"The Presence of Peace"

Susana Medina

Marks

As a child, I had them: on my arms, my fingers, my feet, my legs, my face, my back. Each mark a part of me like scars. I don't acknowledge every single one as I should acknowledge them now, touching their surface, recognizing their deep black color with a light brown lining, smelling their forever-subtle lingering scent, their almost sweet taste and silent sound. They stare at me unmoved and untouched. Yet, I was repeatedly teased for having them. Classmates would glance at pictures of me then ask, "What are all of those things on the side of your face?" Time after time I would shrug my shoulders.

Let me once know.
I sought thee in a secret cave.
-G. H (Peace)

Places

Traveling the world but first starting in the United States of America. Technically, you can call it my home away from home. Hurricane Katrina Relief work in New Orleans in 2006. Houses destroyed, smashed, irreparable. Streets deserted, empty, dirty, dusty. Glass on cement near demolished storefronts. Families nowhere to be found. Houses once drowned in water now empty. The furniture vacant, the families vanished. I sneaked photographs of sweaty workers, abandon houses, deserted streets, stagnant furniture, rows upon rows of unused cars, smelly rotten clothes. The city that withstood disaster. Praying that I will soon return again.

Go seek elsewhere.
-G. H (Peace)

Marks

I've tried to count all of them, there's at least 30. Three per square inch or in some parts double that amount. I've taken pictures. Some are the size of a dot, while others are slightly smaller than a dime. Connected some of them with washable markers; changing the color when moving onto another region. Some are adversely different; spread, light or smudged instead of dark or precise. When connected, the dots don't draw an exact image but their permanent existence leaves an image for others to see.

Places

Whether these countries have anything in common or not, I choose to connect them together: Japan to China, Thailand to Cambodia, Australia to Great Britian, Caribbean Islands to Africa, Mexico to South America. For example, Japanese, Chinese, Thai and Cambodians are always mistaken for each other; traditions overlap, integrate, yet forever remain distinct. Distinct spices and flavors make you wish you were there. Australians and Britain have rich accents and an eccentric vocabulary. In Australia, "arvo" means afternoon. In Britian, "bloke" is a man, fellow. Africa has influenced the music of the Caribbean Islands: La Bomba, La Plena, Salsa y Merengue. South America and Mexico are adversely different but they share food, language, traditions and lifestyle. They all try to appreciate and respect one another.

I will search out the matter.
But while I looked the clouds immediately
Did break and scatter.
-G.H (Peace)

Marks

They haunt me. Not in a shameful burdensome way but rather, a reminder to recognize my uniqueness. The marks don't hinder my beauty but enhance it. My legs carry my upper body. They lead me, direct me. I run, they run; I stand, they stand. My legs, my southern hemisphere, supports me. My arms allow me to willing serve, help, comfort and reach out to everyone. The center of my body is the core of my being; it breathes, beats, cries. If my legs can't walk, can't run or my arms can't help me to serve then, I cry. People stare; they wonder. People wonder why I love to walk or run on foreign land or serve with every ounce in me. I will answer their questions but they will continue to live untouched.

Places

Parts of Africa will be forgotten: Uganda, Rwanda, Darfur. Parts of Asia will be forgotten: Laos, Philippines,Vietnam. Parts of the Caribbean will be forgotten: Jamaica, Dominican Republic, Haiti. Parts of in the United States will be forgotten: New Orleans, Los Angeles, Chicago. It doesn't matter that these cities are all over the newspapers, in the mouths of news anchors and radio hosts. Tomorrow morning people will hurry, greet, gesture, think: what am I going to eat, where am I going, who will I be with? All worries of slight insignificance.

Peace at the root must dwell.
But when I digged, I saw a worm devour.
-G.H (Peace)

Marks

Mi primos delighted in calling me a giant chocolate chip cookie. No one in mi familia ignored them. I wished nobody would ignore them, myself included. Beauty marks or birthmarks, whichever you call them, make imprints on me, about me. They invade my body, leave an impact. You will need to remember them in order to remember me; to remember the hard work of bare hands.

It prospered strangely, and did soon disperse through all the earth.
-G.H (Peace)

Places

India awaits my arrival; my job will be to work with the disabled, the diseased, and the less fortunate. To work with my bare hands. I cannot ignore the places in the world that are struggling. Remember India as you remember me, the heart that beats and cries; this body a foreign land.

Peace

My marks will leave a presence. My lips will pray, my mind will think, my heart will cry for us all; we have been disregarded.