Isaac Chavarria is a poet who hails from Alton, Texas, which is on the southern border with Mexico. Born on April 27, 1979, Chavarria spent most of his childhood growing up in Alton. He grew up with five other siblings, the second to youngest of the group. His mother worked as a housemaid while his father worked in carpentry. After taking advanced classes in high school, he went on to attend the University of Texas- Pan American (currently known as the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley) to get a Bachelor’s degree in Biology. Later attending the same university, he received an MFA in Creative Writing followed by a Certificate in Mexican American Studies. Chavarria uses many parts of his culture at home to incorporate into his works. He began to write during his teenage years, as his family went through changes that found him in need of expressing some “angst.” Now, he puts a lot of his expression into addressing the culture, or the mixture of culture, between the United States and Mexico. Chavarria used the term “pocho” to describe not just the language in his area, but also to refer to the culture of the “Americanized” Mexican in the United States. He has a goal in addressing this aspect of his life: “I’m trying to redefine the term in a more truthful aspect.” By adding historical, personal, and cultural background, he seeks to give his readers a better understanding of life near the border. Some of the influences that Chavarria recognizes include Gloria Anzaldúa, Americo Paredes, Edgar Allen Poe, and Jose Montalvo. He likes to keep his ideas in his poems short, and he doesn’t like things to be too complicated for his readers. He also gains influence from his community, which happens to be the audience that he directs most of his poetry toward. Chavarria defines success as, simply, happiness. Stemming from what his mother imparted to him, this means just enjoying the life that you have and doing the best that you can with it. Chavarria also finds excitement in recognition of his work, but happiness is his main objective in writing and in his life as a whole. In addition to writing, Chavarria also works as a lecturer at South Texas College in McAllen, Texas. He volunteers with creating chapbooks for non-profit organizations and spends a lot of his time with his two 7-year-old “puppies.”