Dear Mama: My life outside our seven thousand islands:
We have the same sun, though he is punishing here.
There are also icy mornings and fiery afternoons.
I braved unforgiving waters last week, tracked
with corals, urchins and rocks like harpoons.
That was my ward’s popular notion of fun,
though I could not complain after the pizza,
and another semester had also begun.
And don’t be sad, I reunited with my old friends
namely remorse, anxiety and fear.
But don’t worry, I am doing good academically,
and I had not shed an irrational tear.
I stopped writing things I like, sometimes I feel
like skipping assignments for that, and I know
you wouldn’t approve of it, even though
you always ask about things I might miss.
I wish you’d get a chance to be here,
and listen to the shouting oceans, the
whispering mountains, and the local cheer.
I petted a cat the night before,
it rubbed its head against my hands
sweetly furled to the ground
and I heard your voice’s sound,
you said: “You might get bitten”,
but I don’t think cats bite, even if it’s Hawaiian.
So take care mama, and “Have a good one!”
**Poem may not be in the author's intended formatting