Much love and respect to the amazing editor, teacher, organizer, and community healer Trini Tlazohteotl Rodriguez, now with thirty-five years as my partner/collaborator/best friend, including as my wife. And much love and respect to my children, Ramiro, Andrea, Ruben, and Luis; my grandchildren, Ricardo (Yei Iztcuintli), Anastasia, Amanda, Catalina, and Jack Carlos; and my great-grandchildren, Xavier, Jaydda, Andre, and Liliana.
Special thanks to Irish American mythologist and story teller Michael Meade for his longtime friendship and powerful teachings, and to the healing community of the Mosaic men’s conferences in Mendocino, California (a’ho Duncan Allard, et al.)—I’m honored to have been a poetry teacher and mentor for these and other Mosaic conferences for over twenty-five years. Thanks also to Anthony and Delores Lee of Lukachukai, Diné Nation, and their family for their love and embrace of their daughter Trini and our family. Thanks to Mark Silverberg for editing and writing suggestions. And a huge tlazhokamati, thank you, to the amazing board, staff, and volunteers of Tia Chucha’s Centro Cultural and Bookstore in the northeast San Fernando Valley, including the Mexica kalpullis and danza circles, as well as Native American organizations and activists among the Chumash, Tataviam, Tongva, and other first peoples.