Jianqing Zheng
Deception
A pond moon grins white.
I jump in to splash it
into stars and emerge to see
a water polo floating.
Beat the flickering water
and try to catch the ball;
it slips off like a loach.
A backstroke, then I stretch
like a log, small fish
twitching between my legs.
Ghostflies spangle the sky
and the moon a trick mirror
with a shadow inside
which is, as a legend says,
Chang Er’s swaying sleeves
when she dances to dispatch
loneliness. What if
she changes into a mermaid
and swims with me tonight?
Note: Chang Er is the Chinese moon goddess, the legendary lady who swallowed elixir and flew to the moon.
Page(s) 45
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