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| Visiting mi tierra de Los Angeles |
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| At Avenue 50 Studio Art Gallery in Pasadena, Califas |
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| Meditation and Yoga class on December 21, 2012. Thank you Terry Wolverton! Pictured left to right: Bobi Behrens, Yvonne M. Estrada, Terry Wolverton, Amelia M.L. Montes |
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| Amelia M.L. Montes and Michael Sedano finally meet! |
On the 27thof December, I traveled from Los Angeles to New York where I am presentlyvisiting and writing (grateful for the space and time to write/share writing!) with artists/activists/writer friends before the Modern LanguageAssociation (MLA) Conference begins on January 3rd in Boston. A note on the MLA Conference in Boston: If you are going—don’t miss thefollowing panels, especially the first one which features “La Bloga!” Yes—“La Bloga” will bediscussed/analyzed at the MLA in Boston. More on this next Sunday--
1. JenniferLozano (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign) will be speaking about “LaBloga!” Her paper, “ConvergenceCultura? Reevaluating New MediaScholarship through a Latina/o Literary Blog, La Bloga” is set for Friday,January 4th at 5:15p.m. in the Sheraton Boston (room: Fairfax A). Check it out!
These are justthree of a number of Chicana/Chicano and Latina/Latino panels offered at theMLA this year. Check out the 2013program: CLICK HERE.
Thankful!
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| New York City! |
2013 will be mythird year since being diagnosed with Diabetes. Not too long ago, a friend Ihadn’t seen in a while told me how sorry she was that I had Diabetes. Without skipping a beat, I immediatelysaid, “I’m not! I’m thankful!” I couldn’t have said that even a yearago. A significant change had to take place and education is the key. During my first year of diagnosis, it was tough trying to figure out what to eat, how to manage all the various facets of this disease. Just figuring out a work schedule with added time for exercise was quite challenging.
Diabetes hasgiven me the opportunity to delve into the workings of the body, to understandthe metabolic function of the pancreas, to think about living my life in ways Inever thought about before—mindfully, creatively. I have a heightened awareness of how our U.S. food industry has kept us from the truth: that sugar,not fat, makes us sick. This month's issue of Mother Jones features the article, “Big Sugar’s Sweet Little Lies: How the Industry Kept Scientists from Asking: Does Sugar Kill?” , a carefully researched (included is a timeline from 1934-2012revealing the sugar industry take-over of our U.S. diet) and clearlyarticulated explanation on how we’ve been duped into thinking non-fat processedfoods are better than fat. The truth: “non-fat” and even some “low fat” products are more often than notinjected with sugar and depleted of fat. Fat does not cause obesity. Sugar causes obesity. Another fact: cancer cells needsugar (carbohydrates) to grow and multiply. The more sugar, the happier a cancer cell will be.
As a nation, andwithin our Chicana/Chicano and Latina/Latino communities, it’s going to take along time to make significant dietary changes because the sugar industry is assolidly stationed within our grocery stores, as the tobacco industry had been(and still continues to be although not as strongly). I don’t know yet, what will break the hold on our mindsetand diets, especially because sugar is so very addictive. Sugar is a drug. Just ask people to stop eating it, andyou will receive very strong reactions. It’s very very difficult. And then, of course, there is the challenge to exercise. How to take the time to keep the bodymoving so the pancreas will be stimulated to function? Diet and exercise are vital to thelowering of glucose numbers.
For the past twoyears, I have led a Diabetes Support Book Group and the members in the grouphave been able to manage their glucose levels successfully by sharing storiesand recipes. We share ournot-so-good days (and there are many) and we also share our successful moments (and there are also many of these). We bring to the group delicious lowcarbohydrate dishes to try and we also discuss our doctor visits. We talk about our exercise. Research has shown that support groupsare extremely helpful. Maybe youwould like to begin your own support group in 2013.
Thankful that after three years ofreading, researching, writing about Diabetes, I can tell you that I have madefriends with my imperfect pancreas. I can tell you that I’m not afraid of this disease anymore like I waswhen I was younger and watched my aunts and uncles go blind, lose limbs, go onkidney dialysis, etc. I am thankful that there is much more informationavailable to me and the information continues to pour in as more medical researchers (who are not affiliated with pharmaceutical companies or the sugar industry) are conducting important experiments/analyses to seek out answers. We know much more about this disease, about how ourpancreas works, about how we can manage it on our own than we did even 10, 20 years ago. Testing your blood is so much a part of the management, yet glucose strips remain quite expensive, especially for those without health benefits. This must change. The only way an individual with Diabetes will know if glucose levels in the bloodstream are too high or too low is too test. It's impossible to judge glucose levels by how one feels on a daily basis. Testing also helps when you're trying new foods or your usual routine is interrupted. As mentioned, I have been traveling cross-country and some of these days have been more challenging than others (not being able to say "no" to homemade buttered croissants at a holiday gathering, sitting more than usual due to travel days). At times, I've had to compensate by walking up and down stairs or running/walking in place.
