With bags under her eyes, she greets me at 6:30 in the morning,
"Have a nice cup of coffee before you go to school".
This is no extraordinary feat, but for many mothers,
for my mother, it is.

You're case is not unusual,
A mentally disabled child,
An unemployed husband,
Many like you have been thrown into the wild

As an immigrant with hopes and dreams like the rest,
No manual, no handbook, no Virgil
to guide you from the depths to Paradise,
You stumbled and crashed

And rose up and stood proud
and fell back down again.
But you never stayed down
And now 28 years into your struggle

You are still struggling.
And as the product of your struggle,
the creation asks the creator,
"How do I repay all you've done for me?"

I will not give you a lanyard
because that's an "I love you".
I will not even give you a "thank you"
because that's a phrase overused.

No, I will give you something that shows
that your struggles were fruitful
that in your life you produced
a masterpiece that will only inspire other masterpieces

I will be the scientist that cures ignorance
The psychologist that heals hate
The philosopher that questions truth
The poet that inspires love

and the writer that exposes lies.
I will own Lecter's logic.
Guevara's defiance and even
Gemineye's pen.

From your life, I learned one very important lesson
Read so you can learn,
Learn so you can think,
And think so you can act.

You've given me tools,
space,
time,
and love.

I will give them back to the world,
and with that,
we will be even.