Calmivin ©
By Daniel Aristi
San Sebastian, Spain, 1977
So many hours crafting each & every weapon in me
At age six, at age seven.
I walk to school today firing my fists in the air,
They got rocket boosters at the wrist, to punch through giant robot foes and Maribel,
A friend of my mom’s, worried, calls her in the evening.
Calls her still revolving numbers (there were colonies)
Calls like Queen Mother.
Back then children who acted different
It was hip to dub “hyperactive’, and God had no part in it.
Maybe taking Calmivin © would do me worlds of good, she said.
Of course she’s no doctor, and no mother, and no nothing, and
Nada de nada de nada,
And the conversation is skidding on black ice.
Eventually, mom reaches a compromise over the phone: her friend is of good will —
Been like this since the war, and because of it — and Calmivin © does work
But not all the time.
* * *
Tantas horas creando todas & cada una de las armas en mÃ
A la edad de seis, a la edad de siete.
Hoy camino para la escuela disparando mis puños al aire,
Tienen cohetes en las muñecas para perforar gigantes robots enemigos y
Maribel,
Una amiga de mi mamá, preocupada, la llama a la noche.
La llama girando números todavÃa (habÃa colonias)
Llama como la Reina Madre.
En aquel entonces niños que actuaban diferente
Era la moda llamarlos “hiperactivos’, y Dios no tenÃa arte ni parte.
Quizá tomar CalmivÃn © me harÃa muchÃsimo bien, dijo ella.
Por supuesto no es médico, ni madre, ni nada, ni
Nada de nada de nada,
Y la conversación patina sobre un hielo negro.
Finalmente, mamá alcanza un compromiso por teléfono: su amiga es de buena intención
— ha sido asà desde la guerra, y a causa de ella — y CalmivÃn © funciona
Pero no siempre.