"Potted" by Kelly Emmrich
Settling by Jessika Morrison
Standing in line for tacos
at mi abuelita’s birthday party, I see
a woman wearing huaraches. The tops
woven strips of rainbow leather
modernized with tacones– high heels.
I have always wanted a pair,
but since my dad can’t return
to Mexico, I ask the woman
where she got them. She replies,
“Ay, pobrecita. They’re from
our hometown in Jalisco. Pero,
you can try la pulga.”
The flea market always has knock-off items.
I want the handmade sandals,
before Google sponsored ads
from Nike who “created” the huarache
shoe, before they were fashionable
and had heels, before the hippies
made them popular, before
Christopher Columbus “discovered”
America, my ancestors, los campesinos–
farm workers, were wearing these
because they were poor. The woman
making tortillas rolls a ball of masa between
her palms and says, “this is a huarache too,”
then elongates the dough as she spreads it
on the convex comal. I smile and say “Gracias.”
at mi abuelita’s birthday party, I see
a woman wearing huaraches. The tops
woven strips of rainbow leather
modernized with tacones– high heels.
I have always wanted a pair,
but since my dad can’t return
to Mexico, I ask the woman
where she got them. She replies,
“Ay, pobrecita. They’re from
our hometown in Jalisco. Pero,
you can try la pulga.”
The flea market always has knock-off items.
I want the handmade sandals,
before Google sponsored ads
from Nike who “created” the huarache
shoe, before they were fashionable
and had heels, before the hippies
made them popular, before
Christopher Columbus “discovered”
America, my ancestors, los campesinos–
farm workers, were wearing these
because they were poor. The woman
making tortillas rolls a ball of masa between
her palms and says, “this is a huarache too,”
then elongates the dough as she spreads it
on the convex comal. I smile and say “Gracias.”
Jessika Morrison is a current creative writing graduate student at California State University, Sacramento. As a native of Sacramento, she enjoys outdoor activities such as hiking, biking, rafting and softball.
Kelly Emmrich is an illustrator and animator living and working in the Blue Ridge Mountains. Her work has appeared in the magazines Moonhood Magazine, Dream Noir, and Meat for Tea. She studied creative writing and animation at the University of Mary Washington. She is currently working as a beer label designer for a microbrewery in Afton, Virginia and also as a freelance animator and illustrator.
