Come, let me teach you
I am here just for that
I can teach you life
Or the white man’s language
Hey, wait! Aren’t you one of them?
The ones who came to suck our resources?
The ones who shook us from our slumbers,
And river squats with the sarong over our heads?
No, that wasn’t me
That was someone else, in fact, no one!
I am here to teach you
Because that’s what I know best!
Hey, wait!
Go back to where you came from
You came to take our land,
Our religion and culture.
You are different!
You don’t belong here!
No, wait! I belong here!
I have always been here.
I speak the same language,
I bow before this flag
I went to your school
And share food with you.
Hey, wait!
Are you here to take my share?
My privilege? My voice?
Go back to where you were before
No, no, never!
I can’t return anywhere
This is my home
This very soil is my grave
The blood that spilled from my mum’s womb,
The day I was born, was shed here
In this very land.
I shall depart from this land
Because I have lived here
In this very land
This is mine as much as it’s yours.
I can’t go back,
I belong here
Cover image by Nikola Jovanovic on Unsplash. The copyright for I Can’t Go Back, I Belong Here belongs to Kalaimathy Irene.
We accept short stories, poems, opinion pieces, and essays on a complimentary basis.
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.