Rising Stars: Meet Jesenia Chavez

Today we’d like to introduce you to Jesenia Chavez. 

Hi Jesenia, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today.
I published a poetry collection in April of 2022 because I had always wished to publish my writing, but I did not know where to begin. Then the pandemic hit, and as we all questioned our own mortality, what our lives were about, what we might leave behind if we were to die tomorrow, I finally gave myself permission to invest in that dream. I joined the Alegria publishing group and attended weekly sessions where we workshopped and got feedback on our writing, and then a few months later, I had my poetry collection in my hands, This Poem Might Save You (Me). 

As a woman of color, as a child of immigrant parents from Mexico, I thought that being an artist, a writer was beyond my grasp. My parents were hard-working immigrants from Chihuahua, Mexico, and they instilled in me the importance of having a good education, a decent-paying job that would shield me from the hardships they had to deal with. I am a proud bilingual educator with the Los Angeles Unified School District, I have been teaching for 16 years, and yet I still felt that longing to be creative, and I sought out local community workshops at spaces like CASA 0101 in Boyle Heights, or the Lunas Locas writing group at Avenue 50. I attended open mics, but it was not enough. Going on this publishing journey has not been easy; teaching is all-consuming, I teach kindergarten and first grade in an underserved community, I am often tired, disillusioned with the lack of support, lack of funding, and we are constantly battling for the most basic rights for our students and our communities. Yet I found the strength, made the time, and lucky for me; there are many folks out there that support poetry and independent publishing. Since I published my book, as I continue to teach and write, I have found so much support from my Alegria family, from La Poet’s Society and the founder Jessica M. Wilson, from SIMS library of poetry, from fellow educators who have purchased my book, from everyday people who buy my book at events, and online, and I have found that my creativity has expanded, it has reached heights I never knew it could because people are hungry for our stories, for counter-narratives that highlight the diversity of communities of color. Poems that are written from the heart strike a chord in others, and it is has been an exciting journey. 

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back, would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
There have been many struggles along the way. I am a 42-year-old Mexican woman; I am not married, I do not have children. I am independent, and this life is not one my mom or grandmother could have dreamed of. They had to follow the traditional path, I sometimes feel guilty or defective for choosing this life, yet I also know that I get to choose the life I want because of their hard work and sacrifice. Also, I thought that dreams had an expiration date, that once you got to a certain age, well that was it, but that is simply not true; it is never too late to chase those dreams that keep you up at night. I realized after many years of therapy, of learning about imposter syndrome, and learning about myself that I must get out of my own way, embrace the struggle and work daily toward those things that bring me joy. 

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I write about being a Chicana in Los Angeles, a Mexican-American born and raised in Los Angeles. I write about the ways Los Angeles changes by the minute and the sense of loss that evokes. I write about crossing borders, about my mom’s hometown in Dolores, Chihuahua, and the contrasts of inhabiting these worlds. Living in the in-between, living in English and Spanish, living in one of the richest cities in the world, with millions of unhoused folks on the street and many struggling to survive. I am proud of self-publishing; I am proud to read poems to an audience of 3 or to an audience of 100! I write from my heart, from my experiences. I can poke fun at myself, at the absurdity of our world, and I can see the beauty too. Through my writing, I hope to invite readers into a conversation, into a walk-in nature, into a part of themselves they may have forgotten. We all live with contradictions in a rapidly changing world, and I am asking you to pause and to feel. 

Is there something surprising that you feel even people who know you might not know about?
I get very nervous when I read poems, I get so nervous sometimes I want to cry. Yet I push beyond the nerves to get it done because, Si se puede! Yes, we can!!! 

Pricing:

• 20.00 for my poetry collection

Contact Info:

• Website: https://linktr.ee/chabemucho
• Instagram: @chabemucho or @quemecuentaspod
• Youtube: @quemecuentasalatinxstoryte9633