Welcome, dear blog readers, to another installment of our Pick-a-Poem weekly post. In these weekly posts, we feature a new poem from a poet you may not have heard of before. We find these poems at Poetry Daily, which is a great site for finding new works of poetry and you can find a new one each day. This week’s featured poem is The Dream of a Little Occupied Japan Doll by Kimiko Hahn.
According to her page on Poetry Daily, Kimiko Hahn has written eight books of poetry. Her most recent collection is entitled Toxic Flora. She has won numerous awards, including an American Book Award, a Theodore Roethke Award, and a Guggenheim Fellowship. She teaches as Queens College, City University of New York.
The Dream of a Little Occupied Japan Doll, by Kimiko Hahn
Among the hundred porcelain figurines,
the first one—with slanted eyes, fat cheeks,
queue (though that’s Chinese), and Chinese bonnet—
is my favorite. Among all those in pajamasor gowns or the two in kimono,
the first is my favorite. Of those with rickshaw,tambourine, or parasol and fan—
I keep on my desk the first onethough she—or he—is not doing a darn thing.
Here in sleep, rivalry is reserved.And as dreams “tune the mind for conscious awareness”
perhaps this favoritism suggestsI’ve quit hoarding and now collect myself.
For Alice and Laurie
I hope that you enjoyed this week’s featured poem. For more posts like this one, click this link!
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