Luis Cuauhtémoc Berriozábal: New Poems

Art by Simone Lourenco

Searching for the One

Searching for the one looking for me
and for the one not looking at all.
The bright sun blinds my eyes. I often
find that an annoyance. Who is tired
of searching for what does not want
to be found? The deeper you search,
the deeper you discover nothingness.
When you reach the bottom, you find
there is another bottom, and you will
then find another bottom. You keep
searching in another place for the one.

She is Thinking

She is thinking
that you have forgotten
since it is not the first time
and you remember for once
but she thinks it was just luck.
You don’t get a second chance
or a third or a fourth or a fifth, and
you never tell her how much you love her.

Could I Say Anymore?

Could I say anymore?
Not that you would listen.
Not that you would want to.
Could I say anymore?
I won’t make your day sad.
I won’t do you like that.
Kiss everything away.
Never live with regret.
I won’t ask you if you ever loved me?

I won’t know. I won’t ask.
How the stars shine so bright.
Is anything real?
I should have said more.
You should have asked me
if I ever loved you?

Slowdown (in the Afternoon)

I slowdown in the afternoon
like a man that has not slept
in days. In the afternoon I feel
a longing for going to bed.

I am near death in my thoughts.

That is far from the truth.

I slowdown in the afternoon
like the zombie in b-movies.

I seek a peace of mind that
eludes me. I speak softly and slow.
In the afternoon I long to sleep

and sleep. In the evening I slow-
down even more while night
stretches its dark wing over me.

Practice at Failing

Ever since I learned
how to crawl I have
practiced at failing.

Every year I have
learned something
new like taking it

easy on myself
because failing is
becoming a thing.

Now and then I get
to taste success.
It is fun while it lasts.

I try not to beat up
myself so much
when failing comes

around through
relationships which
tend to go awry.

Practice makes perfect
I hear and someday
I will learn to be flawless

at this failing thing
which has become
a fixture in my life.

Born in Mexico, Luis Cuauhtémoc Berriozábal lives in California and works in the mental health field. He is the author of Raw Materials (Pygmy Forest Press, 2004), Make the Light Mine (Kendra Steiner Editions, 2016), and Make the Water Laugh (Rogue Wolf Press, 2021). His poetry has appeared in Blue Collar Review, Escape Into Life, Mad Swirl, Triggerfish Critical Review, and Unlikely Stories).

Luis Cuauhtémoc Berriozábal at EIL

Luis Cuauhtémoc Berriozábal in Men in Love II at EIL

Luis Cuauhtémoc Berriozábal in Poems About Poetry at EIL

Luis Cuauhtémoc Berriozábal in Pushcart Prize Nominees at EIL