In the middle of the storm
the red umbrella keeps the snow away from her face.
She is Eizan’s ukiyo-e lady
sentenced to stand in the harbor forever.
Hair pulled back, waist tied by an obi,
she turns her back to the sea.
This winter morning how I want to look like her,
the elegant stance, the perfect neck.
Hear the wind fondle the black and gold kimono
as I stand barefoot in the snow.
– from The Battlefield of Your Body (El Campo De Batalla De Tu Cuerpo)