There are people in this world born to stand out and there are people born to rise above.
Aria Serpa, of San Diego California, was born to do both.
Her latest piece, “The Truth” is excerpted below:
Beyond the shadow on the wall, there are many stories from the fall.
Many mouths move from their peace,
truth stays far away from this place
But within the war, the truth is born,
in fire, death and conscience torn
Then covered up with cowardice again, by those who cannot bear its pain
Those who cannot walk through it, convince us that the truth is limited, that only the fearful speak
Teaching us that the truth is weak
But truth is a tower on its own
Lies that are preciously sewn
Truth, seeking nothing more but truth, resurrected on a whispered tone
And finds its way to common man
The powerful, fearful of his gain, use others to press him down again
They smother his voice when he tries to explain
Whose truth was given up
Told, “do not let him drink from your cup”
With “waters earned and rationed”, still coveting the rich man’s passions
Coveting a line of grace, they dare not look truth in the face
Truth ever silent but asking aloud,
what kind of man are you now?
Can you let the truth be found?
Can you bring your armor down?
Enough to see your true reflection, drop these false flags of connection?
Protection you traded for cheaper men
For the promise you could be one of them
Those who have tricked you away from your heart
And in its place
put a shopping cart
Those who trained you to forget the truth that all of us know
from our youth
The truth always silent will be asking aloud,
what kind of man are you now?
-Aria Serpa
The truth has a penchant for hiding in plain sight and honest eyes will see it through. As our newest feature of the week, Serpa is a champion of illustrative enigma.
A first generation Azorean-American immigrant, her work grazes all four corners of the creative spectrum, with a ceaseless well of passion to show for it.
Serpa sneers at the fallacies of consumerist expression.
She is critical of its elasticity and commands her listeners to not be swayed by the biases of those telling the story. She advises her audience to develop a sense of their own authority.
That they do not fear the power of eccentric solutions and autonomous forethoughts.
“It’s important for me to highlight that all of my work, even the work that is not visibly political, exists to raise the spiritual and material consciousness of how to exist and resist under a capitalist system.”
Serpa may be uncertain of the world’s direction, but she is certain of her own: she will continue to use her creative touch to speak out about the capitalist system's offenses against the very people it depends on.
What marks the end for some could mark the beginning of a new epoch that uplifts the millions who have not yet had a chance to feel the glow of economic prosperity.
Her work is adamant, reprimanding and yet, loaded with trembling humility.
Serpa’s quest for social truth is an act of pure resistance. She is insistent on using her work to carry this world through to the next plane of balance, harmony and tolerance.
A world that provides quality of life for the living.
We thank you Aria, for letting us share your wonderful work on Bigvalleyblue.
