binds us across generations.

We named our daughters Maria,

a multitude of Aves in squalling supplication unleashed to the saint whose name

was meant to invoke sustenance,

not eternal memories of bloodshed and terror.

Our names are battle cries

Are prayers

Are lullabies.

We are forever chained to this foreign goddess,

Unable to reclaim our own power.

* * * * *

Christine Liwag Dixon is a writer and musician. She is currently working on her first novel.