Glimmer by Amber Castellanos

I'll shine like a glimmer on the river

The one you see on the freeway

as you pass El Monte

Where the homeless linger in the bushes

Their tents nestled and tucked away

It doesn’t obscure the serenity

Of lush green and running

water flowing over, smoothing rocks

I told my dad one day that I'd like to visit there

"Why"? He asked.

I knew why he asked.

"The fish there are polluted."

I shrugged. "Its pretty. I've always wanted to go."

I starred as we passed it by

I never saw it as dirty

It kept me company

on the bus ride down to Long Beach

As I stole a dazed and groggy glance at it

Through the scratched up windows

Every morning at 8am

I wouldn't close my eyes fully

until we had made it by

I grew up in a small town not far from it

I never got to visit while I lived there

It was the secret oasis that was always

Just beyond reach

It made it into my stories

Crystal clear in a beautiful world

that didn't seem so dark at the time

I loved my home

Close to the running water

Coming back brings me closer

To a place that wasn't so perfect

But still kept on flourishing

In my years away I ran towards

what I thought was the ebb and flow

of the glistening crystal

I was blinded by lightning in the stormy sky

There was only a few

lovely raindrops along the way

I found a part of me somewhere

In the eye of the storm

It'll always remain beating in me

Wherever I shall go

Though I'll keep looking towards the river

Right next to the freeways edge

I'll hold onto what makes it real

Remembering how it glimmers under the sun

My little oasis close to home