Ocean is a poet born in Ho Chi Minh City and raised in a multigenerational household of women in the United States. He applies a careful approach to language, shaped by early struggles with reading and his family's oral storytelling tradition, to explore his Vietnamese American heritage. He views himself as a direct product of war due to the union of his grandparents during the conflict in Vietnam.

An American soldier stationed in Saigon during its fall. He creates a pocket of quiet intimacy in a hotel room, attending to his lover by bringing champagne to her lips. Disconnected from the violent reality outside the window, he attempts to comfort the woman with optimistic assurances about tomorrow.

A Vietnamese woman in a hotel room with an American soldier during the city's collapse. Described through her quiet actions and the recurring imagery of her dress, she shares an intimate moment with the soldier while danger mounts outside. She is a poetic figuration of the author's own grandmother.

A white American Navy soldier who met and married a Vietnamese farm girl during the Vietnam War. He intended to stay in Vietnam after the war ended but was unable to return following the fall of Saigon. His relationship with his wife serves as the historical foundation for the lovers in the poem.

A Vietnamese farm girl who married a white American Navy soldier during the war. After the fall of Saigon, she and her family are eventually forced to flee to a refugee camp in the Philippines. She passed down a rich tradition of oral storytelling and Buddhist rituals of care that deeply influenced her grandson's poetry.

A Vietnamese woman who faces threats due to her mixed heritage following the Vietnam War. She flees with her son and relatives to a refugee camp in the Philippines, eventually relocating to Hartford, Connecticut. She plays a crucial role in raising her son in a multigenerational household of women.

The poet's father, who leaves the family shortly after their relocation to the United States. His absence leaves a profound impact on his son, inspiring later poetic explorations of fatherlessness through ancient myths.

A local law enforcement leader caught in the violent siege outside the hotel. He is depicted in a surreal, tragic state, lying on the ground near a wet photograph of his father, representing the devastating public violence of the city's collapse.

The father of the local police chief. He appears only in a photograph that rests beside his son's ear on the chaotic streets, grounding the historical devastation in a specific image of familial loss.

A nun experiencing immense suffering in the public square. Described as moving urgently but silently toward her god, she represents the extreme violence and the release of mercy intertwined in the city's fall. When her god tells her to open, she submits to the release of the afterlife.

The divine figure to whom the burning nun runs for salvation. He offers a final act of mercy in the poem, commanding her to open and welcoming her into a peaceful afterlife.

Two Vietnamese women who face danger due to their family's heritage after the war. They flee to a refugee camp and eventually resettle in Connecticut, forming a core part of the multigenerational household that raises their nephew.

The disembodied singer on the American radio station in Saigon. Broadcasting a holiday song, this voice provides the musical signal to begin a massive evacuation operation. The cheerful lyrics contrast severely with the violent reality occurring on the streets.

The fellow soldiers of the American stationed in the hotel. They are invoked when the soldier reassures his lover that they have won the war, attempting to project safety just before the lights go out.