but you speak english so well
but you speak english so well...
yes, I know, I do.
you don't even have an accent...
yes, I know, I don't.
yes, I know, my mother beat it
out of me -- no child of mine
will have an accent...
ashamed of her own
broken english. ashamed
at the supermarket,
when the cashier frowns
not understanding
her dented words.
ashamed at the hospital
when the nurse asks
if she wants an interpreter.
i learned english too late...
my mother laments.
i swallowed & choked
on shame. tongue a clumsy
worm. struggling, shrinking
in the sun, looking for its dirt home.
elementary school kids laughing --
you talk funny...
i can't say pasta --
the a like fusilli in my mouth.
so i assimilated, harnessing
the non-english slug writhing
between my jaws, taught
it well, until it obeyed
american syllables & everyone
said you weren't born here???
at eight years, i learned english,
learned it so well, as to be
unrecognizable. i look in the mirror,
i'm vanishing...
yes i know, when i open
my mouth, dirt
spills out, missing
the flowers of its native soil.
Karo Ska (she/they) is a South Asian & Eastern European non-binary femme, migrant poet, living on occupied Tongva Land (aka Los Angeles) with their black cat muse. Anti-capitalist & anti-authoritarian, they find joy where they can. Their first chapbook, "gathering grandmothers' bones" was released on February 29th, 2020. For updates, follow them on instagram @karoo_skaa or check out their website karoska.com.