Ode To Kao Niew - Sticky Rice

I meet you in Laos as a seed just a simple existence of hard rice seeded inside Huay Xai’s dirt until water plains cradle and nourish your infant body 'till you sprout above water banks where you tickle yourself with sunshine like a child who spends all day with the wind when you mature people pull your roots carry you in bulk back home along with your friends moisten your skin steam under flames and boiling water only a bath where dirt splashes off while you try to hold breaths underwater your skin does not wrinkle only softens to stick with other rice and sink in perfection of the basket where my mother’s hands shake and shuffle you into a ball to roll on a plate now fully grown ready to liberate our hunger with your body that is how we meet everyday even now when I chew you in big bites you never fail to fill my head with steam and make my tummy your cozy home sometimes I eat you too fast you burn my tongue and mom says I am crazy for eating too fast but it don’t matter when I can cool squeeze to pebble-size bits dip you in fish soup or papaya salad Kao Niew my family sits together on the floor legs folded or on a dinner table you cuddle inside our bellies warm our lips all the way down our throats in cold evenings with no heaters you sacrifice to fill our stomachs so we can stick to each other and swallow our love whole