More than they like the darker hues
It's getting better, they say
And yet, I wonder, if that's true
I'm in a country where my dark skin seems
So wrong, so dirty, so ugly
My dark hair isn't brown or blonde like theirs
And it's the wrong color too
I'm in a country where I'm asked if I'm mixed
Or if I'm 100% Indian
I feel like a beverage
Coffee mixed with creamer or 100% fresh orange juice
I'm in a country where I'm congratulated for being Sri Lankan
Because people don't know how to react
To being told I'm from a country
They haven't even heard of
I'm in a country so far away from home
With food that is not new to me
But they don't taste as good as a hot parippu
With rice and fried fish
I'm in a country that looks nothing like home
Where the grass is a different shade of green
The sky is a different shade of blue
And the water tastes different
I'm in a country where the language I know
Makes me feel less that I am
Simply because I pronounce even the simplest words
All wrong, too slow
I'm in a country that isn't home
A country that'll never be home
I'm in a country where my darkness makes me feel
Like an alien from a distant planet
And then I think of home and the country that is mine
An island in the Indian Ocean
And I remember all the times I've been told
I'm too dark, I should stay away from the sun
I remember all the times people have stared
Because the clothes I wore were just not right
I remember all the things that have been said
About how curly my hair can get
I remember all the times I've been told
To not decorate my dark skin with darker ink
I remember all the times I've been told
I'm too dark, too plain, too ugly
And I think of the country that is my home
The place I've lived in since birth
And I remember all the times I've been made to feel
Like an alien from a distant planet
And so I wonder where I belong
Where my complexion isn't a flaw
And so I wonder where on Earth
I can be without feeling inadequate
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