Dunja Kaczmarek was born in Yugoslavia in 1989 and moved to Australia with her family as a baby. Dunja is one of the Founders and Chief Editors of be:longing and enjoys interacting with others who feel similar connections to other places and cultures as she does.
I love my tongue –
My mother tongue.
It’s hard and soft,
And long and cropped;
And salty-sweet,
Loud yet discreet.
Lean,
and spindly:
divine.
It takes my tongue –
My naïve tongue –
And bends and breaks it,
Drags and rakes it,
Pokes and prods it,
Teases, mocks it;
Squeezes,
Crushes,
and charms.
It’s great, this tongue –
My dearest tongue –
But hard to please
And tough to seize.
Connects the past,
But tricks me, fast.
It laughs,
demands,
then whines.
I want this tongue –
My mother’s tongue –
For me and mine,
And down the line,
And left and right,
All day and night.
But how?
We’re so,
so far.
– Yet still –
I love this tongue –
This other tongue –
And teach and talk it,
Preach and walk it,
Run and jump it,
Pun and pump it.
Yet,
it won’t
be mine.
– Yes it –
will stay, this tongue –
My mother tongue –
Just out of reach,
A typed-out speech,
A long rehearsal;
Role reversal.
Me?
Ever
its child.
© Dunja Kaczmarek, 2023
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