3 Poems For My Beloved Partner
Even Though No One Else Is Watching, Guerrera, Reading With You.
Even Though No One Else Is Watching
by Feifei Z
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We can stay up and listen to love songs.
Sing along even though we don’t know
the words, or what will happen later.
It doesn’t matter that no one else gets it.
All that matters is that I can behold you.
Carve the curve of your pretty mouth
onto the wooden block of my memories
and show you the art when you feel blue.
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We can drive in the late afternoon.
Rant about the white truck that moves
slower than the thirty seconds of ads
forced upon us when we watch C-Dramas.
The sun is making way for the moon,
and the world is a golden coming-of-age film,
and the light is in our squinting eyes,
and the sorrows of the past vanish in rearview.
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We can order Mexican food online.
I slide my phone over to you.
You know how to build a good taco
like the ones you had back home.
“I’ll take you to China one day,” I say.
“Sure, I’d love to come,” you reply.
You tell me to never put rice in tacos,
then you ask me about my Chinese childhood.
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We can dance while the world is on fire.
Stargaze and marvel at the Orion’s Belt.
Even if nobody knows my name or yours,
our existence blaze, ancient like the stars.
I can wear your shirt even though it’s too big.
You can read my books before anyone else.
You are building a dollhouse for my birthday.
But the best gift will always be your presence.
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Published in Infusions Magazine, Volume 2
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Guerrera
by Feifei Z
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I see it in the way you stare into space.
I see it in the fractures of your eyes.
The images playing in the brown.
Mud on your shoes from the playground.
The rich girl with her wrinkled nose
when you thought you had made a friend.
The dandelion in your grip is wilting.
Woeful. Weary. Withering glares.
The world is not a merciful place.
Your place in it is stained with the blood
of deceivers who confused love with gold.
The cracks on the glass frame.
The family photo cast in shadows.
The sister who asked for more.
The mother who gave less and less.
The fatal mistake of a little man
who didn’t deserve to be your father.
Fatalistic. Nihilistic. Melancholic.
Your Fate is a jumprope underfoot.
The expectations are a noose.
So what if you love women and not men?
So what if you carved your life from death?
The tabloids lie. The mean ones lie.
Scatter the nightmare of their clouds
eager to spew spittle on your head.
Long live the dreamer that is you.
Reading With You
by Feifei Z
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The lines on the page lose my attention,
and my gaze wanders to your profile.
Your eyes are narrowed in concentration
while you peruse through those journals.
You love reading about Nature.
Volcanos and glaciers and rainforests.
Fascinated by everyday miracles
that escape the minds of the masses.
I am so enraptured by the story of you
that I close my book and close my eyes.
Lean in and wrap my arms around you.
No fairy tale prince can ever outshine you.
© Written by Feifei Z (2023)
© Stick Figures Of My Darling And Me by Feifei Z (2023)
Feifei Z (张飞飞) is a Chinese storyteller and the keeper of Wheel-37, which is a megaverse of twelve realms that celebrates diverse communities reclaiming their power. When not indulging in her artistic projects, she enjoys listening to music from around the world, watching C-Dramas, and appreciating nature.