We left the school at lunchtime for a shared moment over coffee, momentarily releasing our teacher roles to learn about each other. We crammed a conversation about language (Anishinaabemowin and Maltese) and identity (indigenous and immigrant’s granddaughter) into twenty minutes. She spoke of ceremony and asked about mine. In my lack-of-knowing pause that followed, she said, “Ah, you’re looking for your belly button.”

Poppy Flowers

fjuri tal-peprin *
in terraced, limestone-walled fields
soaking up the sun

L-ewwel Lejl *

Let’s walk to the pjazza * 
when the church bells ring 
and listen to the dogs passing by; 
join the chorus. 

Let’s pass our fingers 
through the fountain 
and wonder if the phone in the red-phone-box-
turned-library can hold a conversation. 

Let’s feel the subtle swish of the 
stray cat’s tail against our calves as he tries to 
persuade some sea bass from our server 
while she prepares it for our table. 

And when our day ends 
let’s remember that it was chillier 
than the sun wanted to admit 
but we committed our bodies to that 
first night in the small square of San Lawrenz. 

Inzul ix-xemx f’Ghawdex *

At sunset in Gozo, I think about the ground we stand upon. The stone looks like smooth, golden honey in some places—dusty, dark, and hardscrabble in others.

Both traditional farmhouses and the palaces and bastions of the Grand Masters are made from it. This Globigerina limestone—formed upon the ancestral shells of marine creatures—is a soft stone.

Though easy to cut, it hardens when exposed to air and provides strength to the sheltering and protective structures it becomes.

Like limestone, maybe we can’t expect to escape our lives uncut.

And maybe, after a little time, our storm-weathered wounds will strengthen, sheltering us in our experiences to come, too.

It makes me happy
to know a little limestone
runs in my blood.

*Footnote:

fjuri tal-peprin = poppy flowers
L-ewwel Lejl = First Night
pjazza = piazza
Inzul ix-xemx f’Ghawdex = At sunset in Gozo

Language resource: Ġabra, an open lexicon for Maltese (link retrieved on 10 September 2024): https://mlrs.research.um.edu.mt/resources/gabra/

Bio: Emily Fortney