I am thankful to friends and familia who have helped me (or been patient) through mood changes due to Diabetes. When first diagnosed, I had no idea how powerfully glucose fluctuations directly affect one's mood. And those of you with Diabetes know what I'm talking about. The terms "sugar high" and "sugar crash" are in our vocabulary because most everyone has experienced glucose fluctuations. The problem with having an impaired pancreas is that it can take much longer to recover from that "high" or "crash." Sometimes the "high" or "crash" is not due to eating sweets/too many carbohydrates. It could be a stressful day, lack of sleep, or illness that will affect glucose levels. Meditation can be quite helpful here along with diet and exercise. The best gift you can give to your loved ones/your friends is to become aware of your body, monitor where you are chemically, and let people know if you're having a bad day. Diabetes does not give us permission to behave badly and then simply blame it on the disease.
I am thankfulfor David Mendosa, a freelance medical writer, advocate, and consultantspecializing in Diabetes. He hasthe largest and most comprehensive website on Diabetes and if you e-mail him,he will reply. (CLICK HERE for his website) David's articles on managing diabetes while traveling have certainly helped.
I am thankful for my sister, Emma Franco, whose experience and expert knowledge of the disease assisted me from the moment of diagnosis. Gracias dear sister for your help and support, for morning walks, for answering all my questions, for continued discussions.
I am thankful to mis padres who accompany me on short walks for their own health as well as mine. This 2013th year, mi papa will be 96 and mi mama will be 90. Orale.
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| Emma, Amelia, Joseph Montes (mi mama y papa!) |
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| Amelia & daughter Nancy Wolff |
In 1958, therewere 1.5 million people with Diabetes in the U.S. In 2010, the number jumped to 18.8 million prompting theCenter for Disease Control (CDC) to call it an epidemic. Today (just 2 years later), the CDCreports that 26 million have Diabetes with an estimated 79 million havingprediabetes.
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| New York friends/familia: Amelia M.L. Montes, Danielle Abrams, Barbara Schulman |
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| Los Angeles familia: Querida Pat Alderete and Amelia M.L. Montes |
Tara Evonne Trudell has resumed writing poetry after a break of almost ten years and is passionate about combining poetry and film to create a visual art form of her own. She is a mother of four children and raising them to be socially aware and conscious of the injustices that plague our society. This is a top priority of hers as a she rediscovers her own word in a world that only attempts to silence the Indigenous spirit. She advocates strongly on behalf of Earth and incorporates this into her poetry, film, and life as part of her love and commitment to give back and represent her own connection.
Ramón Piñero. Ex Bay Area poet living in the buckle of the Bible Belt, aka Florida. Where good little boys and girls grow up to be republicans who vote against their own interest. Father of three and Grandfather to six of the coolest kids ever.
Odilia Galván RodrÃguez, poet/activist, writer and editor, has been
John Martinez studied Creative Writing at Fresno State University under Phillip Levine and has published poetry in El Tecolote, Red Trapeze and in The LA Weekly. Recently, he has posted poems on Poets Responding to SB1070 and this will be his 14th poem published in La Bloga. Martinez has performed (as a musician/political activist, poet) with Teatro De La Tierra, Los Perros Del Pueblo and TROKA, a Poetry Ensemble, lead by poet Juan Felipe Herrera. He has toured with several cumbia/salsa bands throughout the Central Valley and in Los Angeles and has just completed first book of Poems, PLACES. For the last 18 years, he has worked as an Administrator for a Los Angeles law firm. He makes his home in Upland, California, with he wife Rosa and four children.
Andrea GarcÃa Mauk grew up in Arizona, where both the immense beauty and harsh realities of living in the desert shaped her artistic soul. She calls Los Angeles home, but has also lived in Chicago, New York and Boston. She has worked in the music industry, and on various film and television productions. She writes short fiction, poetry, original screenplays and adaptations, and is currently finishing two novels. Her writing and artwork has been published and viewed in a variety of places such as on The Late, Late Show with Tom Snyder; The Journal of School Psychologists and Victorian Homes Magazine. Both her poetry and artwork have won awards. Several of her poems and a memoir are included in the 2011 anthology, Our Spirit, Our Reality, and her poetry is featured in the 2012 Mujeres de Maiz “‘Zine.” She is a regular contributor to Poets responding to SB 1070. Her poems have been chosen for publication on La Bloga’s Tuesday Floricanto numerous times. She is also a moderator of Diving Deeper, an online workshop for writers, and has written extensively about music, especially jazz, while working in the entertainment industry. Her production company, Dancing Horse Media Group, is currently in pre-production of her independent film, “Beautiful Dreamer,” based on her original screenplay and manuscript, and along with her partners, is producing a unique cookbook that blends healthful recipes with poetry and prose from the community.
Devreaux Baker is a Pushcart Prize nominee and winner of the 2011 PEN Oakland Josephine Miles Poetry Prize for her book; Red Willow People. She is the recipient of the 2012 Hawaii Council of Humanities International Poetry Prize, and the Women’s Global Leadership Initiative Poetry Award. Her poetry fellowships include a MacDowell Fellowship, the Hawthornden Castle International Fellowship, three California Arts Council Awards and the Helene Wurlitzer Foundation Fellowship. She has published three books of poetry; Red Willow People, Beyond the Circumstance of Sight, and Light at the Edge and conducted poetry workshops in France and Mexico. She has taught poetry in the schools with the CPITS Program and produced the Voyagers Radio Program of original student writing for KZYX Public Radio. 
