STIRRING
Founded in 1999, Stirring is one of the oldest continuously publishing journals on the internet.
Stirring is an electronic quarterly journal.
Founded in 1999, Stirring is one of the oldest continuously publishing journals on the internet.
Stirring is an electronic quarterly journal.
MANTHIPE MOILA
It is painful to move this way:
time hurtles ahead and leaves me behind
skin taut, pinching towards the future
Sometimes the burnt juniper of my alocasia gives me pause
Maybe there is a god who makes beautiful things
that make beautiful things just because
Maybe I am the god
and mine is a world of foliage -
peace lilies, pothos and pink evergreens
Sometimes I hover over them in awe of how decidedly they grow
without considering that they too move
in ways that might be painful
their marred leaves open reluctantly
their roots jut out into the water
they wind themselves into tight unyielding fists
they rot warp inch by inch, heed -
contorting themselves toward the sun
Instead of: the dust is a harsh yellow
that stains crevices after each rain-
Instead of: there is something yellow
caught in my throat
behind it threatens a din
that could shatter through the wails
of a mourning creature-
Instead of: it gathered speck by speck;
sometimes when I speak it comes out in a noxious puff
that sinks to the ground
and notches the footprints of those walking away from me-
Instead of: when I was young
I was so afraid of being in the sun
lest it strip me of my **yellow
now there are days when I am a pit
where yellow collects
layers itself up and down my throat
into the pockets of my lungs-
Instead of: did you know that the sun is not even yellow?
It is all the colours,
all of them-
She smiles a white smile:
I’m fine, thanks. How are you?
*황사 pronounced “Hwang Sa”, is a natural phenomenon where yellow dust from the deserts of Northern China and Mongolia blow into the atmosphere of South Korea. This leads to reduced visibility, air pollution and, when severe, negatively affects the respiratory health of those who inhale the dust particles over a prolonged period.
Source: Pickering, Brendon. “Hwang Sa (Yellow Dust).” Asia Society. https://asiasociety.org/korea/hwang-sa-yellow-dust
** A “yellow-bone” is a light skinned black person. This term carries ‘good’ connotation due to colourism.
Manthipe Moila is a 29-year-old poet from Johannesburg, South Africa. She holds a degree in English Literature. She has recently been published in the New Contrast 202 (2023) issue and her most upcoming publication will be in the Kalahari Review. She is currently based in Seoul, South Korea.
