Sarah Martinez Peña is a Social Media Manager at CNC and identifies as a member of the LGBTQ+ community. In celebration of her Grandmother and Immigrant Heritage Month, she demonstrates through poetry how love transcends far beyond the language barriers that stand between us. You can watch the full reading of this piece here. 

Love: A Universal Language

I've loved a woman all my life
and all my life we've spoken a language of our own.

It's a mixture of Spanglish, unconditional love, and a connection where no words are needed.

And I have this special bond with a woman I call Mama.

My mama is the center of our family, she is the glue that holds us together, 
she is the trunk to my tree.
And on my worst days, she knows just how to bring me back to balance with dignity, a sense of purpose, and hope.

Growing up there were times in my childhood that I lived with her
during these times life was an ongoing lesson being told in a mixture of Spanish and English 
From tips and tricks in the kitchen during breakfast to learning how to walk with my shoulders back on the way to school 
Even into adulthood, her life lessons resonate so profoundly
like knowing that when you're surrounded by people who you love and that love you back – makes you stronger and more resistant to weary people with bad intentions. 

Mamas wisdom trickles through my life in so many aspects
and so many times I am blown away by the impact she has had on me – because we grew up speaking two different languages.

I am a believer that love is a language that needs no words.
Because I've been loved all my life by a woman whose native tongue is not the same as my own.

For me, love is the gaze in her eyes when I'm leaving her house and she tells me "Dios te bendiga" 
Our language is the way she grabs my hands and tells me "Sabes que estas en mi corazon?"
Our connection is the way she tells me "Estoy aquí con los brazos abiertos, siempre."
It's the way she looks at me, hugs me, cares for me, and never fails to tell me "Te quiero mucho."

That makes our connection so much more than a language that verbally needs to be spoken
to understand.