There are a lot of mirrors in my school
I don't remember seeing myself
Not in textbooks or in chalkboards
Or the tips of teachers tongues
...
This is a safe space,
Don't be afraid,
You are in a safe place,
Feel free to share anything that you're feeling,
...
If you ask me if I'm fluent in Chinese, I will tell you my Chinese is a ghost lodged in my throat. A dried up flower I tore from the ground long ago, rootless.
My Chinese is missing pictures in a photo album: the first day of preschool, a mouth full of useless characters, ancient taste buds numbing out of existence, leaving the bitter aftertaste of a new language.
...