My parents immigrated to the U.S. from India in the 90s

They knew they were seeking more opportunities

They didn’t know they would lie to their children 

about a fairy leaving money 

under their pillow 

in place of a lost tooth 

while they were sleeping 

I think they would have hopped on the earliest flight back 

if they knew that was an American tradition

 

They committed to the Tooth Fairy and Santa Claus lies

imperfectly

One time, my mom left a letter pretending to be an elf,

but didn’t bother changing her handwriting 

 

Dear Mom,

 

          With all those familiar g’s and j’s, loops as big as the ones in the roller coasters at Six Flags, you couldn’t possibly think we were that dumb, right?

 

Love,

Santa’s Elves

 

Another time, my brother checked the Amazon order history

“Huh, that looks a lot like 

the Angry Birds Five Inch Plush King Pig with Sound 

I got for Christmas last year” 

 

We never celebrated Easter

My parents were like

we can pretend a fairy came to the house to give out gifts, 

and we can pretend a bearded man came to the house to give out gifts, 

but we’re drawing the line 

at an anthropomorphic bunny