Kanske

My father calls it maybe.
My mother says vielleicht.
I say kanske.
Not can-ski,
not can-skeh,
kanske,
cahn-sheh,
maybe.
Kanske,
like chance,
but more mystic,
infused
with Nordic inflection,
smacking of the accent
I have grown to love.
If you pull it apart
(to find out how it works)
it's a delightful word,
maybe,
may be,
may (or may not) be,
is possible,
might occur,
happenstance,
perchance,
kanske.