剩女 (Sheng Nu. Left over Woman)

How old are you? Shouldn’t you be married?
Yes, I am
25,
I shouldn’t be anything that
I don’t want to be.
I am complete by myself, don’t make me
Seem halved,
Because I don’t
Have a husband.
Do you want to disrespect your parents? Don’t you care
about their wellbeing?
I’m not trying to
Be selfish. I can’t marry
For the sake of social convention.
It’s not a problem. I don’t need to be fixed.
I’m not trying to hurt anyone
On purpose.
What use is your education? All that learning won’t find you 
a husband.
I’ll be single.
I won’t dumb down for a single
Person.
I’ll make my own money, so don’t
You worry.
I’ll take care of what
I need to.
There should be no reason to
Apologize,
For disobeying social ritual. 


Artwork by Isabelle Feliu