To celebrate its 50th anniversary, the Worcester County Poetry Association (WCPA) made a call into the community, looking for short poems from Worcester residents that illustrate the streets of Worcester. The goal: stencil 13 poems on sidewalks throughout Worcester using paint that is only visible when wet with rain. 

Poems had to be a maximum of 49 words, including the name of the poet and a title, if there was one. The submitter had to be a resident of the City of Worcester, and dual language poems were encouraged.

The WCPA announced August 16 the 13 winners chosen, one of which was Danny “Fantom” Velazquez, whose poem will be Tacoma Street Bus Stop.

“I never heard of paint that showed up when it rained–nonetheless a poem,” Velazquez said. “It just sounded really cool. I was like ‘I want to see this in Worcester.’”

After what took him about an hour, Velazquez said that the poem just came to him. He wrote a bilingual English and Spanish poem. 

The word limit served as a challenge for Velazquez, who has been writing poetry since he was about 12 years old. He got into poetry because of rap and the inspiration of his father rhyming everything around him, from what they were about to eat to their names.

“I’m used to writing at a minimum eight bars, which is at least a hundred words, sometimes less or sometimes more,” Velazquez said. “When I saw the word cap…my mind was just kind of going crazy. What can I say about Worcester but also about myself in less than 50 words?”

Velazquez also recognized the fact that the poem would only be visible when it rains. He contemplated whether he should play “to the weather” or “to the feeling” that comes with the precipitation. 

“There was a lot going through my mind,” Velazquez said. “The concept of repetition came to mind. I could go through the stages of life. Being me, a Worcester native, I could write about that. That’s kind of where I found my forum. The rest of it kind of came together.”

The poem reads:

Cuando era nino..

These hills were so massive, intimidante.

Cuando era hombre..

These hills stored my memories, buenos y

malos.

Cuando era padre..

These hills taught me patience, la edad viril y

de confianza.

Y cuando me voy..

Yo quiero morir aqui, en mi Pueblo.

To translate:

When I was a kid…

These hills were so massive, intimidating.

When I was a man…

These hills stored my memories, good and bad.

When I was a father…

These hills taught me patience, manly age and trustworthy.

And when I leave…

I want to die here, in my Village.

“I’m just really proud of the poem itself but also to be highlighted in the community for it,” Velazquez said. “It is very layered and nuanced…I hope that it makes people happy when they look down and see it or inspires them when they see it on a rainy day.”

The poem has the repetition of “Cuando era,” or “When I was.” With each stage of life, though, the amount of Spanish becomes greater but also the words rise in complexity. Velazquez said the growth from basic Spanish to more advanced phrases creates the sense of aging as well as developing.

Velazquez’s poem will be at the Tacoma Street Bus Stop. While Velazquez said he wasn’t raised at Great Brook Valley, which is located on that street, his family was. 

“They all were a part of that village,” “The first thought in my mind when I think of GBV is the day care center.”

Velazquez’s great aunt ran the day care center, he said, with his grandmother for years. Velazquez’s great aunt received a key to the City of Worcester for dedicating her life to the kids. The symbolism within his family added to the excitement of being chosen as a winner of the contest, Velazquez said.

The judges of the rain poetry were Juan Matos, Elizabeth Bacon, Katherine Gregiore, and Walter Molina. The team selected 13 poems and seven honorable mentions.