My Comrades by Melissa

I have a very special love for women who break the rules by challenging society's expectations of them, and this is the primary reason why I have loved Frida Kahlo since I accidentally discovered her in my early 20's. I may have seen her portrait before then, but it was at the Wednesday afternoon swamp meet in Indio, California, where one September I really took notice of her work. I was saboreando un elote, and I stopped adjust my bag in front of a stand that was dedicated to all things Frida. Her iconic paintings, printed on posters, t-shirts, and note cards, were full of so much emotion that I couldn't look away. Who would paint such things, and why would I find them at the swap meet?

Thus began my interest in the biography of Frida. The more I learned of her, the more interested I became in the complexity of her work. And somewhere along the way, I saw this picture, of Frida marching in a May Day celebration in 1929. My own consciousness of the history of labor's struggle was unfolding, and I felt a special connection to the photographed 22-yr-old who appeared so confident and resolute. I wanted to march with her, stay up into the wee hours of the madrugada talking politics, sip good mescal and share chismes about lovers. All of this had nothing to do with her art, though over the years I have come to value that part of her too.

Never in my wildest imagination, could I see that I would be traveling back to Coyoacan with another comrade, who has also lived her life challenging society's expectations. Zoe and I have marched together, stayed up into the wee hours of the madrugada talking politics, and shared chismes about lovers. And now we get to share something else...a trip with open hearts and uplifted hands, to the places Frida loved.

She's been expecting us.