29.
In an ancient Chinese tragedy,
two lovers can never marry.
Their spirits spill out of their graves
in the shape
of swallowtail butterflies.
When they first met,
she was dressed as a man.
Both men looked in the mirror
and saw the same world gleaming there.
A mirror is a most
prolific copy machine:
she hands you a copy where you can see yourself clearly.
Titian (Italian, 1488–1576)
Venus with a Mirror, c. 1555
Oil on canvas
Collection of the National Gallery of Art