I am from tea, from clarified butter and frying pans.
I am from the stones that make up my kitchen floor, solid,
Strong and cool beneath my bare feet.
I am from the yellow marigolds and orange
And the jasmine that fills my nose and makes me dizzy.
I am from coffee-colored skin and eyes,
From cheapskates and hoarders and scheming aunties.
I am from medical schools and universities of law.
From fairy dust.
I am from the temple that houses our gods.
I'm from India, thick parathas and tall cold lassies
From the time my sister learned to blow a bubble
And the first time I saw my daddy cry.
I am from all the photos on the computer that sits on my desk,
all the memories kept safe in iPhoto, and
all the times the shutter clicked on the camera.
I am a seed from an apple growing to blossom
into a tree that spreads its branches to catch the sun.
by Rukmini, 7th grade
Check out H-E-B Montrose, Buffalo Speedway, and Bunker Hill throughout the month of April for delicious food-themed poems written by young WITS writers.
Poem a Day is made possible in part by H-E-B Tournament of Champions, Copy.com, The City of Houston through the Houston Arts Alliance, Texas Commission on the Arts, and KPFT.