Make the World Look Like You

Ioana Clara Enescu
The only mirror in which she could see herself from head to toe was the window of the balcony onto which she only got out to hang her laundry or look for a jar of zacuscă or of pickles. No one had ever told her she was pretty. And even if they had, nothing could have ever silenced the words her mother threw at her, sometimes bitterly, sometimes tauntingly: You have jug ears and huge teeth, just like your father. So she could only stare in amazement at the little girl's drawing, in which the whole planet smiled at her - beautiful just like you, mum.

Monica Bologa
I make her beautiful, smart, kind-hearted, resourceful, strong, romantic, housewife in the kitchen, whore in bed, I make her intelligent, faithful, selfless, not very talkative, I give her confidence, courage, modesty, I give her a talent, poetry, and some hobbies: painting, tennis, and good wine. When my boyfriend got home, I proudly showed him my work. He took the World by the hand and left for good. She is perfect, he told me, you still have to work on yourself. Once he walked out that door, I broke all my mirrors.
 
 Siranuș Hakobian
The island we were stranded on was inhabited by some gentle savages. I am going to make a world out of you, one in my own image, I promised them and started to civilise them. First, I built them a large prison for the problematic elements. Then I built them a church where they could worship a vengeful and watchful deity. When I begun the magnificent construction of my palace, which was worthy of a ruler, the savages began to resemble me: they mercilessly imprisoned me because the deity no longer liked me.

(Translated by Valentina Mihai / University of Bucharest, Faculty of Foreign Languages and Literatures, MTTLC, year II / Corrected by Silvia Petrescu, coordinator of the translations)