The Things That I Know
I always hated
The noise from people talking too loud
The noise from cars
from the honking to their screeching brakes
and the barkers that would call out
that there was still room on the bus
The terrible disorganization from the city traffic
I was always tired
Of being the odd one out when I couldn't speak properly
and mangled the words and sentences
Of having to stay quiet while my relatives tried to haggle with the people at the market
Of the fact that I could never comfortably wear sweaters outside
I always did love
The mangoes over there
the ones here taste and look different and are not as sweet
Hearing that single bird call out into the dead of night
while it circled my house while I stayed awake
Listening to the rain as it pattered on the roof
and hearing the thunder as it boomed into the house and my bones
The orange light that would bathe everything in the early evening;
a warning of more rain to come in the night
And now I always miss
My relatives and the massive get-togethers
The festivals to celebrate some vague thing that never had priority
when there were games, food, and fun
The huge swaths of green fields
The green trees on every corner with their soft and lazy flowers
The murmurs of the old people reminiscing around the table
The place where I'm from.
The noise from people talking too loud
The noise from cars
from the honking to their screeching brakes
and the barkers that would call out
that there was still room on the bus
The terrible disorganization from the city traffic
I was always tired
Of being the odd one out when I couldn't speak properly
and mangled the words and sentences
Of having to stay quiet while my relatives tried to haggle with the people at the market
Of the fact that I could never comfortably wear sweaters outside
I always did love
The mangoes over there
the ones here taste and look different and are not as sweet
Hearing that single bird call out into the dead of night
while it circled my house while I stayed awake
Listening to the rain as it pattered on the roof
and hearing the thunder as it boomed into the house and my bones
The orange light that would bathe everything in the early evening;
a warning of more rain to come in the night
And now I always miss
My relatives and the massive get-togethers
The festivals to celebrate some vague thing that never had priority
when there were games, food, and fun
The huge swaths of green fields
The green trees on every corner with their soft and lazy flowers
The murmurs of the old people reminiscing around the table
The place where I'm from.
Hi Dana,
ReplyDeleteThis is a very unique and interesting take on the "Where I'm From Poem" and I think you did an amazing job. You took where I am from literally and gave a vivid description of how you remember where you were born. I also really liked how even though you started with talking about all of the bad things you remember, you ended your poem with all the positive things you miss and it turns the reader's opinion around.
Hi! I loved the different emotions that you used in your interpretation of the "Where I'm From" poem, from the frustration to the sense of longing for the comforts of family and the things that you loved. I think that the way you transitioned in your poem is really beautiful, and even though I didn't grow up in the same place as you did, I can still relate to the places and the people because I can imagine the same descriptions in my head.
ReplyDelete