For this month, we are so grateful to present poetry in three languages—Portuguese, Japanese, and English—from the wonderful poet, artist, librarian, Liana Nakamura, of the “land of persimmons” Mogi das Cruzes, São Paulo, Brazil. The translation in Japanese was provided by Nodoka Nakaya, and the translation in English is provided by the author. Liana’s poem “the street market” keeps us in and moves us through the of the minutiae of the day, returning us to the circular ending, to begin again. Enjoy…

— traci kato-kiriyama

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Liana Nakamura was born in Mogi das Cruzes (Sao Paulo, Brazil) in 1994. Between Japan and Brazil, she became a Librarian Specialist in Diversity and Inclusion. Author of the book yellow-mango: a nippo-poetry anthology (2023), honorable mention at the 15th Bunkyo Literature Award, she is part of Discover Nikkei's Portuguese Editorial Committee and co-founded Collective of Asian-Brazilian Woman Writers.

the street market

5 a.m., the truck needs to be loaded,
street market starts earlier.
chopping, slicing, cooking, marinating, washing pots,
stove with so much grease looked black as night.
Solupan¹ melts the grease,
but it doesn't erase our fatigue.
cap on my head, red apron, the cold smell of morning,
unloading the stall: metal, plastic, covers, crates, boxes.
liters of oil poured into the pan shine.
the elderly arrive first, slow and hungry.
inside the stall, you are just
another nameless vendor.

noon, what a line!
money, bags, straws, garbage bags, dirty tables.
my sweaty father—at least it didn’t rain...
rain makes a sad street market day!
cap and sneakers soaked, waiting for the most loyal customers.
no holidays, no rest,
yakisoba sauce stains the apron.
the tally done in my head, glasses fogged with grease.

at the end of the day: sorry, that’s it for now, back on Friday.
packed meal trays,
for us, just the leftovers,
cold karaage, meatless yakisoba.
washing pots, loading the truck, counting the cash box:
A THOUSAND REAIS.²

fifty for each employee, plus a tub of scraps.
in the shower, black water:
sweat, grease, sauce.
I sleep and think:
Friday morning, we do it all again.

Notes:

1. Solupan is a brazilian brand of high-performance degreaser.

2. A thousand reais is approximately 400 U.S. dollars at the current exchange rate in November 2024.

*This poem was originally published in yellow-mango: a nippo-poetry anthology (2023) and is copyrighted by the author. 

© 2023 Liana Nakamura