My Dead Relatives

Myrna Nieves

All my loved ones are gone

Those who inhabited my distant town

How I miss
A moment of a glance
An enigmatic smile
That contagious laugh
The hand gently placed on a hip
The nodding head
The moment of empathy
When I felt loved and accepted

My dead relatives

Pulses of life that
Explode in an instant
Then fade away
Twinkling, flickering
In the air of the times

I will join them one day
I will cross the veil
Between palm trees and flamboyanes
I’ll hug them if they want me to
Or will watch them from afar

Now their memory
—And sometimes a shadow passing by, a gentle touch, tiny sounds— 
Accompany me in the afternoons

It’s what I share with them

They left a trace in my days
An unfathomable beauty
A slight sadness

My dead relatives

Ineffable testimonies
Of the love that permeates
Existence

Mis familiares muertos

Se han ido todos mis muertos

Los que habitaban mi pueblo lejano

Cómo extraño
El segundo de una mirada
La sonrisa enigmática
Aquella risa contagiosa
La mano en la cadera
La cabeza que asiente
El instante de empatía
En que me sentí querida y aceptada

Mis familiares muertos

Pulsos de vida que
Estallan en un instante
Luego se desvanecen
Rutilantes, parpadeando
En el aire de los tiempos

A ellos me uniré algún día
Cruzaré el velo
Entre palmeras y flamboyanes
Los abrazaré, si quieren
O los contemplaré a distancia

Ahora su memoria
—Y a veces sus celajes, toques leves, ruiditos—
Me acompañan en las tardes

Es lo que comparto con ellos

Dejaron un rastro en mis días
Una belleza insondable
Una suave tristeza

Mis familiares muertos

Testimonios inefables
Del amor que permea

La existencia         

Copyright © 2024 by Myrna Nieves. Originally published in Poem-a-Day on December 25, 2024, by the Academy of American Poets.

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about this poem

“When we relocate, emigrate, or seek asylum, the family members, friends, and neighbors [who] were around us and/or cared for us pass away. Often, it was not possible to enjoy their company through the years. They fade away, leaving their memory in our souls, and sometimes we are still mysteriously connected to them or imagine their presences in our lives. We miss their humanity and affection, and realize this love is part of the fabric of existence. The departed make us aware of our mortality. They contributed to who we are today.”
—Myrna Nieves

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