Comfortable in my own skin
For a thousand years or more
Inner calm and outer grin
Oozing from every pore
Tender care for follicles
That blossom forth with fur
Showing off unruly curls
That underline his ‘her’
Nibbled nails that niggle
Catching, snagging, telling tales
Tiny scars that wriggle
As hands flex and curl and wave
Gentle as a monolith
That towers high above
The pillory of Lilith
For whom Adam held no love
Never try to date musicians
Actors, players or politicians
All who make fame their lifelong mission
Feel compelled to keep ambition
Uppermost in their mind’s eye.
Resisting those whose hopes may lie
In other kinds of pie-filled sky,
Aspire to happiness: decry
The complex marketing campaigns
To fill your dreams with endless strains
Of violins, and chilled champagne
(Someone is selling something vain)
You’re not obliged to join, partake
In putting out, appearing, fake
So falsely cheerful, on the make
We don’t all want the same big break
And there are many paths to tread
That do less harm and keep you fed
You could just read a book instead
To fill your soul, first fill your head
A blue-eyed boy
Of brooding stare
Sells daydreams of
Devil-may-care
He need not speak
It’s in his air
All others pale
To see him there
An unfamiliar
Tempting treat
His louche appeal
Seems twice as sweet
Than does our more
Suburban fare
‘Tis solid, stodgy
We compare
This fantasy
To what’s at home
And straightway chart
Our course to roam
Thus leaving scruples
Far behind
Beg an adventure
Of the mind
The langorous lids, drooping softly over his twinkling, tired eyes, and that mischievous grin, wryly twisting the lips as his tongue darts out to enter the silent debate.
How did I ever stand a chance? With one plaintive eyebrow I had lost the argument, all thoughts of resistance winging their way to hardier climes.
He looks up, and I feel my heart leap into my mouth, ready to fall at his feet. What a world I find in that face, one glance and I am forever undone.
Oh how I both bless and rue the day I ever laid eyes on you.
Katherine Shirley 