ed 190

Just came back from my Ed 190 class' retreat, and it was a good bonding experience with a bunch of fools hahha. I'm really tired though.

One thing I wanted to share that we did was a "Where I'm From" poem.. they had a template but I took it in a different direction and it's not done, but I wanted to put this on here. I never really get to finish my poems, I think because I usually get a lot of motivation and inspiration in the beginning, and then I get stuck and it becomes more of a chore to finish.. but here's my "Where I'm From" poem in the making.

Where I'm From.
I am from tanlines-
the border that separates brown crisp skin and fair smoothness.

Every morning that I can remember, my father wakes up early to bring my sisters and me to school, picks up my uncle in Chinatown,
then start their days work in houses unfamiliar to our own.
Kitchens.
Bathrooms.
He will remodel,
and some days he works outside.
Paint.
Construct.
Tar roofs. All this in the beating sun.

He needs no protection from the sun,
for his dark brown pigment is the deepest
chocolate coat I know of any Chinese man.
Creases run down his face,
and large veins visible underneath his arms.

My mother, on the other hand, with thin fingers feeling
bumps of stitches in factories where she wears a face mask to protect her from the dust. Dust that permeates
from large sewing machines.
She barely sees the day as she situates herself indoors,
yet she is as gentle and light-toned as can be.

My own skin radiates them both sometimes,
depending on the time of year.
Summertime I enjoy the rays and outdoors- gregarious and carefree.
My dad's personality glows through my body.
Wintertime I'd rather remain inside to listen to
my sisters, grandparents, aunts, friends.
Untouched from melanin alterations or changes from reality,
My mother's clear gazes strike my own skin.

Intersections of fine lines,
there are no real lines.
Just gradations and blends of both.