My Looks

My Looks

Mom says I have good looks.

She doesn’t look like me.

I like how she looks.

I look like I look.

I get looks for my looks.

They are not good looks.

They say my looks are not good.

Because it’s not how they look.

Looks like my looks are no good.

I don’t like my looks. 

I wish l looked like them.

They look at you different than they look at me.

They look at me because I’m different.

I know what their looks mean.

I know what mean looks like.

It doesn’t look good for me.

Take a good look at me. 

I already look at me, just like them.

Please don’t look like them.

Please don’t look at me.

Please, look at me. 

My Looks. Poem by Brian Shun. Art by Jeanie Inglis. All Rights Reserved.

Hey fellow KADs! My name is Brian Shun. I was born in Seoul. I was given the name Choi Kyungsub by my case worker at Eastern Social Welfare Society. I was in an orphanage until placed into foster care until I arrived in the United States in 1981. I grew up in a small town in Central Minnesota, the only child to older parents. I never attended any Korean culture camps or adoptee meet ups. I learned about Korean culture from watching the 1988 Olympic Games and reruns of M*A*S*H. Growing up as a little boy, I struggled with how I looked, and those feelings carried into adulthood. Now, equipped with adult words and understanding, I was inspired to write this poem, as if I was that boy again. The title of the poem is: “My Looks.”