“Song of Mexico” for dVerse Poets, July 30, 2025

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(And yes, if you were wondering, the skull is actually part of the helmet of a man driving by on his motorcycle!)

Canción de México
(Song of Mexico)

This small café sits on the square,
or rather the rectangle.
The gas trucks pass by, blaring “Gaaaaas,”
their grounding chains a-jangle.

Trucks and cycles lacking mufflers roar by every minute,
accompanied by the beat of bass drums
pouring out the windows of the passing cars,
drowning out the music they were meant to accent.

The guinea fowl make such a ruckus that they sound insane,
but to complain about the noise in Mexico’s inane.
The daily garbage trucks, the water truck and all the rest
all live by the assurance that what’s loudest is the best.

I drink my coffee, eat my muffin, try to grin and bear it;
but when she sets a napkin down, I grab at it and tear it.
And even though one part of me says that I shouldn’t dare it,
I use a bit to wipe my lips. The other part? I wear it!

I stuff a wad in either ear, and though I still hear all,
I go by the illusion that I hear it from afar.
Sometimes I feel the threat of age, so quickly it is nearing;
but if I lose one faculty, dear God, please make it hearing!

This song is in jest, for in truth, I love Mexico, even her sounds, for in spite of this poem, not all of them are loud. Go HERE to read another piece about the music of Mexico.

The prompt for dVerse Poets was to write a poem about music that is meaningful to me. Go HERE to read poems others wrote to this prompt.

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About lifelessons

My blog, which started out to be about overcoming grief, quickly grew into a blog about celebrating life. I post daily: poems, photographs, essays or stories. I've lived in countries all around the globe but have finally come to rest in Mexico, where I've lived since 2001. My books may be found on Amazon in Kindle and print format, my art in local Ajijic galleries. Hope to see you at my blog.

29 thoughts on ““Song of Mexico” for dVerse Poets, July 30, 2025”

  4. merrildsmith's avatarmerrildsmith

    I enjoyed your poem, Judy, and I know it was meant in fun.

    I suppose anywhere that is not in a remote area has noise now. I’m not a fan either.

    Did you use a word from the list, which was part of the prompt?

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        1. lifelessons's avatarlifelessons Post author

          Ah.. I considered the definition of option as”something that may be chosen: such as an alternative course of action or an item that is offered in place of” rather than in addition to…sorry.

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  5. Aaron Guile's avatarAaron Guile

    I have only ever been to Tijuana. I went as a child, a teenager, and as an adult. Each experience was different. I don’t speak Spanish, but unlike other busy cities that I’ve been to, TJ has a certain musicality not a clash. I appreciate the observation you’ve made and as an adult I really got to enjoy Tijuana for everything that it is rather than the tourist trap I saw as a child. Thank you for your very fine poem.

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    1. lifelessons's avatarlifelessons Post author

      Tiajuana was the first town in Mexico I ever went to and Mexico the first foreign couuntry I was in. It was a short drive from Tucson, where my parents moved to the minute I graduated from h.s. and went away to college! We headed out to Tijuana on one of our first visits there. I think just me and friends from college I took down. We loved it.

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      1. Aaron Guile's avatarAaron Guile

        By the time we went to Tijuana we had just returned from four years of living just outside of Bremen, Germany. German cities are very industrial sounding and are very brassy and brash. TJ is a lot more fun.

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  10. Frewin55's avatarFrewin55

    I was in Acapulco on Christmas Day 1968 when our ship, returning from Australia, docked briefly but the waterfront was deserted as everyone was off celebrating so we never got to experience Mexico’s noise – nice write Judy…

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    1. lifelessons's avatarlifelessons Post author

      Thanks, Frewin 55!! Usually, celebrations in Mexico make the most noise, but here, celebration for the Virgin of Guadalupe is much bigger than Xmas..No doubt you would have heard a lot of loud explosions. Dec. 1-12 in my village there are almost constant fireworks going on.

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