POEM - Peruvian Cuisine

The assignment

In my son’s Spanish class

Was to bring food

From a pertinent country

He picked Peru

I brightened up

I know some Peruvian food!

We have to make potato salad

Peruvian potato salad is the best!

But how I know that

Is even better

When my family moved to Tucson

When I was twelve

We were still mostly ignorant

Of Southwest culture

We’d lived in the Northwest

For long enough

To be considered from there

So when the nice family

Invited us over for dinner

We felt welcomed

When they said the menu

Corazon shish-kebobs

All we heard was kebobs

I know more now

After 30 years in Arizona

And every mariachi song ever

That Corazon means heart

What I knew that day

Was that the Gardners

Could cook good enough

That even after I knew

That it was beef heart

I finished off the rest and wished for more

What I learned after a few more times

Hanging with their kids

Was that their mom could really cook

That Peruvians make killer lasagna

And that potato salad

Could be spicy enough

To make you think twice

Before taking another bite