Every Day is Magic: Ada Limón

In her 2015 collection, Bright Dead Things, a National Book Award finalist for poetry, Ada Limón writes of moving to Kentucky: “Confession: I did not want to live here.” It’s perhaps not a surprising sentiment coming from a coastally oriented person who was raised in Northern California, attended college in Seattle, and then spent over a decade in New York City.

 

But Limón and her husband, Lucas, have been in Lexington for seven years now and the effects of settling into this place are noticeable in her new book, The Carrying (Milkweed, Aug.). It’s a phenomenally lively and attentive collection replete with the trappings of living a little closer to nature. While Bright Dead Things is marked by a preponderance of light, such as images of fireflies and neon signs, The Carrying features numerous appearances by various trees, birds, and beetles. Limón also demonstrates a greater willingness to be explicit in naming colors, particularly green. “It’s crazy green, the whole book,” she says. “Lexington is the greenest place I’ve ever lived.” Similarly, where in Bright Dead Things, Limón tells a lot of stories and anecdotes, in The Carrying she is very present in her thoughts and experiences.

As it turns out, these shifts in focus have another, altogether unexpected source. While putting Bright Dead Things together, Limón was diagnosed with chronic vestibular neuronitis, which can cause bouts of vertigo. “If I’m really having vertigo, it’s pretty intense and I really have to focus,”
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Health

The Presence and Significance of Imaginative Play in the Lives of Mexican-American Adults

AT PERONE III – 2013
Page 1. The Presence and Significance of Imaginative Play in the Lives of Mexican-American
Adults … Side Institute for Group and Short Term Psychotherapy and Carrie Lobman at Rutgers
University for co-creating play spaces with me at professional conferences, in print, and in …
Link to dissertation

SPOUSAL CONCORDANCE ON COGNITIVE TRAJECTORIES: AN EXPLORATORY LATENT CLASS APPROACH WITH MEXICAN AMERICAN OLDER ADULTS

K Small, J Margrett, D Russell – Successful aging and social contexts: The importance …, 2013
… 4 SPOUSAL CONCORDANCE ON COGNITIVE TRAJECTORIES: AN EXPLORATORY LATENT
CLASS APPROACH WITH MEXICAN AMERICAN OLDER ADULTS … provided oral informed consent
and were interviewed in their home by trained, professional personnel employed …
Link to dissertation

A Demographic Portrait of Mexican-Origin Hispanics in the United States

A record 33.7 million Hispanics of Mexican origin resided in the United States in 2012, according to an analysis of Census Bureau data by Pew Research Center. This estimate includes 11.4 million immigrants born in Mexico and 22.3 million born in the U.S. who self-identified as Hispanics of Mexican origin.
by Ana Gonzalez-Barrera and Mark Hugo Lopez
Mexican-Origin Hispanics in the United States
Link to article

Health Behavior Changes following Breast Cancer Treatment: A Qualitative Comparison among Chinese American, Korean American, and Mexican American Survivors

J Lim, P Gonzalez, MF Wang-Letzkus, O Baik… – … of Health Care for the Poor …, 2013
… and ethnically appropriate strategies for promoting healthy behaviors for Chinese American,
Korean American, and Mexican American BCS, who … in the health behavior changes among ethnic
minorities will assist both ethnic minorities and health care professionals to effectively …
Link to abstract

A Qualitative Study of the Day-to-Day Lives of Obese Mexican-American Adolescent Females

SA Taylor, BH Garland, BE Sanchez-Fournier, KF Allen… – Pediatrics, 2013
… Interview content was developed from empirical research, clinical experience, and consultation
with Mexican-American researchers and adolescents to … Interviews conducted in English were
transcribed by a professional tran- scription service and reviewed and corrected by a …
Link to abstract

Older U.S.-Born Mexican-Americans Have More Physical Limitations Than Mexican American Immigrants

Newswise — TORONTO, ON —New research indicates that Mexican-Americans born in the United States who are aged 55 and over are significantly more likely than Mexican-American immigrants to report that they have substantial limitations in one or more basic physical activities such as walking, climbing stairs, reaching, lifting, or carrying. (30% versus 25%).
Link to article

Family cohesion, acculturation, maternal cortisol, and preterm birth in Mexican-American women

RJ Ruiz, RH Pickler, CN Marti, N Jallo – International Journal of Women’s Health, 2013
… and preterm birth in Mexican-American women … Objective: To examine the potential moderating
effects of family cohesion and acculturation on the physiological stress response (cortisol) as
a predictor of preterm birth (PTB) in pregnant Mexican-American women. …
Link to article

Associations Between Nocturnal Blood Pressure Dipping and the Metabolic Syndrome in High- Vs. Low-Acculturated Mexican American Women

S Shivpuri, MA Allison, CA Macera, S Lindsay… – American Journal of …, 2013
… This study is part of a larger evaluation of sociocultural factors related to CVD risk in Mexican
American women. … as (i) less than 9th grade; (ii) 9th –11th grade; (iii) high school diploma or
equivalent; (iv) some college; (v) bachelors degree; and (vi) graduate or professional degree …
Link to abstract

Psychoecological Model of Alcohol Use in Mexican American Adolescents

H Chun, E Devall, P Sandau-Beckler – The Journal of Primary Prevention
… Parents, teachers, mental health professionals, business leaders, and community leaders
must work together to support Mexican American youth before they detach from social
institutions and turn to alcohol use as a coping mechanism
Link to abstract

New Contexts for Curanderismo: Recasting Mexican American Folk Healing within American Metaphysical Religion

