Wind and Widow

Le Thi May

Translated by Nguyen Ba Chung

Wind widow willowy
off the arms of dawn and grass
full-chested breath
after so much lovemaking in the night

patches of cloud-clothes discarded in the air
lipstick
sunrise
facial cream
aroma moon of the fourteenth day
wind widow after each makeup
backward glances to another time of sadness and laughter

grass
and dawn rises trembling
separated from wind after lovemaking
all night

wind elegiac-wind
strands of hair from women who died in the bombing
strands of hair from widows who raised orphaned children
the war after ten years have passed-