Michelle Yang
Where I’m From #25 By Michelle Yang
Inspired by George Ella Lyon
I am from sweet potato noodles
from Shin Ramyun, jajangmyeon, and barley tea.
From the apartment atop a Korean bathhouse
(boisterous, chained, with bees buzzing between bristly bricks.)
I am from the forbidden mango my Po-po sneaks me,
the pulpy fibers cling between my baby teeth.
I’m from incensed family shrines and stocky, 6-foot Northerner frames.
From Yeh-yeh, Po-po, Lao-yeh, Lao-Lao.
I’m from sacrifice, from the left-behind.
I’m from ‘girls don’t fart’ and ‘never talk back.’
I’m from my grandmother’s temples
to the suburban…
The skinny
The skinny isn't ready yet — notes appear once the transcript is processed.