Any Lover

Here in a bed lies a woman.
Last night's linens twine
from breasts to feet where
a husband's ankles would.

There beside her is a man.
His hips stack like hay bales
on their sides and press
the flat back of her thighs.

If you were to ask this woman
Who is this? She would reply
Why that could be any lover of mine.

She studies how the night's hues
of blues stain his pale mouth royal,
how every man has a feminine curve
to his bottom lip, how when they sleep,
they all look like husbands.

Here in a bed lies a woman and a man.
She is the slivered bright edge of the moon
and he, the darker half. He is the infant
who cups and suckles her breast as he cries
in the blue-lit hours of early morning.

If you were to ask this woman
Who is this? She would reply
Why that could be any lover of mine.

Reviews

[Toon]

this poem could be a really sound basis for a character in a book. i think its really honest

[KL]

This has a very traditional feel to it, yet with your powerful stylistic twist you managed a unique blend of the old and new. Old being the formatting of the stanzas, new being your flowing description. I really liked the way you tied it up at the end and brought the poem full circle, not to mention how insightful your narrative was in general. Sweet stuff, sistaman.