to understand the burden of motherhood
all i had to do was be my mother’s daughter
to feel the heaviness of existential dread
being born into a mortal body was all it took
i exist against my own will ― how can this be?
the notion of death sings me to sleep
with promises of an eternal serenity
if i choose to close my eyes until reaching nirvana
but pretty words stopped charming me long ago
with my own 2 eyes, i need to witness what you speak of
because the emptiness of air is invisible
and yet, it still blurs the lines beyond sight
will you hold my gaze until all i see is stars?

Born and raised in Ecuador, Anai Gonzalez is a 21-year-old senior at the University of Southern California, Marshall School of Business. Being a first-generation immigrant and college student, she carries out her life’s purpose by expressing the essence of her soul through poetry. Her debut book is called, daydreams + nightmares.