How often have you admired a tattoo
on someone else’s skin? Lapped up
the story behind it, that there was something
so special, it triggered a desire to make
a permanent mark as a tribute, a reminder.

However, some marks are made by others,
like a branding or sign of ownership.
Although even those offer a sense
of belonging, or being among others
like a family we didn’t choose.

It’s an embarrassing luxury to bear
witness as children write their names,
family names in permanent markers
on their skin, not for pride or belonging
but closure so families can be notified.

**

 Emma Lee’s publications include The Significance of a Dress (Arachne, 2020) and Ghosts in the Desert (IDP, 2015). She co-edited Over Land, Over Sea, (Five Leaves, 2015), reviews for magazines and blogs at https://emmalee1.wordpress.com

P76 issue 9: Poetries of place/ displacement/ diaspora/ odyssey: On-line Edition. Table of Contents