roots

i have my grandmother’s
penchant for burying
fish bones in the yard

i have my father’s chin,
skin, and forearms

i have my uncle’s
persistent love of mangos

i hope i have my mother’s
stalwart heart

it took three months
out of the country
for me to remember

how i belong to those
with whom i share blood and history

to allow myself to belong
no matter how many ways
i feel different