I ask again to be served the difference
between cha and chai
over a meal I cannot refuse
and mother invites me to taste
how well cha
mixes with samosas
and how funny chai
rolls off the tongue
as if regional disputes
on the other side of the
inflatable globe
she bought me last Christmas
will matter in five months when it’s
Ramadan
and father says Jamal and Yasmeen
won’t be able to come over now
as if they ever could before
or in four more months when it’s
Patriot Day
and sister texts me a warning
to not get blown up
as my tongue meets his
or now
as I tell them how he pronounces it
Chai
And how Chai tastes better with
Pakora
Anishka Duggal is an American poet born to Canadian immigrants. Currently, she lives between Vancouver, British Columbia and Seattle, Washington. Her work has appeared or is forthcoming in Cirque Journal, New South, Inlandia, Austin Poets International’s Di-verse-city Anthology, and elsewhere.