Can a fear of cockroaches lead to good poetry?
Miami-native Nathalie Saladrigas didn't think so when she submitted her ZipOde poem dedicated to her home on Miami's upper east side.
There's a roach
That haunts me
But
I hope he
Likes the sound of salsa while I cleanNathalie Saladrigas, 33138
馃搷 What is a ZipOde?
They're five line poems based on where you live, with each number of your zip code determining the number of words in that line.
馃摜 Submit a poem at . Chosen poems will be presented at our ZipOdes finale at Vizcaya Museums and Gardens
"鈥奍 just thought it was so silly," Saladrigas told SA国际传谋 in an interview. "It was just like a silly thing that I wrote and I didn't think much of it until now."
She wrote the poem shortly after moving to her apartment in the 33138. A roach crawled its way across her curtain and then disappeared 鈥� an event akin to torture for Saladrigas.
"I hate roaches with a passion. I'm, like, very scared of roaches," she said.
In an effort to dispel the creature and any other vermin lying around the house, Saladrigas deep cleaned her apartment while reenacting a memory she has of her mother.
"When I was younger, she always put salsa not even just to dance, but to clean. My mom's Colombian, so she used to put , which is like a [music station] in Colombia where it's a lot of salsa," she said.
"So then I put that music so I can get in the groove when I'm deep cleaning. Then I wrote the poem."
Listening to Latin music while cleaning the home is a among many Hispanic-Americans, something Saladrigas taps into with her writing.
She sees her growth as a person as a process of becoming her mother 鈥� a transformation some might recoil from, but Saladrigas embraces.
"It's an amazing thing. I'm very proud of where I'm from and of my city. I feel, like, honored, I guess," she said.
Poetry month runs through the end of April. Anyone can submit a Zip Ode poem online via SA国际传谋.
