"You Seek Grace From a Distracted God" by Luis Alberto Urrea

     This is one of Urrea's most famous poems and I was wanting to read it because of the reference to God in its name. I am currently taking an Honors Philosophy of Religion course and wanted to see if there was any connection to that subject in any way. 

    For some context, this poem was his opening piece in his 2015 collection The Tijuana Book of the Dead which describes the challenges associated with the U.S border. The poem paints a portrait of lives affected by transient work, fragmented family structures, and the pursuit of dignity in the midsts of systemic neglect. 

    The titular "distracted God" symbolizes the feelings of abandonment experienced by marginalized communities. Urrea weaves threads of resilience and hope, acknowledging the enduring human spirit that persists despite adversity . He confronts the idea of faith in a world full of poverty, neglect, and violence. He describes the feelings and internal thoughts of those who have nothing by saying "And he does not look." This means that many people who are suffering feel that God is not "listening" rather He is distracted.  In this poem, he really humanizes the general word poverty.

    "You cross desserts in search for light" is a immigration reference: where he creates imagery of refugees crossing brutal terrain. 


This is all for now! There are many more important things to discuss from this poem! For my next post, I will be researching another LatinX writer. 

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