dear mother

dear mother,

the one that is

always there when i need her

to lift my chin up from defeat even

if she’s fought a war that day

and to push me forward even

when she’s pulling her own weight

i hope that one day

i get to be as strong as you

and in my future

i wish to become as beautiful as you

with arms that reach for every hug

embracing every person

filling them with comfort

eyes that resemble the warmth within your soul

a soul that only knows how to give

to everyone in need of a little bit of love

courageousness and bravery are written

with silk scarves upon your chest

like a badge of honor

every day you teach me to fight

for what i believe in

with a little help from brown girl magic

squeezing our roots so i too

can feel culture bursting through my branches

bestowing the softest brown skin

gentle enough to wash nightmares away

ears ready to listen

and lips always somehow saying the right words

how do you do it all?

i am honored to be your daughter

sharing the same crazy curls and elegant nose

on top of a quaint face and lengthy legs

i am built from you

and i am truly blessed

to have a mother like you

From the author, Sejal Akerkar:

I started writing poetry in the 8th grade. I used it as a self-expression and use of escape from the world around me. I drew lots of my inspiration from other poets like Rupi Kaur and Tupac. They inspired me to write with my true voice and showed me so many more types of poetry than the ones that I learned in school. As I entered high school, I realized that I had written over 150 poems and my mom came up with the idea to put it all into a book. As soon as publishing my books (walking down the sensory strip, optic opening), I have been published in three literary magazines. My poem “ancestors” was published in The Start Literary Journal (2022).

 My poem “all skin and bone” was published in The WEIGHT Journal (2022). And my poems “ancestors” and “my sister” published in Navigating the Maze with Adonis Designs Press (2022). I’ve also been featured in 425 Magazine (April 2021 / December 2022), Bellevue Lifestyle Magazine (May 2021), Washington DC South Asian Film Festival’s April 2021 Artist of the Month, and Open Window School 2021 Alumni Magazine. My connection with Udayan care stemmed from when I lived in India from the years 2010 to 2013. My mom was a mentor there teaching English and she brought me and my sister along to hang out with the girls there. I built lasting connections that I still value to this day and got to learn from these girls’ stories and how they survived being abandoned or orphaned in India. When I moved back to the United States, my mom ran more fundraisers that I was a part of, and I began to run my own fundraisers as well. And I knew that I wanted to continue giving to them and it was the right thing to do to give the proceeds of my book to the Udayan Care. My future plans are to attend college and graduate in 2027, and I want to continue writing and hopefully will publish another book sometime soon.