Native

native means

native speaker

of many things

that barely exist

native means

native tongue

eaten only on Tuesdays

with lemon juice

and a bit of cilantro

nativist means

you have a casino

or one block

to yourself

and some lots

have houses

some lots are for parking

only

native foods

means

what is that

are you going to eat that

okay, one bite

native trees means

not from Japan

no cherry blossoms

flowering over my

American football game

on the Mall

no shopping

for my kind of clothes

it can only be made

by hand

by a friend

by a cousin

who lives at the end

of the block

2 miles from the nearest casino

and if you dare

say

you aren’t from here

well, that’s native too