Our Bare Hands
Selected Sensuality: 35 Lines I Like
I. Discovery
My tinder dry eyes of pain
Beheld a garden wet with rain
A face of blooms whose blushes fell
Alit in me as dew on dell
An ear will yield a tongue to trust
Love’s first blush to last faint flush
In every thought and every thrust
Indeed a need, as all needs must
We don’t repeat but else we rhyme
We don’t sing we harmonize
I’ll break your heart and give you mine
For you are you and I am I
II. Play
Catch us the foxes, little foxes
Living loose in golden weather
I touch you as I touch the grass
Playing cabernet games
Tease the tongue to taste the candour
Two minds of a single kind
I sought the sea, she sang to me
Met your mouth wet with my life
III. Ardour
Thy lithe thighs are horses white
Fleeter still in stay than flight
Their tremor the dilemma of flutes
Shoulder slips and soft light hardens
Knees and tresses frame the wonder
You are cool, like silver
Spit-slick hips split fertile valley
Smells the spells of sun-drenched south
You are lush, like life
IV. Longing
To lose the light and wish to die
Between the shores of keen delight
Swales’ assails suffer’d sweetly
‘Til again you’re mine completely
I lie awake—longing, burning
The dark of night is ever mine
Without the morning of your eyes
The planet ceases turning
V. Content
Away with fiction’s flimsy romance
Let’s greedily consume our presence
Build new hearts from the ground up
With battlegrounds and workshops
We’ll knead the soil with our bare hands
Run cart and plough o’er bones of dead
Cheek to chest we’ll work the land
Collapse exhausted into bed
I wake surprised
to find
your body
I’d been dreaming of
❦
The Lines
1. “Away with your fictions of flimsy romance“
Lord Byron, “The First Kiss of Love”, (1806).
Lord Byron, “The First Kiss of Love”, (1806).
2. “Battlegrounds and workshops”
Carl Sandburg, “Explanations of Love”, (1928).
Carl Sandburg, “Explanations of Love”, (1928).
3. “Between the shores of keen delights and pains”
Ella Wheeler Wilcox, “Love’s Language”, (1883).
Ella Wheeler Wilcox, “Love’s Language”, (1883).
4. “Catch us the foxes, the little foxes”
Holy Bible, “A Tryst in the Spring, Song of Songs 2:8-17”, (ND).
Holy Bible, “A Tryst in the Spring, Song of Songs 2:8-17”, (ND).
5. “Drive your cart and your plough over the bones of the dead”
William Blake, “The Marriage of Heaven and Hell”, (1790).
William Blake, “The Marriage of Heaven and Hell”, (1790).
6. “Fleeter she seems in her stay than in her flight”
George Meredith, “Love in the Valley”, (1851).
George Meredith, “Love in the Valley”, (1851).
7. “Grasps every thought and burns in every vein”
Mary Robinson, “Sappho and Phao”, (1796).
Mary Robinson, “Sappho and Phao”, (1796).
8. “Her hair smells of the sunburnt south”
Algernon Charles Swinburne, “Laus Veneris”, (1866).
Algernon Charles Swinburne, “Laus Veneris”, (1866).
9. “I sought the sea, she sent her winds to meet me”
Sara Teasdale, “The Kiss”, (1911).
Sara Teasdale, “The Kiss”, (1911).
10. “I touch you as I touch the grass”
Gerald Stern, “June First for Abigail Thomas”, (1981).
Gerald Stern, “June First for Abigail Thomas”, (1981).
11. “I woke in surprise to your body for I had been dreaming it”
W.S. Merwin, “The Morning”, (1885).
W.S. Merwin, “The Morning”, (1885).
12. “in thy beauty is the dilemma of flutes”
e.e. cummings, “my love”, (1923).
e.e. cummings, “my love”, (1923).
13. “It has been said that history repeats itself. This is perhaps not quite correct; it merely rhymes.”
Theodor Reik, The Unreachables, (1965).
Theodor Reik, The Unreachables, (1965).
14. “Knees and tresses folded to slip and ripple idly”
George Meredith, “Love in the Valley”, (1851).
George Meredith, “Love in the Valley”, (1851).
15. “Lie awake longing, burning”
Ono No Komachi, “No Way to See Him”, (9th Century CE).
Ono No Komachi, “No Way to See Him”, (9th Century CE).
16. “Living lost in golden weather”
Asclepiades, “Seasons”, (3rd Century BCE).
Asclepiades, “Seasons”, (3rd Century BCE).
17. “My mouth is wet with your life”
Hilda Doolittle, “Eros, II”, (1924).
Hilda Doolittle, “Eros, II”, (1924).
18. “Only then can I greedily consume your presence”
Maya Angelou, “Remembrance for Paul”, (1978).
Maya Angelou, “Remembrance for Paul”, (1978).
19. “Splits the fertile valleys like the hips of a woman”
Jewel Kilcher, “New Moon”, (1998).
Jewel Kilcher, “New Moon”, (1998).
20. “Tease your mouth until I make you speak”
Claude McKay, “Romance”, (1922).
Claude McKay, “Romance”, (1922).
21. “That lived in him like dew”
Mark Van Doren, “Private Worship”, (1935).
Mark Van Doren, “Private Worship”, (1935).
22. “The last faint flush”
Eliza Acton, “Lines”, (1826).
Eliza Acton, “Lines”, (1826).
23. “The night is always mine without the morning of your eyes”
Emily Pauline Johnson, “Day Dawn”, (1917).
