EMILY AS TE AVAE NO MARIA BY PAUL GAUGUIN
Unharvested
& sweet, the denial lingers
as we offer up
lily-white liberations
to the various religious sects
that have sprung up
around Emily’s left calf.
Her skin darkens
with the sun.
The world is sluggish
around her clavicle.
I want
to bathe in the river
when she finds the river.
Clumps of mud make our love
a living thing.
There is one path
& she drags me through it.
There are two worlds
& they both believe in her.