Learning to Love
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 19 March 2020
Summary
Here:
Some beads for the wave of your tresses
Bead them in hard, shiny against the jet black of your greying hair
Slaves were traded for them, fingers bled to thread them
They shine – little colourful skulls
Of the day of the dead from Mexico
I come from far, here: the beads
Plait them in the jet black of your graying hair
So I can learn to love you
Here:
Some tears for the dimple of your cheek
Run them slow, shiny against the narrow of your chin
Infants were killed for them, palms were leathered to collect them
They shine – sun-struck crystals
From the saltpans and the pampas
I come from far, here: the tears
Rain them softly against the narrow of your chin
So I can learn to love you
Here:
Some soot for your brow and lashes
Texture it in deep, a dark henna against your haunting eyes
Outcasts were starved for them, joints were cracked to scoop them
They haunt – tiny mirages of the desert
From the pit bogs and the crags of the equator
I come from far, here: the soot
Craft it in against your haunting eyes
So I can learn to love you
Here:
Some red pearls for your ears
Hang them low, crimson treasures from your softest lobes
Naked divers lost lungs for them, eardrums exploded to collect them
They pulse – little ripe pomegranate-seeds
From the reefs and the swells of the Red Sea
I come from far, here: the pearls
Pierce them through and hang them from your softest lobes
So I can learn to love you
Here is the soft pink for your lips
Smooth it over, soft and aromatic scent for a future kiss
Jews and pigs were boiled for them, chemists lost their skin for them
They entice – the madness between a heart and flower
From the vats and cauldrons of the subcontracted East
I come from far, here: the soft pink
Caress it on softly, an aromatic scent for a future kiss
So I can learn to love you
Leave your breasts bare
There is no mindless youth or loot to hide there
Leave them just there
Just there
So I can learn to love you
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- Around the World in Eighty DaysThe India Section, pp. 52 - 53Publisher: University of South AfricaPrint publication year: 2014