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Featured Writer
Francisco A. Sulub Trejo
Writing Workshop Participant with the Rigler Elementary SUN School for Spanish-speaking adults living on a low income.
A native of Isla Mujeres in Southern Mexico, Francisco moved to Portland 17 years ago. He works for Sapa Profiles, an aluminum manufacturing company in NE Portland. He and his wife Maria (whom he calls his “muse”) have three young daughters together. The two older girls attend Rigler Elementary, where Francisco participated in a Write Around Portland workshop for Spanish-speaking adults living on a low income this past spring.
Ausencia/Absence
by Francisco A. Sulub Trejo
(English translation, which follows, by Malin Dawson)
Yo, mi alma, mi ser siempre solo, con falta de algo.
Que paso, no se hay un vacio, pienso en la soledad.
Que me paso, no lo se. Sera asi toda mi vida?
Busco algo que no encuentro, algo que no se que es.
Solo se que debo seguir buscando.
Mis caminos se acaban. No se donde ir pero sigo buscando.
Es mi busqueda de algo que no se, es mi causa y debo seguir.
No se que es lo que debo hayar, me siento agotado.
Mi ser y mi alma estan cansados, pero la derrota no llega.
Debo sequir busca, busca sigue buscando!
Solo sabras que es hasta que lo encuentras.
Que esa ausencia no te hiera, que esa ausencia no te mate…
Myself, my soul, my being always alone, with something missing.
What happened, I don’t know, there is an emptiness. I think about solitude.
What has happened to me, I don’t know. Will it be like this all my life?
I am searching for something that I don’t find, something unknown.
I only know that I must keep searching.
My paths are ended. I don’t know where to go but I keep searching.
It is my search for something unknown, it is my cause and I must continue.
I don’t know what I must do, I feel exhausted.
My being and my soul are tired, but my path does not appear.
I must keep searching, continuing the search!
One only knows what it is once one finds it.
May this absence not brand you, may this absence not kill you…
© Write Around Portland & Francisco A. Sulub Trejo
Interview with featured writer Francisco A. Sulub Trejo
Biography writer/Interviewer: Marianna Hane Wiles,
Write Around Portland Volunteer Workshop Facilitator
Had you written much before you joined the Write Around Portland workshop?
Yes, when I was younger I wrote and read a lot of poetry—Octavio Paz and Gabriela Mistral were some of my favorites. In 1988, I won second place in Mexico’s national poetry declaration contest. I read one of my own poems…the first place winner read someone else’s work.
When I moved to Portland though, I forgot all about writing. I don’t even remember the name of the poem I read for the competition.
What did you get out of the workshop?
As I told Minh Nguyen [the volunteer workshop facilitator], this workshop woke up something that was sleeping in me—the hidden poet. I had forgotten all about the writer I was a long time ago. The workshop brought back good memories and got me writing again. I recently asked my brother to send me all of my old writing notebooks from Mexico, and I’m looking forward to reading them again.
How was your experience writing in a group? Sharing with others? Hearing other people’s stories?
It was really good to share, because when I’m writing I get so inside my writing that I get into a different world. Then when I read it aloud, I think, “Is that me?” I like it. Our facilitator was really encouraging too.
When I went to the reading [anthology release party], I got to meet a lot of people and hear a lot of other people read. I thought to myself, “there are a lot of good spirits in here.”
Would you recommend Write Around Portland workshops to others?
Definitely. I’m really glad I did this workshop; it opened a new door for me. When I was young, I was writing to compete, but now I’m doing it because I love to write.
What did the workshop help you learn about yourself as a writer?
Everything inspires me. You can find inspiration even in a rainy day, under a tree—just listen to your surroundings.
I like to write what I remember; I write about memories I had in the past…the ocean and the moon on the water…I close my eyes, see the memories, and I start writing. When I read it, I can hear the ocean sounds…things I miss.
Is there anything you would like to tell your readers about your writing?
What I do I do with my heart, with love. With respect also. My writing is part of me and my words are from my heart.
"I just believe in myself more."
Write Around Portland Participant
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