Soy una Gringa con Sangre Latina

Sophia Clement

My name is not Clemente
I am the eldest of the two Clement Guerrero kids
My father is a Clement
And my mother is Guerrero-hyphen-Clement
My DNA is Preston Guerrero Fairbrother Iglesias
And many more names in a global history
A history that passes between the borders
of Ecuador y Colombia
A history that sails ships
Between España y Puerto Rico
A history that nurtured itself
in the Mersey Docks of England
I am really a Clement, not a Preston
Because love and loyalty
Count for so much more than genetics
But I am also a Guerrero Iglesias
Because culture stands for so much more
Than lack of language
A culture that feeds me
On warm and heavy Boricua food
Sometimes made by an Englishman
Or Ecuatoriano
A culture that moves me
through music that excited
The twist and shout of the Beatles
That once moved Nana’s body
And the rhythm of salsa
That moves mi Abuela’s cuerpo
I am a language all my own
Not speaking Spanish or Spanglish well
Rather listening to the chisme
And responding in an English
That is not even Scouse like my father’s
But from the urban melting pot
of Newark, New Jersey
I’m sorry if my use of Spanish offends
I’m only trying to prove the culture
That’s inherent in my genetics
And family experiences
That most don’t know from a glance
Or casual conversation
Because I gleam white
And have the last name Clement
My name is Sophia and Sophia
Because my mother loved
How it dipped between her two native tongues
Rebelled against the expected middle efe
How it flaunted the p-hache of the Greeks
And spelled out wisdom
I love my name too
The various nicknames that come out of it
That it is beautiful and fit for me
That I can claim to be
A wise and merciful warrior
Because Guerrero may be Spanish
But both sides of me are fighters
Demure and secretly sassy
Trust me, I must be a Clement Guerrero
And not just any
Made up of those before me
But all my own
Because no matter what anyone says or thinks
I am Sophia Maya Adele Clement Guerrero Fairbrother Iglesias
And no one can take that away