I regret never being in love. I regret not having a monkey or a black cat. I regret not being a vampire. I regret that I have not bitten any of my girlfriends on the neck. I regret that I am not the lifeless black bird that hangs from the thorn that knots Frida’s neck. But I am satisfied that every morning god allows me to read a poem.

the things i’ve done —
handing snowflakes
back to the sky

(Ekphrastic haibun based on ‘Self-Portrait with Thorn Necklace and Hummingbird’, Frida Kahlo (1940)

Réka Nyitrai & Alan Peat