As molecules
We are packed in the capsules of the train
Condensed, we are out of breath
As chemicals, we feed the earth
That aches, cries, hits
The grass and sings
We remain calm
We call sentiment the 19th-century expression
We are expressionless
Our hands tucked into sleeves
Our eyes downcast
Infinitely complicated and generalized
We are connected to the world with our index fingers
The night, with the train roaring, has fallen
And is getting late soon
The water runs slowly and we sing dumbly
My friend Cocoa says in the morning
“His poems are bluer than you”
And afterwards she says
“An insider’s mood is even bluer”
I bury my face in a laughter for his casual humor
I am in the back of Subway-9 Capsule
There’s room around me
The train shales me gently
And evenly, I become one part of a pill
And heal
A night that loses tomorrow
Lu Di is a poet and visual artist from Zhejiang, China. As founder of Continents and Islands—Lab of Senses and Psychology, she has published two books of poetry and two books of essays. She is also the author of a collection of multi-media creations. Member of Zhejiang Writers’ Association and Zhejiang Artists’ Association.
Xu Jiantong, born in Taizhou, Jiangsu Province (China), is a poet and translator. She is the chief editor of Poetry Calendar. Her work has been published in literary journals in China. She won the Gold Award for International Mini-poetry Contest (2018) and one of her poems was selected by the sixth edition of Chinese Best Poetry (2017).