Caribbean Thoughts
by Carol MitchellArchive for This and that
A little ditty for three
I knew it would end, you see
one night; this triangle of he, me, she
wasn’t right, it could never be.
A terrible plight, but love doesn’t work with three.
I planned it would be ended by me
on my terms; Not so that he
would squirm, ache, cry, plea
and yearn, begging to return to three.
But so I would leave with me,
whole; He’d have she and she-he
to hold; And I would be
okay, all told, okay with just me.
But he chose her over me
first; Let all I thought was we
burst; without a word, decree
or curse, he broke the triangle of three …
and in doing so, almost broke me.
Nape
I stand in front of my mirror, examining my body, checking for new lines, blemishes, wrinkles, those things that come with a maturing body. I hold up my hair to get an unfettered view of my back and realise for the first time that no matter how I twist and turn, I cannot see the nape of my neck. I wonder what it looks like, if it is covered with moles and blemishes like the rest of my back.
I give up and turn to face the mirror again, still holding up my hair. My husband comes into the room. I watch him watching my reflection as he walks towards me. When he is right behind me, he bends, kisses the back of my neck.
“Perfect,” he murmurs.
Mirrors
I’m breaking all my mirrors, that bad luck don’t phase me. When I look in your eyes, your reflection of me is the only mirror that I need.
Don’t
Don’t look at me that way
It makes me want to stay
Forget everything I thought I had to do
And spend my days in love with you
Don’t make me smile like that
Now I feel so relaxed
I want to feel like this forever
Sail away on a boat to wherever
Don’t touch my skin right there
It makes me so aware
Of your closeness and your smell
your presence … irresistible
Don’t kiss my breast so sweet
It makes my knees so weak
I want to feel your kiss all over
Take you for me, make you my lover
Don’t
