Sir, you were blocked [NF 3:5] – Nguyễn Thị Phương Trâm

Sir, you were blocked
your computer hit a firewall
your Mother cried

you had the one pen
and a box of coloured pencils
to note and draw the wall
the fencing
from the foot
to the top of a hill

vaguely a brown horse
sir, your horse was oddly still
it’s neck stretching, overreaching
searching

they were also searching
what were they looking for was different
to you, sir

what were they looking for?

over on the other side
your Mother was still there
the person who will help you climb the wall
like when you were a child learning how to walk
your anxious Mother was hurt
each time you fell


Lê Vĩnh Tài, the poet and translator born in 1966 in Buon Ma Thuot, Daklak, Vietnam. The retired doctor is still a resident of the Western Highlands and a businessman in Buon Ma Thuot.

Source: Sir, you were blocked [NF 3:5] – Nguyễn Thị Phương Trâm