Where Am I From?

Pao Kia Yang
Graduate
Osborn University High School

I am from the abandoned houses that were once filled with memories of laughter and sorrow.
I am from surroundings of people who wish for a better tomorrow.
I am from the door entrance of shoes piling up as high as a hill, walls that are surrounded with flowers and picture frames, the smell of steaming rice, and the sound of the TV.
I am from a man whose stomach is as round as the world due to his distance of circling to put food on the table for his family, and his head as shiny as the sun to wake me and be my guide towards the brighter side of life.
I am from a woman who gave up on me when I was only three years old, which of who I do not know of. A woman who did not give me time to grow and prove my reason of existence.
I am from a group of individuals who grew up together to not only think different, but dress different…and still others tend to see some sort of similarity.
I am from teenagers who go under peer pressure when it comes to life decisions, teenagers who struggle to succeed in a violent environment, and teenagers who think outside the box.
I am from the transition of a little girl who once thought only of herself, but struggles brought her to a young woman who learns how to appreciate small things that comes her way.
I am from everything I’ve met.

This was poem was an activity that I did at Detroit Asian Youth Project, which is an organization that works with Asian youth within the metro Detroit area on building leadership skills surrounding the awareness of issues in the community. This writing activity was created to open the youth’s mind to their surroundings and things that made them who they are today. As an introduction to our summer 2007 session, instead of stating the typical like our name, age and school, the activity provided us with creativity, because we are, in fact, a part of everything that we’ve met.