Ramona Gutierrez
Ramona Gutierrez is Opata, Tohono O'odham, Mescalero Apache, xicanindia. A self-taught poet, she has engaged with families in the poetry of birth experiences and time-after-birth for 30-plus years and believes all new babies are a line of poetry in a family. She began writing poetry six years ago. Her poetry education began with her family. Her paternal grandmother would recite poetry, and her father would read aloud to her sisters and cousins. She began to write poetry as a means of remembrance, honoring, and self-love. This poem is a reminder of where she comes from, the place with no borders, and was written in a place with no cell phones, TV, or radio—just mountains, cows, and birds. It was inspired by bird songs, running, and the transitions from youth to adulthood.