• Poetry
  • Fiction
  • Flash Fiction
  • Nonfiction
  • Book Reviews
  • Translations
  • About
  • Awards
  • Submissions
  • Buy LAR
  • Poetry
  • Fiction
  • Flash Fiction
  • Nonfiction
  • Book Reviews
  • Translations
  • About
  • Awards
  • Submissions
  • Buy LAR

An Abecedarian to Mother’s Tongue by Meher Manda


(ఆ)fter my birth, there was a lull, but long
(బి)fore, there was music in the family, in the
(క్)alling of life through the familiar
(డ్)ampness of a mother’s blood offering.
(ఏ)mpty of its conjuring, her womb would
(ఫ)old over itself with one purpose, to
(గ్)oad the tongue of her child, to pour into
(హ్)er a language of love, hymn and displeasure, so
(ఇ)nside the home, the mother cooed soft melody to
(జో)olt awake in her daughter a memory, the
(క్రి)rystallised offering of elders who
(ల)ong to be preserved in the droll of a
(మ్)yriad tongues. All day, mother sings, and all
(న)ight, she holds the baby to her breast,
(ఓ)rdering her heartbeat to do her bidding.
(ప్)erhaps, I should have taken what was being given
(క్వా)uiet as I was then, uncorrupted and
(ర్)aw, without malice to reject a most
(స్)olemn offering. But I grew a pitiable beast, my
(ట్)ongue embracing an alien sound’s alms,
(అ)ntil now. Now, I scamper with thirst,
(వె)agrant, for a home that can cradle my accent and
(వి)ill love into it, so I too can be the
(జే)enic of a family that once shared music.
(య్)ou understand what this means—to be threadbare,
(జే)apped of all history, and a colonized landmark—don’t you?

 

 

 


Meher Manda is a poet, short story writer, journalist, and educator from Mumbai currently based in America. She earned her MFA from the College of New Rochelle where she founded The Canopy Review. She co-curates An Angry Reading Series in Harlem, and is the author of the chapbook Busted Models. 



One response to “An Abecedarian to Mother’s Tongue by Meher Manda”

  1. from Maia | Arabic Literature as World Literature (392) says:
    November 26, 2019 at 4:31 am

    […] https://losangelesreview.org/an-abecedarian-to-mothers-tongue-by-meher-manda/ […]

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recent Posts

  • Lubbock Spring by Emma Aylor
  • Intermezzos Along the Road Home by Kathryn Petruccelli
  • A Review and an Interview of Lawrence Raab’s April at the Ruins
  • State Fair by S.L. Wisenberg
  • Gringa by Julia Rendón Abrahamson Translated by Madeleine Arenivar

Recent Comments

  • Judith Fodor on Three Poems by David Keplinger
  • Marietta Brill on 2 Poems by Leah Umansky

Categories

  • Award Winners
  • Blooming Moons
  • Book Reviews
  • Fiction
  • Flash Fiction
  • Interviews
  • LAR Online
  • Nonfiction
  • Poetry
  • Translations
  • Uncategorized

Meta

  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.org

Recent Posts

  • Lubbock Spring by Emma Aylor
  • Intermezzos Along the Road Home by Kathryn Petruccelli
  • A Review and an Interview of Lawrence Raab’s April at the Ruins
  • State Fair by S.L. Wisenberg
  • Gringa by Julia Rendón Abrahamson Translated by Madeleine Arenivar
© 2014 Los Angeles Review. All Rights Reserved. Design and Developed by NJSCreative Inspired by Dessign.net