Promised Land Poem by Jay P Narain

Promised Land



Take me to promised land..

Growing up in Guatamala,
I had heard of the nation due El Norte,
Many from my village had gone there,
Brought up money and tall stories.

I grew up in a poor family,
Eating tortillas, beans and meat sometimes,
Played soccer, baseball, and went to school,
Loved little senoritas going to school.

As a youth, finally found senorita of my dream,
Got married in the village church with fiesta and mariachi band,
The time seemed to go fast some times,
Soon I was the father of four children, and many mouth to feed.

I told my wife, it is time to go to nation due El Norte,
Find a job, bring some money for family and kids,
My wife would not let me go, but finally gave up to my dreams,
I was ready to go and work and fufill family dreams.

I had to pay the Coyote(Smuggler agent) a huge sum of money,
I had to sell my land and wife's jewelry,
But in the land due El Norte, everyone has a dream,
I had a dream that I will overcome all the problems.

We were almost fifty in the group,
The coyote promised us to get through the border,
We rode bus from Guatamala City through Mexico,
Finally we were dumped near Arizona border with little food and water.

Now we were on our own, the coyote was long gone,
We will run through the cactus desert whole night,
We will try to catch some sleep under a bush in broad day light,
The old ones were weak and trembling,
Many did not make it, many just gave up the dream.

Finally one night, we ran across to the nation due El Norte,
The USA was land of our dream,
We were running from town to town,
Till I found some friends who were settled in some town.

Now we stand near the big box home improvement store,
Hoping someone would pick us for a day's work,
The work is hard, people want everything get done,
The time and money is on everyone's mind.

I hoped that I would buy back my land and my wife's jewelry in no time,
After three years, I even don't have enogh money to go and see my children,
I send some money home to my wife for my family,
The rest I spent on house, food and other necessities of life.

Many employers ask me this question over and over again,
Is this way of life worthwhile for a little bit of money?
Although my English is very poor, I hardly understand many words,
But I understand the question and my answer is this,
It is better to struggle and achieve your dreams,
Than to just live in poverty on tortillas and beans.

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