Page 40 of The Secret to Belonging

and whispers in English

so glad in that you shall be

here staying now with us

alone

you explore the space

reluctant to touch things

but then feel dumb

it’s yours

for the next thirteen months

you look up dumb

in your Norwegian dictionary

dum. right

your hands graze

a pewter vase on the shelf

a cup of pens on the desk

a packet of airmail stamps

such thoughtfulness

they’re thinking of your parents

assume you’ll want to write

you focus inward on the dark cavern

your family occupies

hear only echoes

of Norwegian conjugations

you’ll use the stamps to send letters

to Alison

there’s a globe

on the windowsill

though it still says Ceylon

not Sri Lanka

(thanks to seventh-grade social studies, you