Guadalupe Asunción Rentería

February 7, 1947 – January 31, 2025

El Paso, TX

***

To a Chingona Butch Dyke Mom

You, fierce like the wind,

taught me resilience, strength,

confidence carved deep,

the legacy of our indigenous ancestors

etched into your soul, passed down to mine.

Your life wasn’t easy,

but you carried it with the sharp wit

of someone who knew the world

before the world could know you.

School never held you,

but neither did doubt.

Fourth grade was your last,

but you made life itself your classroom,

and you, the sharpest mind in the room.

Your wisdom rooted in earth and grit,

in knowledge not taught by books—

a library of lived experiences,

a map of survival written in your bones.

Starting young, you worked,

head held high—

each job a chapter of daring:

snake handler beneath circus lights,

waitress at the Oasis,

a whirlwind on roller derby skates in the ‘70s,

securing worlds by night,

protecting dreams by dawn.

Standing strong, standing tall,

always carving your own path.

A chingona, fierce and unafraid—

in your security guard uniform,

you wore the strength of warriors.

That uniform fit you well—

not just in size, but in presence,

commanding respect without saying a word.

Channeling Eric Estrada’s swagger,

but with your own fire—

that deep, sexy, gravelly voice

left femmes breathless at the O.P.,

your quiet confidence doing all the talking.

Seven—your sacred number,

woven through your life’s tapestry.

And fitting, isn’t it,

that you chose your next adventure at 77,

with your passing marked at 2:07,

seven days before your 2/7 birthday,

as if you whispered to the universe,

“This, too, is on my terms,”

planning your exit with precision.

You will be missed beyond words,

but I find solace in knowing pain no longer clings to you.

Thank you for your love, for the lessons,

for the fighting spirit you instilled in me,

and for teaching me to live unapologetically.

May your spirit now roam free,

dancing and laughing among a sea of high femmes

forever wild, forever fierce,

forever loved.

Forever free.