Origami Girl
By Joanna Yamakami
I am the Origami girl,
折り紙の女 4’9”, 100 lbs, XS,
But apparently not small enough yet
Striving to take up less space
The black hole of my mouth
Speaks myself into oblivion
you don’t see me? It’s fine neither do they
Crane girl cannot fly away
Paper too thin, wings too frail
But hey, she looks perfect on paper
Paper girl lets them fold her
They tear her paper skin into paper shreds
Tears warp her once white pristine, now sags red
Asian girl sits immobile
They rip off her wings and tell her what she already knows
Go back to 2D, you 3D yellow oriental
Human girl opens her mouth in protest
To claim her crane space
Instead swallows her words
Her words and bloodline ooze out
Folding into herself