"The Jews of Kaifeng" [by Adrienne Su]

When the exhibit went up at Peachtree Center,
the Chinese of Atlanta flocked downtown.
Jews had been in Henan so close to forever,
they weren’t seen as foreign. And we had found
an exhibit on China that wasn’t old vases.
Jews were Chinese in more ways than food.
Migration was not always out of the places
our families had fled; it had once been to.
Our pantries were “ethnic” not just for the shrimp chips
and wood ears, but as well for the matzah.
Maybe, when asked, Do you celebrate Christmas?,
we were not being checked for Zen or the Buddha.
We didn’t say it in so many words.
The line between Asia and Europe had blurred.

from the new issue of The Common, October 28, 2020

Comments

[Jacqueline Lapidus]

An unexpected and moving way for a much older poet (female, feminist, Jewish) to start the day--thank you! There's an old European Jewish joke about the unexpected connection, but I'd rather send it to Adrienne Su privately--she can e-mail me at [email protected] . Meanwhile, the poem is not only enlightening but very fine. Love the not-quite-rhymes, more like assonance, at the end of the lines!
All best to you, in good health and good company during these dark times,

[Jill Newnham]

Brilliant poem.