POETRY

7:45 am, East Hampton MS, Fall, 2018

A poem about otherness and memories.

Image by Miguel Adrover; East Hampton, New York, 2018.

The Principal recites the loaded words,
To me, they’re foreign —
Pledges and allegiances are not invoked in Puerto Rican classrooms;
Outside, leaves change their tune
(note to Self: green is evanescent),
They cling to fractal boughs,
Eating the last rays of a Summer only WASPS can afford to enjoy.

Today, I account for each word,
Dispelling the accent as much as possible;
My left hand on my right pec,
Always justice before liberty —
The former is lacking, the latter is warped.

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