The Church - By: Ana Camila Cano Bates

I am an aesthetic of excess

Deprived of honor

Misplaced in my skin

Obsessed with my organs

Despising myself

I often wonder if epiphany exists.

I came to an end.

Beatific on the outside.

Darling to the core.

Kevin, not just a souvenir.

Who am I?

Should I ask that?

People will speak.

Like a Greek tragedy.

Songs will be written about me

Street lamps…

Can’t outshine me.

Pleading on my knees.

Choirs in my throat

Blonde or red hair?

I don’t know my identity.

I am still finding it.

Maybe that’s all I ever really need.

Please give a detailed explanation about the meaning and main idea of this poem.

This poem is about a friend who changed my life the first day I met her. It's about how the people you love and care for can have a whole different perspective of who they are. It's about how people who love us never notice our insecurities as much as we do.

Please explain your writing and thought process regarding this poem.

I was with a group of friends and they gave me a challenge of finishing a poem in five minutes, so I wrote this poem.

Why did you choose to write this poem?

I chose to write this poem because I wanted to give something to my friend, something with meaning.

Do you have any tips or anything to share with the youth writers who may be reading this?

Write. It is fun and exciting to think about writing, but you have to do it at one point. I know it's hard to believe in yourself, but the only way to be called a writer is by doing that. Write and make mistakes, but never stop writing.