I See My Culture Everywhere
Upper Marlboro, MD
2025, Senior, Poetry & Spoken Word
I see my culture everywhere
I can see it in the waves of the vast ocean
How the curls and kinks of my hair match those of the waves
I can see it in the bark of a sturdy oak tree
How its covering is as resilient as those who have come before me
I can see it in the grains of rice
How they kept us alive, braided and tucked away in the fluff of our hair
I can see it in the fields of corn
How they mapped out escape routes so that my people may be free
It goes farther than the cotton fields
Sweat, rolling down their weathered backs as the sun stings the skin
It’s in every aspect of this earth, this land, and this place we call home
I can see it in the trees
Oh if trees could talk
They’d talk about why they hang so low to the ground
Quiver about what the circular indents in their skin mean
I can see it in the collard greens growing in the backyard
How they compliment every baked dish my family shares
The smiles on their faces as the shared food warms their bellies
A southern blend made from the plants that twist and turn their way in the garden
I can see it in every strand of my clothes
The pattern of its thread a mosaic of cultures woven together into one
It shows us how we’re all connected
Bits and pieces of ourselves painting a beautiful mural of hope and love under the same sun
It doesn’t matter if were from the hot, smoldering lands of the south
Or from the chilly, cold fields of the north
There’s a root connecting us all, deeply embedded into the soil of our soul
Its nature, a beautiful remedy to everything negative
I see my culture everywhere
Reflection
Reflection
I’ve always been interested in finding out more about my culture, especially because African American culture has always been shunned and pushed off as not real. Learning more and more things about my culture through nature sparked a genuine curiosity in me that I usually don't feel. I felt it necessary to express how much depth my culture really has throughout this piece, and I hope that my message spread throughout the poem. I aim to show how important culture is to everyone, but especially those who have experienced great discrimination for being born the way they were. Nature is a great way to connect us all into the great and loving community that we are.