i could have been a painter.
she tells me, proud.
but i chose freedom.
she tells me, prouder.
she sits in front of me.
cradling my feet.
but you chose freedom.
i repeat.
her eyes bent low.
mines glinting high.
her shoulders curved.
(soft)
a bird sipping water.
my throat craned.
(caught)
a bird up for slaughter.
she brushes red.
(always red)
for fortune.
lucky, you know?
lucky, i know.
the tv hums.
the microwave chimes.
i could have been a painter.
she says.
the tv hums.
the microwave chimes.
you could have been a painter.
i say.
the tv hums.
the microwave chimes.
the kitchen light glows.
a faded bulb whines.
yes, we say, next time.
yes, we will say for next time.
Contributor’s Bio
Marque-Lin is a Vietnamese-American theatre artist, performer and writer, based in Germany. She is the founder of the queer-led artist collective MSG & Friends, which produces community spaces and performance opportunities for the Asian artist diaspora in and around Europe. She is currently a MA candidate in Comparative Dramaturgy and Performance Research at Goethe Universität. Marque has had the opportunity to work with a variety of Europe-based cultural institutions such as ARTE, English Theater Berlin, STATE Studio Berlin, Gorki Theater: Berlin, and Theaterhaus Gessnerallee: Zürich. Recently, she was featured as an AI Artist of the Week by AI For Good, a UN platform dedicated to fostering dialogue on the beneficial use of artificial intelligence. Her multi-media work spans across themes of intergenerational trauma, cultural inheritance, and the intersections of Vietnamese femme identity.
