I am...
A Navy brat, middle child of six,
with no mother to name.
A vagabond of the eastern United
States’ coast.
A child of abusers; not to me, but
to substance and themselves.
A second generation American, with
a grandfather from Dublin and a grandmother from Sicily, on my father’s side of
the family.
A member of the Shawnee Nation,
where the only gift my mother gave me in life was her culture on the Oklahoma
reservation.
Seen as a mutt to both sides of my
family - half white, half native.
My father’s pointed nose and my
mother’s high cheeks; my father’s warm smile and my mother’s dark eyes; my
father’s curls and my mother’s complexion.
I am…
The persistent glare on my
childhood friend’s TV, while we watched cartoons on a futon in her basement.
A pastel orange Tommy Hilfiger
parka, just slightly too big to keep my small nose from turning red from the
cold, while I played in the snow packed into our backyard patio in the winter
of 2004.
A giant stuffed snake my dad won at
the fair I would often fall asleep on while watching my brother play his
GameCube.
The skateboard my brother gave me
when mom took him with her; unfortunately, he wasn’t my dad’s, so he couldn’t
stay when she left.
I am…
David Bowie’s permanently dilated
pupil and fashion sense from the 80s.
A vegetarian, former vegan, of
three years.
Graphite on paper - portraits of
the people I draw.
An activist, a feminist, a liberal,
a queer.
The stabbing throb of a migraine behind
my eyes.
This is lovely, Charli. I love the way you've interwoven your rich heritage in that first section (I am part Cherokee myself, also from Oklahoma) while also acknowledging the struggles of family and transience and addiction that are present there. I was also vegetarian for 3 years and planning to head back in that direction soon if it won't drive my husband and son crazy, and I am a liberal through and through. Be you, Charli. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDelete"Vagabond of the eastern United States' coast"--ha! I like to consider myself an Eastern vagabond, too, despite the fact that I've been out East exactly once.
ReplyDeleteThis piece was very vulnerable, and I loved it. You were so open about yourself and I am very grateful for that, not a lot of people have that kind of courage. You are a great writer, and I can't wait to see more of your writing!
ReplyDeleteThis is very deep and it opened up alot about you. Your piece is wholehearted and raw. very lovely and exciting to read.
ReplyDeleteI love how open you were in this piece. You gave us insight into the things that shaped you and were not afraid to put the "not so good" moments in your poem too and I loved that. You have an incredible talent for writing and I am so excited to read what you write throughout this class. Thank you for sharing!
ReplyDeleteThat's cool how you love to draw, especially since I love to draw too!
ReplyDelete