Father noun

[1] a male parent; a man who has begotten a child, as in your papá who must’ve held you
once as an infant, pulled gentle words from his soilheart when you cried, surely
must’ve let you cry once, está bien, puedes llorar ahora;
[2] the first person of the Trinity, as in the Christian doctrine, which is to say sons come
second and daughters nowhere, meaning even religion will delay your name and
forget mine;
[3] an old man; used as a respectful form of address, respect our elders demand of us
with pinch and pull
[4] a priest of the regular clergy, as in the man who administers our baptisms,
communions, confirmations, and all we’re instructed to do is say yes, I believe, yes, in
the name of the father–yours intertwined with his–deliver us from evil even in your
silence

Home noun

[1] one’s place of residence, as in five rooms and three floors of air to escape the next
striking hand;
[2] the social unit formed by a family living together, as in lloronatongued mother and
nightedged father, siblings who lived the same neglect but still blame you for
inheriting the rooms in which your childbody learned to equate silence with love;
[3] a familiar or usual setting: congenial environment; the focus of one’s domestic
attention, as in father’s hands demanding labor of your niñez, your eyes dilating on
prayernamed valle girl, nieta’s pen writing of your life in a language you’re still
migrating to;
[4] a place of origin; one’s own country, as in México → Guanajuato → Valle de Santiago,
as in the apostle James, saint of pilgrims and soldiers, meaning your roots were
meant to bleed, never to stay in one place;
[5] an establishment providing residence and care for people with special needs, and
don’t we all crave to be cradled these days;
[6] the objective in various games, as in home plate, home run, run from where you
started and come home, arrive at the bloodline that songsalves your childwounds.

Valentín name

[1] strength, as in the hours you labored en los campos, kilometers you crossed to
house seacalled esposa, fatherfists you dodged–or sometimes couldn’t, hijos y nietos
you carried across twentyacred nursery, words you endured by redeyed siblings
and moonfailed son, laughs you abuelosing despite it all;
[2] health, as in wellness, not to be mistaken with healing, which has no measurement,
no completion, only a continuous arrival, endless embracing, and when you die may
you feel your father’s and close this cycle thinking finalmente