You want me to perform on stage
For you alone
An actress reciting lines written long ago
When you first imagined nubile girls
And felt stirrings sensual and strange
You ask for a curtain call
But the first act has not yet begun
Or even been rehearsed
I am outside this theater looking up
At its neon lights.
Wondering whether to step inside
Or run from their harsh glare
To the soft twinkling
Of country summer.
You want my ecstatic dance
To rise like a crescendo before your eyes
My limbs twisting and convulsing in
Tribal rhythms
But the music has yet to play
And I am wrapped in the silence.
You want an aria, a magnum opus
A soprano hitting notes so high
As to shatter hearts.
But I am just a woman.
And can’t even sing on key.
About Laurie: The author of the recently released Finding Joy as well as The Pharaoh’s Cry, Portal Shift, Kidnapped Smile, and Dragon Sky of the fantasy series The Artania Chronicles, and Forests Secrets. Laurie Woodward is also a screenwriter who co-authored Dean and JoJo: The Dolphin Legacy. Her poetry has been published in multiple journals and anthologies and she was a collaborator on the popular anti-bullying DVD Resolutions. Bullied as a child, Laurie is now an award-winning peace consultant, poet, and blogger who helps teach children how to avoid arguments, stop bullying, and maintain healthy friendships. She writes on the Central Coast of California. More about her work can be found at Author Laurie Woodward — Next Chapteria.ne
Laurie Woodward 