Perfumed Secrets

—Photo by Ann Privateer, Davis

BLACK SHAPES

turn in a moonless night
ebony curls hurl from the breath
of emptiness to play, heard
before seen, following a beam
to ignite their sheen
before dissolving to gray.

Shapes elongate, noiselessly
before life becomes day life
before it slips away, birds alight
take shape on a moonless night.


—Ann Privateer

_______________________

INSIDE
—Ann Privateer, Davis

I am inside a book with my husband
though I'm not sure who he is...

stamped inside the cover or door
are the instructions and the return policy.

A bricked in section with a hearth
and fireplace where someone sweeps

is located where the book's spine would be.
His movement captivates my eye as I turn

the pages, reading them from left to right.

       first American edition
published September 6th, 1969
        All rights reserved

—Photo by Ann Privateer

TOO MUCH BABY FAT
—Ann Privateer

Smoke-filled wax on white table-linen
sounds haunt, throb, question...

to have children or not
to rot in place
to be accepted
to attend college in Norman
to read The Dress Code for Women
to menstruate at eleven
to be shocked by red over green
to be surprised by a veil
to eat an oyster
to save its shell
to make sense of protections and veils
to hide in a sarcophagus
to join the masses
to determine where an orchid can live
to cover sweet dreams with a perfumed secret

while the viewer wears a smoke-filled eye.

—Photo by Caschwa, Sacramento

Today's LittleNip:

LEAVES
—Caschwa

Variety not in short supply
Each has its own résumé
Listing the seasons
As references

____________________

—Medusa

—Photo by Ann Privateer