For Anand
Mother’s greatest craftwork, sewn
into the sun, melting drops
of sunlight like a smile
that burns hell into my face.
He undoes the stitches
of her making with an acting class.
Its daily goals of fives.
Five minutes in meditation.
Five minutes of gratitude.
Five minutes of affirmation.
I wish to be introduced as Comic Con’s first
Indian Superhero, Chakra.
Begins to peel off the edges,
a lusting lip of envelope,
I want to be the first Indian superhero,
Chakra, crinkling belly, his Ironman
monologue inviting the Mandarin
to fight, an instapot pressure smolder
ready to steam, Pulp Fiction
gangster car ride drift-tilted
on a classroom chair, basking in
sun-blinding applause, I AM CHAKRA,
a tiger tearing into the sun.
Preeti Shah is a Queens-based Indian American poet who was a Brooklyn Poets 2019 Fall Fellowship Finalist. She served as Assistant Director of Communications for YJPerspectives Magazine. You can find her on her IG handle: @babyprema