Poet Richard Blanco
In the history of the United States, only four poets have been invited to participate in U.S. Presidential Inaugurations. Robert Frost was invited by John F. Kennedy; Maya Angelou, by President Clinton; Miller William, by Clinton (second inauguration); and Elizabeth Alexander, by President Obama.
These poets’ thoughtful, artistic, insightful words have helped stitch together the pieces of fabric that are the patchwork quilt of diversity in America.
On January 21st 2013 Richard Blanco will join the rarefied ranks of Inaugural Poets. I'm proud to share one of my favorite poems by Richard Blanco:
LOOKING FOR THE GULF MOTEL
Marco
Island, Florida
There should be nothing here I don't remember . . .
The Gulf
Motel with mermaid lampposts
and ship's wheel in the lobby should still be
rising out of the sand like a cake decoration.
My brother and I should still be pretending
we don't know our parents, embarrassing us
as they roll the luggage cart past the front desk
loaded with our scruffy suitcases, two-dozen
loaves of Cuban bread, brown bags bulging
with enough mangos to last the entire week,
our espresso pot, the pressure cooker--and
a pork roast reeking garlic through the lobby.
All because we can't afford to eat out, not even
on vacation, only two hours from our home
in Miami, but far enough away to be thrilled
by whiter sands on the west coast of Florida,
where I should still be for the first time watching
the sun set instead of rise over the ocean.
There should be nothing here I don't remember . . .
My mother
should still be in the kitchenette
of The Gulf Motel, her daisy sandals from Kmart
squeaking across the linoleum, still gorgeous
in her teal swimsuit and amber earrings
stirring a pot of arroz-con-pollo, adding sprinkles
of onion powder and dollops of tomato sauce.
My father should still be in a terrycloth jacket
smoking, clinking a glass of amber whiskey
in the sunset at the Gulf Motel, watching us
dive into the pool, two boys he'll never see
grow into men who will be proud of him.
There should be nothing here I don't remember . . .
My brother
and I should still be playing Parcheesi,
my father should still be alive, slow dancing
with my mother on the sliding-glass balcony
of The Gulf Motel. No music, only the waves
keeping time, a song only their minds hear
ten-thousand nights back to their life in Cuba.
My mother's face should still be resting against
his bare chest like the moon resting on the sea,
the stars should still be turning around them.
There should be nothing here I don't remember . . .
My brother
should still be thirteen, sneaking
rum in the bathroom, sculpting naked women
from sand. I should still be eight years old
dazzled by seashells and how many seconds
I hold my breath underwater--but I'm not.
I am thirty-eight, driving up Collier Boulevard,
looking for The Gulf Motel, for everything
that should still be, but isn't. I want to blame
the condos, their shadows for ruining the beach
and my past, I want to chase the snowbirds away
with their tacky mansions and yachts, I want
to turn the golf courses back into mangroves,
I want to find The Gulf Motel exactly as it was
and pretend for a moment, nothing lost is lost.
Richard Blanco and basengi Joey
We congratulate you, Richard. We will be watching. And, we know you will make us proud because you already have.
UPDATE: NPR's interview with Blanco on Morning Edition is wonderful—Listen to it here.
Post written by Stephen Brockelman.
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