FORGOTTEN PALMS
Kudkuran
is the Philippine name
of a low
wooden bench for coconut
grating, apparently
kudkud means “scratch.”
The first time I saw
my mother’s mother
seated, grating coconuts
I was astonished
she could squat
that far down.
I remember being shamed
at my first job in NY
for buying coconut juice
at the first-floor bodega
Too ethnic
they must have thought.
I remember “forgetting”
lunches Mom made
me in middle school, saving
a whole week’s worth of baby
sitting for a single
scrap of pizza.
LAST MEAL IN VEGAS
A mobster smacks into fate
nnnnnn somewhere between
transplanted palms
nnnnnn and a pool labeled Mid-century Modern
Show’s over, compadre…
Clickety-clank snap.
Hawks overhead, lizards below
nnnnnn part of him
now mirage, transmits between dirt
nnnnnn and gold, calculating
Which decision is safe—
vanilla or red velvet cake?
Judi Mae “JM” Huck is an Asian American poet and teaching artist currently based in Las Vegas, Nevada. JM is passionate about community engagement. In 2023 she co-founded WeWrite! (wewritelv.com) to offer generous support for emerging AAPI writers to develop their craft. Huck’s poetry synthesizes her understanding of culture, history, nature and science.
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