Bold lover, flexed moth,
sprinklers in a stranger’s yard,
morning dream, lake smooth
as a dinner plate, father
praying, water under a pier,
mother’s hand, counting,
color of wet stone, ears
before piercing, sound of
father leaving, disembodiment,
a voicemail, routine as in road,
which doesn’t promise
regularity, as in rule, ruler,
which doesn’t make a circle.
Dancer in the jewelry box,
figurine, how I wished to see
her sleeping, tried to raise
the lid just so to soften
the hinge, to suppress
music, to see the world
without artifice,
or in between, pinching
her to make her stop.
Cover Art by Seo Ryung Samantha Park