“Identity” BY ANGELA C. TRUDELL VASQUEZ
White-Mexican looks like a Latina,
not my label
a question
from a Guatemalan student
who's come undone
in my ESL class,
doesn't get my kind
I try to describe
how I grew up
in Caucasian corn country
surrounded by houses
on cul-de-sacs
that all looked the same,
how we were alone
in a town of 5000,
one black family,
one Indian family,
one Asian family,
and one household of Mexicans,
no two, us and the Renterias
to whom we were related by marriage
before and after my divorce,
and they were mixed;
still, it was a good living,
happy in our cocooness,
our oneness,
separated by money
one direction
color on the other:
classes, classes, classes,
day and night
we took lessons:
piano, jazz, tap, ballet,
the dance team, trumpet,
trombone, tennis, Finishing School,
and one awful summer golf;
Christened, Confirmed, Cathechismized;
it all cut me in several places,
molding of head and heart
making me ultrasensitive,
then and now,
an observer of the outside,
an outsider among my own kind,

my very shade,
mysterious aloof
black haired beauty
who can't speak Spanish,
living among blue eyed dyed blond bombshells,
who held up her head higher
because she's shy not stuck-up,
understood, undenied, sacrificed to at any price
by my beloved little brown parents
who taught me well
gave up so much
so their daughters could shine
and they'd swell with pride
at the life they had given us,
on Sundays we basked
in mutual admiration after mass
singing our church songs while making breakfast,
according to the unspoken doctrine in our house of:
fast first eat later after communion,
we intruded with our Mexican music
bellowing out the open windows
the smell of bacon frying,
pancakes baking, coffee
and eggs scrambled to order
it wafted out on beautiful summer mornings
out of our house in Pleasant Hill, Iowa,
perched on the highest spot
one could reach on the East Side of the street
for first and second generation immigrants.

-January 25, 2001

Mandala Assignment
What Is a Mandala?
“A mandala is a wondrous and meaningful design made in the form of a circle. The word mandala is from the classical Indian language of Sanskrit and, loosely translated, means “circle.” These special drawings were first created in Tibet over 2,000 years ago. Traditionally, they displayed highly intricate illustrations of religious significance and were used for meditation. Since then, they have been made by people from various cultures. In the Americas, Indians have created medicine wheels and sand mandalas. The circular Aztec calendar was both a timekeeping device and a religious expression of ancient Aztecs. In Asia, the Taoist “yin-yang” symbol represents opposition as well as interdependence. Over the past 2,000 years, mandalas have become a tool for displaying individual and cultural uniqueness the world over.
A simple definition of the mandala is that it is a circular drawing made to represent the harmony and wholeness of life or the wholeness of a person. Tibetans used mandalas for calming themselves and for thinking about the meaning of life. Today, people often create mandalas to form a simple representation of who they are. To make a mandala, a person begins by thinking of symbols that represent him or her. These symbols might include a dove to represent peace, a heart to represent love, or an open hand to represent friend-ship. The symbols a person chooses are then carefully drawn in the mandala.
The shape of a mandala is a circle because a circle is the most simple and universal shape found in the world. It is the form of the eye, the sun, a snowflake. Also, since there is always a center to a circle, as you look at a mandala it exercises your mind and draws you into the center of yourself or your topic.”
- from The Write Path English Language Arts: Exploring Texts with Critical Reading

Reflection Prompt: Now that you have completed your Mandala, write ¾ to a full page (average sized handwriting) explaining the significance of the symbols you chose to include. What about your background, your stories, your relationships with friends and family, and your goals for the future contribute to these symbols and your identity?

EXAMPLE RESPONSE (for one symbol):
For one of my symbols, I chose to include a picture of a river winding away from low, green mountains and a setting sun. Being from East Tennessee, the Smoky Mountains will always hold a special place in my heart; I took the natural scenic beauty outside my doorstep for granted growing up, so, these days, I make sure to take time throughout the year enjoy all that nature has to offer. I especially like to go kayaking and camping in Tennessee’s state parks. There is little in life more calming than floating easily down a river on a hot day, disconnected from the rush of modern life.