Strategic Visibility

Sor Juana cultivated relationships with the Viceroy, the Archbishop, and other patrons not through obsequiousness but through her undeniable talent and carefully curated presence. She made herself visible and indispensable. For adopted individuals, particularly those with histories of erasure, abandonment, or marginalization, strategic visibility can be an important practice of claiming identity. This means engaging in ways that create documentation and witness of your existence: contributing publicly, building reputation, making connections with people who recognize and reflect back your value. It's not about performing for others' validation but about ensuring you're not disappeared, forgotten, or left out of family narratives and institutional records. Sor Juana's example shows that visibility requires both authentic achievement and intentional relationship-building. The adopted person who claims identity partly does so by ensuring they're seen and remembered in concrete, verifiable ways.