A poem on bridging identity between the US and India

Bridging Identity from the Bay of Bengal to the Pacific Ocean

Usha Nesamoney

All my life, I’ve danced between two shores,

The East, the West—both at my core.

A journey both daunting and bright,
In every moment, I sought the light.

Do I eat with my hands, or use a fork’s grace?
Speak of my faith, in a world out of place?
How do I introduce my culture, so dear,

To the world I live in, without fear?

The world shifts, as time unfolds,

Leaders rise, and stories are told.
I long to be both here and there,

But how to balance, how to share?

Then came the death of a father I loved,

And the quiet resign from my fragile mom.

Questions arose, where once was calm,
Is it better to embrace just one, with no harm?

But then came paths with wisdom paved,

To temples holy, one last time I braved.

Alas, we sold our cherished, family place,
Where echoes of our roots still hold their grace.

Then Mother fell—her hip in sudden plight,

A surgery swift beneath the hospital light.

Yet through it all, new lenses shaped my view,

Beneath strange skies, my soul found truths anew.

This past year, it filled me, deep and more—

My heart now sings for my birth land I adore.

Its rivers still whisper, its soil still calls,

A timeless bond that within me enthralls.

In the country I live, so vast and free,

I am grateful for all that’s been given to me.
My dual heritage, a gift, not a curse,

Thankful for both, for better or worse.

And to the adventures that enhanced my view,

I now see the world in a way so true.
For both these worlds, in me, entwine,

A dual legacy, uniquely mine.

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