By Amanda Meeker

Dokdo,
meaning solitary,
like a single person in an apartment,
a person with dual selves:
East and West,
like the duality of
North and South.
You can only be
complete
with two halves,
romantic halves
like a newlywed.

The writer is a Korean-American poet who was adopted in her age and received her master's degree in professional writing and editing from George Mason University.