Let dream love dream
and we fall into sleep
till awakened by the noises of their wedding
We do not dispute
Because languages were registered
as fierce weapons long ago Before Christ …
*Poem, in its entirety, is available in the print version of the current issue.
Bio:
Yan Li was a member of the pioneering art group Star Painting Club and the literary group Today, both active in Beijing during the pivotal year of 1979. In 1984, he held the first solo exhibition of pioneering art in China. In 1987, he founded the New York poetry journal First Line, which ceased publication in 2000 and resumed in June 2020; he continues to serve as editor-in-chief. He is president of the Overseas Chinese Writers’ Association.
Anna Yin is a translator and Mississauga’s inaugural Poet Laureate (2015–2017). She has authored five poetry collections, the fifth in both Chinese and English. Her sixth book, Mirrors and Windows (Guernica Editions, 2021), includes her translations of the work of 60 poets (Chinese and English). Her work has appeared in Arc Poetry Magazine, the New York Times, China Daily, World Journal, and on CBC Radio.