Three Bags Full – Sandhya Acharya

See the poem in motion here

When I left my home

for a new country,

I carried with me –

Three bags full;

Of rice, lentils,

utensils,

oil for my hair,

a tailored suit that I never wore.

But as time went by

and I changed from a girl to

a woman,

a professional,

a wife,

a mother,

I realized,

I had left so much behind;

The warmth of my father’s blessings,

the sweet smell of jasmine when I embraced my mom,

the chug chug chug of my daily commute,

the endless summers,

and the tight web of connections.

I realized,

That three bags full

Was not enough.