WUNRN
Poem
on Multicultural Identity:
MASKS
By Nou Thao & Sai Vang
I heard the voice of
the white people,
Telling me how wonderful
the new world would be.
When we got there, the
buildings reached the sky!
Loud noise of intercoms
burned my ears.
We went up stairs that
moved as we stood.
The vehicle didn't have
dirt all over it.
The roads were covered with tar
as we rode softly to paradise.
But somewhere along the way
Our paradise turned to nothing.
We found ourselves in a world we
didn't comprehend.
Tall buildings full of nothing.
Endless roads leading nowhere.
We became the lost jewels
Caught between two cultures.
I heard the voice of my ancestors
"We've lost face in you."
In this fast pace culture
I've twisted and turned
myself American.
In the process I've lost
the one thing I treasured the most
Me.
I forgot who I am
My culture
My family
My face.
I put on a mask that
didn't fit.
I looked back to
the past
And realized what
brought me here.
It shaped me to be who I am.
My future will be shaped by
both.
I understand who I am
What I am
And why I am here.
Not only am I American
I am Asian American.
I wear no mask.
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