I've been asked, far more
than once,
"Who are you?
Where are you from?
Where did you learn to
speak English so well?"
I have been asked these
questions
Everywhere I've lived,
Except in the Land of
Enchantment.
Well, of course,
I should have known.
It is so obvious that
Since I am from the Land
of Enchantment
I might not look like,
Sound like,
Or even smell like
Those who aren't from
there.
When I was 7, my new
teacher, Mrs. Jones,
Asked me where I was from.
And then she told my
classmates that I was
The most handsome boy
she'd ever seen.
Wow. I guess she'd never been
To the Land of Enchantment.
We moved to California
when I was eight.
My accent was strong, and my skin was dark
But my back was NOT wet,
Even if bigger kids told me it was.
The new Japanese wife, who
moved in next door
Told my mom she was happy
To live next to another
Japanese family.
When I came aboard my new
ship
In Newport, Rhode Island,
my shipmates asked,
"Where are you
from?"
When I told people that I
was from Albuquerque
They asked me if I joined
the Navy
To get American
citizenship.
As I sailed around the world,
People in other countries
would ask,
"How did you get onto
an American ship?"
When I was in Beijing, a
local asked,
"What part of China
are you originally from?"
When I flew into Moscow, people asked,
"Are you from Kamchatka?"
When I was at a garden
party
For African American
architects,
They thought I was an
African American architect.
When I was in South Africa
the native workers
Waved and yelled out,
"Hey,
Rastafarian!"
I have had people ask me
if I was German,
Or Italian, Puerto Rican,
or Greek.
People have thought that I
was Native American.
And that is partially
true.
It seems as if so few
people
Have been to the Land of
Enchantment.
If they had been, they
would know why
I seem to have a face
That can sometimes fit in
Almost everywhere, almost.
