unrenounced

for Sarah

this morning the bearded
man would not
shake
your hand, so
now you are clutching mine

I heard your words
vibrating as if through November ice
trying to make my voice
louder than my heart
i couldn�t believe that years
of learning strength would
lead us, unarmed, to their clear
blue eyes and bewildered certainty
their responses that fail to pierce the soul

For we are still here, all
our passions unrenounced
Our joy comes from crossing
the room to worried and familiar faces
while they still sit stonefaced
Their hatred makes you a giant
until you capitulate into my arms

Sweat and red marks
of your bones across
my palm, there is no room
for the devil between our fingers

Poetry
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home
Restructuring

I want to put the bottom
rail on top for you
bottom rail on top

I won�t have you
as contraband of war
someone�s sensuous sinner

I can�t bear three
pieces of women�s clothing,
two water fountains
where the water always
tastes the same

so though it might be dangerous
to drink too much from your lips
and your voice on the phone echoes
centuries of fear

If I cannot protect you
I will make this
my Prague Spring
Light myself on fire
then save us both, joyously

Staring myself down


Four years ago, looking
for the shape of an owl
I�d once seen in the tree trunk,
instead seeing my face
unfamiliar, impossibly
dark but finally known

Rivers came together
and pulled apart
in me that night, were drawn
up to my shores
the way I found myself
drawing, drinking her
tasting the flood in her lips and
watching the ocean of my tongue
seize her fresh water,
brand her with the mark of salt
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