ALANNA SHAIKH
Lighthouse
There’s a Buddha on the dashboard of the airport cab
I’ve lived here too long for that wonder
But this Buddha has company
Dashboard Buddha is head up on the dashboard
Windshield Buddha floats head down above him
The road from the airport is new
wide well lit
smooth beneath our wheels
The roadside dense with palm trees
We pass under light poles
Dashboard Buddha flashes strong yellow
Blinking though shadow and bright
Windshield Buddha vanishes – reappears – vanishes
Same rhythm
Soon enough we’ll reach the city
More lights, less speed
Dashboard Buddha will vanquish his twin
For now two Buddhas cycle up cycle down
I picture home
Alanna Shaikh is a first-generation American and the daughter of a Muslim immigrant. Her poetry is influenced by the landscape of Northern New York state where she grew up, daily life and the literature in the seven countries she’s lived in, and her work in global health and pandemic response. Her poetry has been published or accepted for publication in Examined Life Journal, Crab Creek Review, Gordon Square Review and Moon City Review, among others.