LETRAS BY ALEX
Poet
Writer
Host
Educator
Chicano Poet who grew up under the water tower (Santa Ana, CA) who writes about the first-generation, immigrant experience.
Bio
Alexis Jaimes is a poet and educator from Santa Ana, California. As the proud son of Mexican immigrants, his work explores the intersections of cultural memory, language, generational trauma, and healing. He is the author of The Seeds We Sow (Daxson Publishing, 2026) and Corazón Coalesced (Bottlecap Press, 2024).His work has appeared in numerous presses as well as showcased at the Fullerton Museum Center and the Huntington Beach Art Center. He teaches in a dual-language classroom, believing in the power of language in all its forms. Alexis can also be found co-hosting Arvida Book Co.'s Open Mic every last Saturday of the month.
The Seeds We Sow
The Seeds We Sow is a vulnerable yet resilient collection of bilingual poems that offers readers a glimpse into life as the child of immigrants in a fractured household-and the lasting ramifications of that fracture, both within and beyond the home.The collection moves from confession to testimony to declaration, and finally to proclamation. Each section embodies the seeds we choose to sow, examining the roots of pain and the fruit those choices bear. To bury a seed is to begin a cycle, therefore, it must be chosen with care.The first seed is "Nopal." This section confronts the anguish of handling spines-how even the gentlest touch can wound. "Guayaba" marks germination, growth that pushes beyond imposed borders, rooted in Santa Ana yet reaching toward the world at large. "Mango" turns toward love-the kind every person deserves planted within them-and how, when nurtured, it allows them to flourish despite hardship. The collection closes with "Sábila," a seed of ancient medicine. Though its leaves are cut and torn, aloe continues to heal and propagate. It grows even after pieces of itself are sliced away. To sow this final seed is to choose cultivation over rupture and healing over inheritance.
Corazón Coalesced
Corazón Coalesced is the debut chapbook by Alexis Jaimes who weaves together the tender and the tumultuous, offering readers a journey through the struggles and beauty found in exploring love, identity, and heritage. With poems that dance between English and Spanish, the essence of growing up in an immigrant family is captured, painting a vivid portrait of a breaking family, an endeavor to recover one’s culture, and the relentless pursuit of healing.Jaimes' voice and imagery capture the essence of his experiences and those of his community, offering readers a window into a world where hope and resilience coalesce. The chapbook starts off with the themes of departure and the difficult journey towards emotional recovery throughout. This is expanded with the exploration of the intricacies of love and desire, juxtaposed with the stark reality of recurring disappointments.From the streets of Santa Ana to the intimate moments of introspection, each poem in Corazón Coalesced invites you to witness the resilience and the power of words to heal and inspire. This chapbook is a collection heartbreak and the journey to recover those shards.