B Hendrickson – Journal of the American Academy of Religion, 2013
… Elena Avila’s work with apprentices began with occasional workshops with medical
professionals who wanted to deepen their knowledge of Mexican American healing
traditions. In these workshops, Avila modeled her particular …
Link to abstract

Mexican American adolescents’ profiles of risk and mental health: A person-centered longitudinal approach

KH Zeiders, MW Roosa, GP Knight, NA Gonzales – Journal of Adolescence, 2013
… the mother was the child’s biological mother, lived with the child, and self-identified as Mexican
or Mexican American; (d) the … These interviews were conducted by professional interviewers who
read questions and response options aloud in the participants’ preferred language to …
Link to abstract

Maternal Warmth Moderates the Link between Harsh Discipline and Later Externalizing Behaviors for Mexican American Adolescents

M Germán, NA Gonzales, D Bonds McClain, L Dumka… – Parenting, 2013
… a cross-ethnic group study of children ages 8 to 13 years, Hill, Bush, and Roosa (2003) found
that Mexican American (MA) mothers … discipline that capture the range of viewpoints in the general
public, among policymakers, and among clinical and research professionals: (1) the …
Link to abstract

A Theater Intervention to Prevent Teen Dating Violence for Mexican-American Middle School Students

RA Belknap, K Haglund, H Felzer, J Pruszynski… – Journal of Adolescent …, 2013
… from two prior qualitative studies regarding perceptions of dating relationships and violence among
male and female Mexican-American adolescents to … An acting group of four undergraduate students
and a professional theater director wrote, directed, and performed the plays. …
Link to abstract

An Adapted Brief Strategic Family Therapy for Gang-Affiliated Mexican American Adolescents

A Valdez, A Cepeda, D Parrish, R Horowitz, C Kaplan – Research on Social Work …, 2013
… and Charles Kaplan1 Abstract Objective: This study assessed the effectiveness of
an adapted Brief Strategic Family Therapy (BSFT) intervention for gang-affiliated
Mexican American adolescents and their parents. Methods: A …
Link to abstract

Adapting the Distress Thermometer for Cross-Cultural Research: A Method Enhanced by Mexican American Undergraduate Research Assistants

JN Wells – Hispanic Health Care International, 2013
… Perceived mood, health and burden in female Mexican American family cancer caregivers.
Health Care for Women International, 30(7), 627–652. … Retrieved from http://www.nccn
.org/professionals/physician_gls/f_guidelines.asp Northouse, L. (2005). …
Link to abstract

Parental Factors Associated with Mexican American Adolescent Alcohol Use

C Mogro-Wilson – Journal of Addiction, 2013
… Bachman, LD Johnston, and JE Schulenberg, “The epidemiology of alcohol, marijuana, and
cocaine use among Mexican American, Puerto Rican … EV Cohen, “Child-rearing values of
low-income, urban Puerto Rican mothers of preschool children,” Professional Psychology, vol. …
Link to article

Signal Detection Analysis of Factors Associated With Diabetes Among Semirural Mexican American Adults

KD Hanni, DA Ahn, MA Winkleby – Hispanic Journal of Behavioral Sciences, 2013
… inclusion in this analysis were as follows: (1) self-identification as Mexican American, (2) 18 years
of age or older, (3) reported being diagnosed by a doctor as having diabetes, and … Hypertension,
“Have you ever been told by a doctor, nurse, or other health professional that you …
Link to abstract

The Psychology of Working: A Case Study of Mexican American Women With Low Educational Attainment

L Guerrero, S Singh – The Career Development Quarterly, 2013
… However, work–life balance issues may be more relevant to younger Mexican American women,
because this group’s average age was almost 48. DelCampo, DelCampo, and DelCampo (2009)
found that, although professional Hispanic women expected to share some of the …
Link to abstract

Mexican-American Perceptions of the Causes of Mental Distress

I Barrera, CH Schulz, SA Rodriguez, CJ Gonzalez… – Social Work in Mental …, 2013
… This is important for mental health professionals to understand when working with
Mexican-American clients. View full text; Download full text; … This is important for mental health
professionals to understand when working with Mexican-American clients. Keywords. …
Link to abstract

PHYSICAL ACTIVITY, BODY FAT, AND ENDOTHELIAL FUNCTION IN MEXICAN AMERICAN MALE ADOLESCENTS

EJ Winokur – 2012
Page 1. PHYSICAL ACTIVITY, BODY FAT, AND ENDOTHELIAL FUNCTION IN MEXICAN
AMERICAN MALE ADOLESCENTS by … prepared by Elizabeth J. Winokur entitled Physical Activity,
Body Fat, and Endothelial Function in Mexican American Male Adolescents …
Link to dissertation


  

Poem
“…And would it have been worth it, after all,
Would it have been worth while,
After the sunsets and the dooryards and the sprinkled streets,
After the novels, after the teacups, after the skirts that trail along the floor—
And this, and so much more?—
It is impossible to say just what I mean!
But as if a magic lantern threw the nerves in patterns on a screen:
Would it have been worth while…”

T.S. Eliot
The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock

Mexican American Proarchive Annual Report for 2022

The American Community Survey is an annual survey administered by the federal government to help local officials and community leaders and businesses understand the changes that take place in their communities. It includes percentages of our population’s graduate school attainment and the employment of Mexican Americans in various occupations.  These important factors influence the allocation of federal resources. Mexican American Proarchives uses the data provided by the American Community Survey to better understand how Mexican Americans compare to the general population.

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