This Is Me

I am from dirt and shrubs

and from critters and bugs.

I am from late-night parties and the bandas that play

from singing and dancing until I can’t anymore.

I am from fighting and yelling 

and from happiness and sadness.

I am from the smell of home-cooked meals

and from the laughter of our jokes.

I am from ‘we can’t afford it’ and ‘I don’t have any money’

from protecting my sibling from the yelling and scolds.

I am from farms around my house

and from the smell of manure.

I am from our lonely land

and the emptiness of the dark. 

I am from therapy every Friday

and from taking medication at dawn and dusk.

From the early morning sun to the everlasting nights.

I am from parents who love me but grandparents who don't.

I am from my music that plays all night long

and I’m from the world that I get lost in when I look at the stars.