2 - Diego B.: I am From

I am from about 3/5’s oxygen, perhaps 3/25’s carbon, The rest being hydrogen, nitrogen, calcium (62% water, 16% protein, 16% fat, and the rest). I am from the rapid turnings of my thin notebooks, like gossamer, The footprints of the ballpoint tip of my pen, The dust in my backpack, and my drumming on the table. I am from the quadrillions of protons, neutrons, and electrons— The flow of neurons to my brain. I am from the particles in my drawer And the spills on my floor. I am from the chips and components of my devices and The watermelons and cabbages of the garden. I am from the pebbles and stump from where I Leaped on as a child, the rays of the sun pointing Their arrows on the fibers of my hair. I am from the use of the computer day after day, Perhaps to and fro, from where The desk creeks, the computer bright, and the chair vibrates. I am from St. Patrick’s and St. Andrews’s Saltire, The blood of William McKinley, and the Eagle perched on a cactus eating a snake, From the wet evergreens of Washington, From the golden summits of Colorado, And from the rolling coasts of California. I am from the Toyota on the road exploring The frontiers from the Golden State To the Spirit of America. I am from the writing on a piece of paper on The orange sheets of my bed and the plushie who I sit next to. I am from the lightbulb post on the left of my wooden desk And the labyrinth of wires beneath my computer From where I wrote some of this poem. I am from the disciplines of mathematics, of history, Of physics, of chemistry, of government, of English, of French— Of the perpetual repetition of learning, studying, and applying. I am from the records of determination hidden under the cover of Doubt and anxiety, unparalleled by the potential of Diligence and belief which I hold. (334 words)