Where I’m From
Where am I from?
My mother’s womb
My father’s seed?
Where am I from?
This city of noise
that makes you bleed.
This hustle,
this bustle
of constant rudeness.
These ghetto bourgeois people
surrounding me from all sides.
Where am I from?
The busy smells
of Nana’s kitchen.
Butter cake,
roasted chicken,
and greens
dance in my nose
Where am I from?
The strict discipline
of table manners,
public manners,
and house rules.
Where am I from?
“Your inner voice
you must listen,
to know thyself,”
Grandmom said
Where am I from?
Lost person,
everything
that makes you
is above.
All that you will be is before you.
I am from the people before me.
I am part of the people with me.
I carry my past with me
through to the future.
Where am I from?
I am from within,
I am from myself…
