Poetry Garden

This poem is an English translation selected from the third section, "Poetry Garden" (诗苑), of the Chinese poetry journal Workers' Poetry Selection (《打工诗选刊》).

The New Waitress

"I'm sorry—
it was an accident.
The soup spilled all over my clothes.
They're brand new.
What do you plan to do about it?"

"I'm sorry—
call the manager."

Disappointed—
the job she’d just gotten
was already lost because of her own mistake.
She compensated with what little she had,
blamed herself for being clumsy,
her heart churning with mixed feelings.

Slowly, she wiped up the soup spilled on the floor.

Zhang Xiaoxia, female, from Faku County, Liaoning Province. Loves literature and writes poetry in her spare time. Now a senior childcare specialist. Has previously worked in restaurants and factories.

《饭店新来的服务员》

对不起

我不是故意的

汤都洒到衣服上了

这是新买的

你看看怎么办

对不起

把老板叫来

失望

刚刚得到的工作

因为自己的过失又丢了

赔了钱了事

责怪自己笨手笨脚

心里倒了五味瓶

慢慢地收拾洒在地上的汤水

张晓侠，女，辽宁省法库县县人，热爱文学，业余写诗，现在是高级育婴师。先后在饭店，工厂打过工。