Family Ties

Blog # 2                                     Family Ties By Santiago Baca

In reading the poem Family Ties, I think the author is primarily making connections between the man, family, and land; talking about how he finds more comfort in family and nature than in his culture. In the beginning he describes his aunts and uncles as trees and the children as rivers, which in essense is tying them to the positive natural imagery that is prevalent in the poem. Conflict is shown when he states of being inside, “mounted elk head”, which indicates a hunter's trophy and something that goes against nature and arguments over who possesses the land. Here is where he feels separate from his own kind. When they act outside the natural and start imposing their will on the land. He is tied to both nature and family. In some segments it appears he may feel more tied to nature than family ties, because he portrays a sense of anger at the fact that people have to own land or have citizenship to be seen as not trespassing instead of being able to just enjoy it. The tone changes again, when he goes outside with his family and he describes the pastoral beauty that is between his family and the natural world. These reflections are broken by the sudden statement that he can't afford to let his family go to a place like this because of the man-made concept of land ownership. “He can’t afford a place like this”, signifies why people get upset of the so called Land of the Free. He clearly longs for there to be no more, no trespassing signs. This fact is repeated for an upsetting affect as they drive away his sons dreaming of the fields and the man saddened by the No Trespassing signs.  Also, I find for the no trespassing signs to reference not only the land, but how he feels cut off from extended family as if they are on one side of a divided line and he on the other. In addition, to him feeling disconnected because of the conflicts within his family arises due to their imposes of their interruption’s on nature, he thinks family is natural and tied to nature.