For MM

Papyrus

Through reflections
of mossy green
tall, swaying fronds wave
on swelling river banks

Imhotep decrees
elaborate ceremonies
to appease the gods

The sun god Ra, hammers stone
to red-gold sands which coalesce
at the feet of pyramids
in ptolemaic precision,

and with spindly legs
the ibis stalks wild kingdom
fanning white and black plumage
under the shade of a fig palm

Born of primeval waters
a blue lotus erupts
from circles of chaos

A Nubian scripts a story
with ink dark as kohl

which pools around
as I rise naked, dripping
from long-stemmed reeds

A luminous reverie evaporates,
dry, scorching,
like the sting of an asp

My hot eyes
are all that are left
in my mouth you taste the Nile

I will absorb your passion
and still be hungry for more

I am your Cleopatra

January, 2009

Notes:

“Cyperus Papyrus,” a long stemmed plant that flourished in the Nile Delta,  is believed to have been first used around 4000 BC. In ancient days, its reeds and flowers grew everywhere along the banks of the Nile. As with the lotus, papyrus motifs appear prominently in ancient Egyptian art. Papyrus is inextricably linked to the life-giving waters of the Nile. The hypostile halls of many temples symbolize the Nile with rows of papyrus columns to each side.

Pen

Inside this bone
burns marrow fire
it cannot
be extinguished,
only spent

a shadow
dizzied by
"tabula rasa"

to wrap around
the reticent voice 

as fingers curl
around the barrel
a swirling dance
of lyrics
crams the mind 

from somewhere comes a shift
pressing you into your own skin, 

delirium thins the ink
—the fever recedes—
and just for that moment,
there is clarity 

before the flowers explode
and finally that "high,"
that sense of satisfaction
in the joyful ache of shoulder blades

that waits until the
purpled blood is dry

January, 2009