Goodbye strong spices, lavish food, unique fruits —
granadilla, guanabana, guava, lulo, pitahaya.
Goodbye warm weather
and the smell of rich, intense coffee beans.
I’m going to miss you.
I gather my bags.
I am ready to be on my way.
The sun sinks behind the tall, proud mandarin trees.
I gaze through the stained-glass window.
I listen to the azulejos and multicoloured tanagers
composing songs to their hearts’ content.
A soft humming comes from the car engine.
I am being torn away from my homeland.
