Contemplation (A Painting by Doel Reed)

For a summer institute we were required to pick out a painting and write about it in less than two hours. This was my submission. We should be hearing back any day now...

Forgotten in Eden;

We are alone.
No need for gloves,
Or lace,

Or skirts and skirts and skirts.
My Bare Skin--
(Oh I had forgotten you existed!)

Drinks in sunshine;
Accolades it never recieves, made dirty by others.
I can see my own blueprints;

My veins traced softly from palm to elbow.
tantalizing, my blouse is waving,

And the white of my breast is contrast to the blush of my skin.
My very posture is gone;
Vanished,
No longer that of a society girl.
I can lounge, spread out, like--
Dionysus.
My hold, my rest, my Tree of Knowledge;
I clasp like a lover.
Entwined with its branches,
It knows the pain of servitude
The pain of solidarity.

This tree is my best friend.
I will clothe thee,

Friend.

Take my best muslin;
I never wanted it anyway!
I shall drink in your shade,
And share with you a friend.
I shall gaze at her beauty,

That under our shedding skin

We share the same sinful curves.

We share the same cool, damp necks.

We share in Society's needs.
Society needs us in yokes.

I take my 'Oh, so fashionable' leash--

Here! Be a carpet and I will

Crush YOU--
For once.

My tree tenderly kisses the inside of my elbow.
Kisses with sunshine and pollen

And the barest trace of leaves.
Your heady fruit,
These swollen ideas--

I will nourish from

Again and Again,
Forgotten in Eden;
We are Free.

Author's Note

I can't seem to locate a picture of the painting online :-/

Reviews

[zig]

" the clothes make the man" i have no idea how many times ive heard that expression. but without the clothes, the uniforms of our status, without the watches and cellphones and suv's how would tell who's the better human being? being human is all about being absurd (as i understand it) so we have to invent clothing and cellpones and all the other nonsense so we can strive and acheive, so we can shower ourselves in artificial honors of human-ness... or not, heh

i really enjoyed your poem. very thought provoking, good images and work use. it could be tightened up a bit i think, you rerpeated some points that i dont think you needed to, kind of halted the movement a bit. other then that, i hope you get a good grade on it.

zig