Ripe and round,
I slip my finger
against the slim
band of my underwear,
slide the skin
of my dress
over my head,
plunge the fruit
of my body into a hot
tub of water that stretches
out toward ocean.

 

In this water,
I am Aphrodite,
simmering in her shell,
radiant, resplendent,
luscious as summer plums

 

Appeared in The Peralta Press, Spring 2001.