The Places I Have Known

I.

April 21

the day Rome was founded

the day I was born

in Beijing, China

Everyone knows Beijing

is an enormous city

of big business and big pollution

But what I know

is the Beijing sky at sundown

and the petrichor after it rains

as I muddy my white shoes in the puddles

tall trees towering over the sidewalks

summertimes of bubbly soda

unhealthy popsicles

in my grandmother’s apartment

moonlight reflected in dark eyes

the cicadas buzzing below my balcony

I lean over, look below

II.

Florida vacations in Perdido Key

A lot less familiar, but just as home 

We were shut into our little bunk rooms

with cold and sandy covers

draped against our shoulders

backs against the wall

We strolled on the beach

hair grimy and clumped on the sides of our heads

eyes pointed at our feet

looking for anything we wanted

III.

The ocean is vast, mysterious

a home to billions

without asking much in return

But I know

it’s a pretty good judge of character

IV.

Everyone knows Maine

as the forgettable state

at the top of the map

but unforgettable things happen

in its tiny towns

V.

My grandmother was kind-hearted

and known for her baking

love in every recipe

She had her own struggles

even as she grew senile and forgot

what those struggles were

VI.

New York, “Big Apple,”

City that never sleeps

But what I know

is that it’s only a land of opportunity

for the rats

VII.

Everyone knows

how to write poems about feelings

I know how to write to escape

I have a habit of losing myself in dreams

inside my head, another life

settings, senses, imaginary people

I leave this mundane world

and find freedom in theirs

VIII.

Boone, North Carolina

home of Appalachian State

(pronounced app-a-latch-in)

is more than just a college town

You go to the grocery store

and within five minutes

you see everyone

you’ve ever known

IX.

I have lived inside

the color black

known its coldness and homeliness

its comfort and its loneliness

found refuge in its familiarity

I quit looking for the light at the end of the tunnel

and found God in the darkness