[a fish . . .]

a fish

flips itself

out of the water

for the space of a breath

I see what it is to be you

A Hundred Gourds 1:4, Sept. 2012

[feet bound. . .]

feet bound

in silken slippers—

writing nushu,

sworn sisters

free their muffled voices

GUSTS 16, fall/winter 2012

(Nushu was a secret writing system used exclusively by women in a remote part of China.) 

[the diagnoses . . .]

the diagnoses

roll in one by one

beached by storms

together we build

small castles in the sand

Ribbons 8:1, spring/summer 2012

[in the jumble . . .]

in the jumble

of her jewelry box

my father’s

wedding ring—

a closed circle

GUSTS 16, fall/winter 2012

[a passport . . .]

a passport

stamped long ago with characters

I cannot read

the mute Pacific ocean

of your gaze

Ribbons 8:1, spring/summer 2012