an ode to my mother

Written By Bianca Morán

My Inheritance

 

(An Ode to My Mother)

You shall inherit the following*:

*Not legally binding

1.     Mashed potatoes out of the box, with EXTRA butter.

2.     Manicures and pedicures (as needed)

3.     Anita Baker and Sade, David Byrne and Annie Lennox, Eydie Gorme and Luis Miguel. Joni. And Carol.

4.     Heels; with everything.  

5.     Red lines and crossed out sentences, deleted paragraphs.

6.     Cleaning on Sunday’s, Sade playing in the background, *crying if necessary*

7.     Birthday presents on the bed early in the morning, open gifts soon as you awake, and a birthday breakfast before leaving

8.     You shall inherit all my pain, insecurity and anger; please do something with it.

9.     Museums and art. Always.

10.  Never show up to someone’s home empty handed.  (I taught you better than that.)

11.  Manners.

12.  Manual driving skills. (in case there is an emergency and you need to know how to drive stick shift)

13.  Restlessness courted by loneliness. Or vice versa.

 

Bianca Morán

Bianca Moran is an independent curator and educator based in Los Angeles. Her curatorial practice is invested in the deconstruction of anti-Blackness within notions of “Latinidad” through interrogations of visual culture and historical narratives in both the U.S. and Latin America. A former K-16 educator in Los Angeles, her curatorial practice is deeply informed by culturally relevant and responsive pedagogy. Her research interests include history, race and ethnicity, foodways, diaspora, education and pedagogy, critical theory, film and visual culture. She is interested in the reimagining of art history and the spaces where art resides. Bianca holds an M.A. in Curatorial Practice and the Public Sphere from USC, an M.Ed. in Education from UCLA and a B.A. in Political Science with a minor in Ethnic Studies from UC Berkeley. She was born in Los Angeles and raised between the Bay Area and LA. Bianca is also a single mother raising her daughter, Paloma.

https://www.biancamoran.com
Previous

food for remembering
Next

on single motherhood