“I Am From…” by Acacia Armstrong

Awarded the Indigenous Poets Prize in the Youth (National) category

I Am From…

I am from untied shoes and scraped knees,

from melting popsicles dripping down my chin.

I’m from doing belly flops into the pool

and begging my mom to buy me bedazzled light-up Skechers.

 I am from acting out in order to get attention

 and tossing coins into fountains.

 I am from counting down the days until Christmas,

and from the indescribable smell of Goodwill.

I am from picking at scabs and biting my nails,

from undercooked pasta and burnt toast,

 and I am from throwing fits in the Safeway checkout line.

 I’m from making dandelion wishes

and blowing out birthday candles.

 I am from crowded school halls

and the long lines on picture day.

 I am from the smell of dry-erase markers

 and obscene doodles on classroom desks.

I am from the abandoned, the broken, the hurt.

I am from the endless hours of intensive therapy.

 I’m from medication with names I can’t pronounce

 and side effect after side effect.

 From the panic attacks and the answers of,

 “Never, Sometimes, Often, and Always.”

 I am from the monitored phone calls home.

 I’m from leaving people before they can leave me.

I am from losing trust and hope.

 I am from isolating in dark rooms.

I am from giving up, quitting, stopping.

I am the memory of untied shoes and scraped knees.

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Acacia Armstrong is a 17 year old Urban Native writer. She is a descendant of the Mono tribe and loves to write all things poetry! Currently she is a senior at Phillip and Sala Burton Academic School in San Francisco, California. She enjoys spending her time with her pet cats and also reading. Her passion is in the arts, like music and writing.