Nanu holds the iPad closer to her face,

She smiles as she zooms in to the image before her,

A picture of her on my Instagram account:

She is sitting on the beach, watching the waves dance.

 

Nature brings my Nanu sheer delight:

She watches the Welsh news only to see the beautiful rivers in the background.

Her favourite TV show is about monkeys,

And you will never see a person smile as much as her

When she is watching documentaries about

Oversized vegetables or the Great Barrier Reef.

 

Nanu sips tea infused with cardamom.

She thinks I am sleeping, so she throws the blanket over me.

She places her hand on my knee

And tells me tales of her childhood-

How she wore boys’ clothes, and climbed trees, and

Didn’t do anything when her little brother hit her.

Itta farehna, goh boin.

 

Whenever I go to her house,

She is usually cleaning or praying

Or watching the kids play or watching TV,

But she stops whatever she is doing

Just to make me some chicken curry.

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Sadia Ahmed, 2017