Letting Go, by Sonam Tsomo Chashutsang

They say there is not a house

that hasn’t experienced death.

When I learned that I am not

the first or the last one to lose

loved ones, letting go

became a little easier.

Last winter, I always woke up in the middle of the night

to the noise of my cheap humidifier humming,

leaves wrestling outside, wind arguing back and forth,

and to my roommate’s dry cough.

I don’t know if it’s wrong to talk about the dead

but last winter was cold, very cold.

That’s when I learned that my brother passed away.

To this day, my mother doesn’t talk about my brother.

She just sits in the balcony watching the prayer flags flutter,

and cries silently watching the wind eating all the mantras.

She has a habit of measuring everything with her eyes.

I, on the other hand, only know how to measure with my feet.

Sonam Tsomo Chashutsang is a poet who writes in Tibetan, English, and Hindi. She has a degree in creative writing from Miami University, and publishes in the Khabdha online journal, one of the most popular Tibetan literary sites, and TibetWrites site, which publishes the creative work of Tibetan writers. Her work has been published in Newtown Literary Magazine, New York and the Tibet Special issue of Cadernos, titled "Testemunho poético de tibetanos no exílio" ("The Poetic Testimony of Tibetan in Exile").

Born and raised in Bir, Himachal Pradesh, India. She attended Sarah College in Dharamshala before moving to the United States under a scholarship at Miami University, Ohio. Sonam holds a degree in creative writing and a minor in communication. She refuses to be stereotyped and wears oversized clothes!

"In my free time, I like to people-watch in New York City."