Madeline MacKenzie

I chose to reference Bless Me, Ultima, not only because of the place it holds in New Mexican literature, but because its
symbols and imagery convey the sweetest, richest elements of New Mexican life that we struggle to hold on to. In the center I
have depicted Ultima with her herbs and her owl. She represents an objective source of goodness and wisdom; she is the land,
the past, our ancestors. On either side of her you find the Márez ranchers and the Luna farmers, two cultures that have sustained
New Mexican families for centuries. Below them we have the river, or the “presence of the river” as Antonio puts it many times.
The lifeblood of his town, it has a pulse and an energy palpable to anyone who goes near - as rivers often do.