i see not
my beauty
but the ugliness
and the negativity
that the world
has filled
in me.

red flames
blush across cheeks
sweet cherry lips
purse with cherry juice tang
while fire inspires
with cinnamon
and essence of rose
romances the Sun
with red velvet petals
that speak out loud
I dance with
sparkling red nails
and brilliant red toes
feet able to dazzle with flare
as my hair glows red
and my dress smells like cherries
flutters out in a circle
in the playful breeze of the wind

girl dressed in a lapping
blue-waters gown
stands in a nest
of long-legged storks
remembering a moon
just exactly like this
in a hazy light just before
the dark garments of dawn are torn
is he looking out
over the water's edge
thinking about her
as she is thinking of him?
keep dreaming, the water says
as the dish runs away
with the baby's spoon
and speaks kindly of dreams spun