by Joy Choe
The eyes are the windows to the soul…
Or so it’s said.
But not here.
Who looks upon eyes like that now
In plastic South Korea?
I once dreamed to join the stars.
Sweet highs and soft lows
I dreamed of outstretched hands, reaching far,
Aching for my liquid vibratos
Flowing from savory dreams I’ve tasted under twilight.
But who knew my eyes
Like carved almond slits
In thick creaseless lids,
Would break my airborne flight?
The white-collared agent scrutinized,
Staring at but not into my eyes,
Never seeing past
The fat mono-lids
I inherited from my mother dear.
Can the eyes deafen the ears
Which just two minutes ago
Was swooning at my husky solo?
Without a sweet cover to his word
He spills his vision for what should
Be carved into my flesh and bone:
Round doe eyes with the western fold shown,
Thin jaw line and pointed nose.
Then maybe I’ll come close
To that one coveted white face marketed and sold
On every subway station billboard,
On every magazine page
And on every dolled Korean idol praised
And worshiped by this age;
Bought for the cookie-cut shaped face
That I, and most, was not graced.
If my narrow eyes stole
Others’ entrance to my soul,
Then perhaps double-eyelid scars
Will give me wider entrance
To the sky of stars.
*2014 Colorism Poetry Contest Division 2 Honorable Mention
About the Poet:Joy Choe was born to a Korean-American family of eight in Oregon on October 23, 1995. She has lived in South Korea, Colorado, and Australia while also visiting a few other countries. Her current residence is on the big island of Hawaii, where she developed an interest in writing in the AP English classes of Frederick Herrmann at Makua Lani Christian Academy. Although writing is not her strongest point, as drawing is for her, she enjoys exercising creativity through writing, especially stories. She will now be attending University of Notre Dame in Indiana where she plans to major in Studio Art. One goal she hopes to accomplish is to write and illustrate a comic book, or possibly just a novel.