Cherry Blossoms Are Not Red
Quang Vo
She proved my naïveté
beside the East Potomac—
beneath branches
of evanescent fuchsia.
Once, I followed
the retail fragrance on her shoulders,
a gift-shop fan crimson-thin,
marked cherry blossoms
to erase the red scent
and trace her steps.
Though I could have searched
for truth—believing was sweeter,
telling her
your hair is sorrowful as night
and reassuring her that
cherry blossoms always flower red.
60