Victor Avila is an award-winning poet. Two of his poems were recently included in the anthology Occupy SF-Poems From the Movement. Victor has taught in California public schools for over twenty years.
Francisco X. Alarcón, Chicano poet and educator, is the author of thirteen volumes of poetry, including, Snake Poems: An Aztec Invocation (Chronicle Books 1992), recipient of the 1993 Pen Oakland Josephine Miles Award, From the Other Side of Night: Selected and New Poems (University of Arizona Press 2002). His latest book is Ce•Uno•One: Poems for the New Sun (Swan Scythe Press 2010). His most recent book of bilingual poetry for children is Animal Poems of the Iguazú (Children’s Book Press 2008). He teaches at the University of California, Davis. He created the Facebook page, POETS RESPONDING TO SB 1070: http://www.facebook.com/PoetryOfResistance
Nancy Aidé González is a Chicana poet who lives in Lodi, California. She graduated from California State University, Sacramento with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English Literature in 2000. Her work has appeared in Calaveras Station Literary Journal, La Bloga, Everyday Other Things, Mujeres De Maiz Zine, La Peregrina and Huizache The magazine of Latino literature. She is a participating member of Escritores del Nuevo Sol, a writing group based in Sacramento, California which honors the literary traditions of Chicano, Latino, Indigenous and Spanish-language peoples. She attended Las Dos Brujas Writer’s Workshop in 2012.
Born and raised in Seattle, Sharon Elliott has written since childhood. Four years in the Peace Corps in Nicaragua and Ecuador laid the foundation for her activism. As an initiated Lukumi priest, she has learned about her ancestral Scottish history, reinforcing her belief that borders are created by men, enforcing them is simply wrong.
Elena DÃaz Björkquist. “I have enjoyed being a moderator on Poets Responding to SB 1070 since its creation by Francisco and Odilia. It’s a pleasure opening poems and reading so many wonderful works, but always difficult to select the ones for La Boga’s Floricanto. I like being a friend and mentor to many great poets on Facebook. Reading poetry is an inspiration for writing my own poetry.”
Sonia Gutiérrez is part of this generation of Chican@ poets of the New Sun. Sonia writes about pressing social issues that haunt her and demand our immediate attention. La Bloga’s On-line Floricanto is home to Sonia’s Poets Responding to SB 1070 poems, including “The Books”/“Los libros,” “Careful with the River”/“Cuidado con el rÃo,” “MemografÃa”/“Memography,” “Mi bandera”/“My Flag,” “My Heart Is a Strawberry Field,” “The Passing,” and “La maza y cantera de una poeta”/“A Poet’s Mallet and Quarry” (10 Best Poems of 2011). Her bilingual poetry collection, Spider Woman/La Mujer Araña (Olmeca Press) is forthcoming in 2013. Sonia is at work on a novel, Kissing Dreams from a Distance, among other projects. Her website www.soniagutierrez.com is coming soon.
Carmen Calatayud's first poetry collection In the Company of Spirits was published in October 2012 as part of the Silver Concho Series by Press 53. In the Company of Spirits was a runner-up for the 2010 Walt Whitman Award from the Academy of American Poets. Her poetry has appeared in various journals and anthologies, including Beltway Poetry Quarterly, Borderlands: Texas Poetry Review, Cutthroat: A Journal of the Arts, Gargoyle, La Bloga, PALABRA: A Magazine of Chicano and Latino Literary Art, Red River Review and the anthology DC Poets Against the War. Carmen is a Larry Neal Poetry Award winner and recipient of a Virginia Center for the Creative Arts fellowship. She is a poet moderator for Poets Responding to SB 1070, a Facebook group that features poetry and news about Arizona’s controversial immigration law that legalizes racial profiling. Born to a Spanish father and Irish mother in the U.S., Carmen works and writes in Washington, DC
Hedy M. Garcia Treviño. Has written poetry since the age of eight. Her first poem came as a result of being punished for speaking Spanish in school. Her poetry has been published in numerous journal's and other publications. She has performed her poetry at numerous cultural events. She continues to write poetry, and inspires others to use the written word as a form of self discovery and personal healing. Hedy is also one of the moderators for Poets Responding to SB 1070.
Claudia D. Hernández was born and raised in Guatemala. She's a bilingual educator, poet, writer, photographer and translator in the city of Los Angeles. She's pursuing an MFA in creative writing at Antioch University Los Angeles. Her photography, poetry, and short stories have been published in: The Indigenous Sovereignty Issue of The Peak, Hinchas de PoesÃa, KUIKATL Literary Journal, nineteen-sixty-nine an Ethnic Studies Journal, Blood Lotus, REDzine, Kalyani Magazine, Along the River II Anthology, among others.