people pleaser

it's been so long since I talked to my mom

I dream of her fingers parting my hair

tracing circles on my scalp

my body cradled between her knees

bottles of milky coconut oil lathered

she always fed me with her hands

mixes mango pickle into yogurt

balls the soft white rice into her palms

each grain finding a home next to another 

say ah, here comes the airplane

my tongue learned acrobatics

aerial splits, retracting and raising

the rope of syllables, each one precise

just to be called yours

bare walls now dressed 

with Marilyn Monroe portraits

I pledge allegiance, fifty stars

do you like me now?