My Sri Lanka Poem by Sunil Govinnage

My Sri Lanka is an arranged marriage,
I cannot divorce her.
I cannot just leave her behind
Like a postal bride.
Sri Lanka follows me like my shadow.

Sri Lanka is the blood in my veins
It nourishes my body
Giving me power to think, cry, love
And even make me laugh.

My Sri Lanka is an airport
Where the planes from East and West meet
In my tear-drop shaped island.

My Sri Lanka is a library
Of tragedies and comedies
In popular novels in several volumes, written
By black, white, green and yellow writers
With a postcolonial slant.

For a poet, it is a rotten egg,
But for me it is the staple food
Nourishing every molecule in my body.

Sri Lanka is my resting place
When people in my home country give me labels,
Question my accent, ask my name, and stab my back.

Sri Lanka follows me like my shadow.