The Siren of Princes' Islands
Dusk by the Marmara Sea
Her eyes painted blue-green
She relinquishes her umber hair
And shows me her elbows and knees
She bribes me with a secret
Guides me to a buried room
Filled with treasures: a boy’s boot
Behind a grandmother’s sweeping broom
Dusk by the Marmara Sea
A carriage crosses the island
Two white stallions gallop
Their hooves polished like diamonds
Bewitched by her siren song
I tiptoe into her marble room
Where I discover her ring
Tied to a baby’s spoon
Dusk by the Marmara Sea
She kisses my hair
Then reaches for my silver and buttons
My only purse now bare
Carina Yun's collection of poems On Loving a Saudi Girl (Headmistress Press, 2015) was selected for the Charlotte Mew Prize by Meg Day. Her poems have appeared at Lambda Literary, The Northern Virginia Review, Beltway Poetry Quarterly, and elsewhere. She draws and writes from life, figure skates, and travels.
