What the Gossips Don't see

What the Gossips Saw was a poem that had a personal meaning for me. The story of Escolastica, a young, beautiful girl that is affected by a medical problem that is not her fault, reminded much of my girlfriend, Amy. Amy does not have an illness now, but her mother is very ill with a hereditary disease and Amy could get that disease or disease later in her life. Because we plan on getting married, people sometimes say mean things to her about how it might affect our marriage and our children if she were to get ill.

In the poem, everyone wonders if Escolastica's fiancé Guillermo will still marry her even though she recently lost one of her legs. She was considered to be crippled and though she ended up living a good life, bearing children and loving her husband, everyone thought that Guillermo was blind. Until a person loves someone who has (or could have) a medical condition, they may not understand that true love is unconditional.

English: Alexander Blok's poem 'Noch, ulica, fonar...

English: poem from Roli Español: Roli

Love letter to Clara Ford

I do not love Amy because she is healthy and disease-free. I will not stop loving her because she becomes ill, just like Guillermo did not stop loving Escolastica because she lost her leg. He was not in love with her leg. It upsets me when people say things about Amy and my relationship. I love her and it only hurts my relationships with the people that I love, such as my stepmother, when they say things about her. I am a grown man who can make my own decisions.

This poem really made me think of my own life. I face the gossipers just as Guillermo and Escolastica do in the poem. I related to the story because I experience the situations in the poem in my...