Poetry by Acacia Ngo

Edited by Cailey Niandrea Pasco

Our eyes like polite marks of half dug spoons

We are talking about our lives again

Over glasses of mango sago perfectly sweet

Over everything that we’ve missed

Our days apart

Trickle down in intricate bowls

As we pour spoonfuls

For each of us to share

Us as we are, but too shy to stare

At each other

And the sago is

Slightly tainted of unfamiliarity

I feel uncertain of the new trinkets

Submerged in the rich coconut milk

Wondering if I no longer have room in their 

Wandering minds like we’ve lost

The atmosphere of our interconnected youth

Still sweet, but no longer as contemporary

And if I declare this again, will they

Cling their glasses and tell me to get a life?

While I sink to the bottom just as a deprived pearl

Considering how us together,

Used to be my whole life?

No longer talking about us, but of other people

Either that or the reminiscence of our greatest times

And all the liquor that we’ve tried,

Has left a bitter taste on my tongue that still

Lingers of pleasant mango and the illusion of salt

As I repeat in my mind, that we

Will never be the same again.

Artist Statement: The poem ‘Epilogue: Mango Sago’ encapsulates the uncertainty of growing apart from close friendships transitioning into adulthood. Mango Sago is a metaphor expressing the refreshment of new experiences, the blend of unfamiliar people, and the multitude of emotions that may emerge whether it be nostalgia, grief, excitement, or anxiousness. Despite the withering connection, there still lies the sweetness of reminiscence.