Wakefuness

I rise and bind
The tinkling glass to my wrists

The silver chimes to my ankles
I comb the scented oil into my hair
Scarlet silk sways my hips
I lay cool lines of khol upon my lids
Lift my eyes to my cupped hands
My fingers trace the curves of heaven,
My arms open to embrace
The slow clap, and the ground
Caressing my bare soles.

All night whispers melt away,
There is only this-
This precise unthinking thing
Like a motion and a standing still
This sober drunkenness demanding stars.

I become this stillness
I whirl myself alight
Until something catches fire
Then fall unresisting
Into the silent blue

Weightless I sink
And watch
The silver exhalations
Slow rise
Expanding to fall
There is no sleep


Manuela Cardiga