ghagras twirling
               veils swirling 
                                   anklets tinkling
silver at her neck
how she adorns herself!
regal as a queen
but cannot conceal
her banjara soul


gypsy blood flows in her veins
a thousand stars alight upon her veil
fuchsia and orange set fire to the dusk
twilight is thick with her magic
she sways with the grace of a peacock
bends like a willow to the breeze
dances in celebration of her soul
her smile a universal knowing


none can slow her pace
beauty this wild leaves only a trace
slips airily past eyes
drunk with desire
to beguile the moon in his heaven


she answers the call of the wanderer within
casts only laughter on the restless wind
this desert rose
this woman child
this gypsy queen
this banjara

You asked the color of my dreams.
In sleep, my eyes have sought
The inky black of raven lashes.
Starry nights and sooty ashes.
Prussian blue of fading violets
Indigo of clouds and silence
Beryl skies and turquoise seas
Blue-green waters of the deep
Peacock feathers of emerald green
Mossy dells of faery queens
Fields of wheat and brilliant suns
Amber gold in mid-autumns
Coral reefs and salmon streams
Marmalade and tangerines
Auburn sunsets, titian lips
Hennaed hands and fingertips
Blushing brides and rosy cheeks
Pink hued walls and white topped peaks
Silver moons and crystal nights
Downy geese in graceful flight
Ask not the color of my dreams
The question is not whole;
Deep within my rainbow’d sleep
Lies the color of my soul.

mirror'd image
reflects all I see.
this rare beauty
granted me.

crystal reflection,
thou pool of perfection
bound am I to thee,
admiring and admired for eternity.

neither nymph nor goddess
I entrust with this heart,
be she fair of face
or immortalized in art.

in this mirror'd likeness
lies all I esteem
O vainglory!
I submit to thy dream

no Echo to sway me
from all that I cherish
I heed not her plea,
though here I perish

I gaze at myself
passing life's finest hour
and leave in my wake
one perfect flower.

when winter arrives
with fingers of ice
that creep across
the window pane

i recall him in
my solitude
is he warm now
in another's embrace?

too easy do I recollect
every facet of his face
the jaw i traced
with trembling hands
eyes of emerald
flecked with gold
arms encircled
'round my waist

mouth that plundered
kisses bold
fingers fine
that intertwined
my own hands
and passion wild
velvet tongue
his saving grace

poet's words enamoured hearts
noble brow for kisses chaste
soul that claimed mine
as its own
smile like sunburst
warmed his face

laugh that charmed
a bashful child
mind all beauty
to behold

but winter dwells within his heart
there alone, it's ever cold

this memory
its strangeness
flawed remembrance
of you
holds fragments to my skin
dead leaves wet with rain
that scatter when dry
autumn's demise upon
this frigid wind
but still it succeeds
at leaving its mark
in the hollow of my neck
where you laid a thousand kisses
on the sweetness of my mouth
where your lips brushed mine
and whispered secrets of
a promised spring
to a guileless heart
all convincing
it weaves its deception
until nearly complete
and strangles hope
to lay at your feet.