The Folds of Light
The thicker the empty spaces grow,
the fainter the hidden lines become.
Clothes fold the body’s secrets
into the creases of fabric,
while behind a veil scented with powder,
the face borrows an unfamiliar expression.
The heart draws out a thread of words
and tries to stitch the widening gaps,
but the longer the sentences grow,
at every stitch,
a shadow follows.
In every crease folded to hide,
light comes first,
tracing its own outline before it slips away.
빛의 주름
여백이 두터워질수록
감춘 선은 흐려진다
옷은 몸의 비밀을
천의 주름 속에 접어 넣고
얼굴은 분 냄새 나는 장막 뒤에서
낯선 표정을 빌려 온다
마음은 말의 실을 뽑아
벌어진 틈을 꿰매 보지만
문장이 길어질수록
바늘땀마다
그림자가 따라붙는다
숨기려고 접은 자리마다
빛이 먼저 와서
제 윤곽을 새기고 간다
Poet Ms. Sihu Lee is a poet and author who previously served as President of the Graduate Student Council at Ewha Womans University’s Graduate School of Policy Science. She also served as Senior Vice President of the Gyeonggi Provincial Federation of the Korean League of Women Voters, a non-governmental organization; as a board member of a central environmental organization; and as Director of Cultural Affairs at the Gyeonggi Women CEOs Association.
In 2025, she made her literary debut after receiving the New Writer’s Award in Poetry from Seojeong Literature. She is the author of Only After Meeting You Did I Learn to Speak, published by Cheongeo Publishing House. She is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Philosophy at Dongguk University.