Emily Pauline Johnson, “Day Dawn”, (1917).
24. “There is a face whose blushes tell”
Lord Byron, “Stanzas to Jessy”, (1807).
Lord Byron, “Stanzas to Jessy”, (1807).
25. “This ear will yield her tongue to trust”
Sir Arthur Gorges, “Her Face”, (1593).
Sir Arthur Gorges, “Her Face”, (1593).
26. “thy thighs are white horses”
e.e. cummings, “my love”, (1923).
e.e. cummings, “my love”, (1923).
27. “To know for an hour you were mine completely”
Ella Wheeler Wilcox, “Ad Finum”, (1878).
Ella Wheeler Wilcox, “Ad Finum”, (1878).
28. “To loathe the light and wish to die”
Mary Robinson, “Sappho and Phao”, (1796).
Mary Robinson, “Sappho and Phao”, (1796).
29. “Two minds with but a single thought”
Maria Lovell, “So What is Love?” , (2008).
Maria Lovell, “So What is Love?” , (2008).
30. “We play wine games”
Wu Tsao, “For the Courtesan Ch’ing Lin”, (19th Century CE).
Wu Tsao, “For the Courtesan Ch’ing Lin”, (19th Century CE).
31. “When her loose gown from her shoulder falls, the light hardens”
Harvey Shapiro, “Things Seen”, (1984).
Harvey Shapiro, “Things Seen”, (1984).
32. “While I am I and you are you”
Robert Browning, “Life in a Love”, (1855).
Robert Browning, “Life in a Love”, (1855).
33. “Who saw with eyes of pain a garden wet with rain”
Lilian Wooster Greaves, “Love, the Wizard”, (1918).
Lilian Wooster Greaves, “Love, the Wizard”, (1918).
34. “You are cool, like silver”
Amy Lowell, “Madonna of the Evening Flowers”, (1919).
Amy Lowell, “Madonna of the Evening Flowers”, (1919).
35. “You look so fine I want to break your heart and give you mine”
Shirley Manson, “You Look So Fine”, (1998).
Shirley Manson, “You Look So Fine”, (1998).
❦
The Poets
1. Algernon Charles Swinburne, “Laus Veneris”, (1866).
“Her hair smells of the sunburnt south”
“Her hair smells of the sunburnt south”
2. Amy Lowell, Madonna of the “Evening Flowers”, (1919).
“You are cool, like silver”
“You are cool, like silver”
3. Asclepiades, “Seasons”, (3rd Century BCE).
“Living lost in golden weather”
“Living lost in golden weather”
4. Carl Sandburg, “Explanations of Love”, (1928).
“Battlegrounds and workshops”
“Battlegrounds and workshops”
5. Claude McKay, “Romance”, (1922).
“Tease your mouth until I make you speak”
“Tease your mouth until I make you speak”
6. e.e. cummings, “my love”, (1923).
“in thy beauty is the dilemma of flutes”
“in thy beauty is the dilemma of flutes”
7. e.e. cummings, “my love”, (1923).
“thy thighs are white horses”
“thy thighs are white horses”
8. Eliza Acton, “Lines”, (1826).
“The last faint flush”
“The last faint flush”
9. Ella Wheeler Wilcox, “Ad Finum”, (1878).
“To know for an hour you were mine completely”
“To know for an hour you were mine completely”
10. Ella Wheeler Wilcox, “Love’s Language”, (1883).
“Between the shores of keen delights and pains”
“Between the shores of keen delights and pains”
11. Emily Pauline Johnson, “Day Dawn”, (1917).
“The night is always mine without the morning of your eyes”
“The night is always mine without the morning of your eyes”
12. George Meredith, “Love in the Valley”, (1851).
“Fleeter she seems in her stay than in her flight”
“Fleeter she seems in her stay than in her flight”
13. George Meredith, “Love in the Valley”, (1851).
“Knees and tresses folded to slip and ripple idly”
“Knees and tresses folded to slip and ripple idly”
14. Gerald Stern, “June First for Abigail Thomas”, (1981).
“I touch you as I touch the grass”
“I touch you as I touch the grass”
15. Harvey Shapiro, “Things Seen”, (1984).
“When her loose gown from her shoulder falls, the light hardens”
“When her loose gown from her shoulder falls, the light hardens”
16. Hilda Doolittle, “Eros, II”, (1924).
“My mouth is wet with your life”
“My mouth is wet with your life”
17. Holy Bible, “A Tryst in the Spring, Song of Songs 2:8-17”, (ND).
“Catch us the foxes, the little foxes”
“Catch us the foxes, the little foxes”
18. Jewel Kilcher, “New Moon”, (1998).
“Splits the fertile valleys like the hips of a woman”
“Splits the fertile valleys like the hips of a woman”
19. Lilian Wooster Greaves, “Love, the Wizard”, (1918).
“Who saw with eyes of pain a garden wet with rain”
“Who saw with eyes of pain a garden wet with rain”
20. Lord Byron, “Stanzas to Jessy”, (1807).
“There is a face whose blushes tell”
“There is a face whose blushes tell”
21. Lord Byron, “The First Kiss of Love”, (1806).
“Away with your fictions of flimsy romance “
“Away with your fictions of flimsy romance “
22. Maria Lovell, “So What is Love?”, (2008).
“Two minds with but a single thought”
“Two minds with but a single thought”
23. Mark Van Doren, “Private Worship”, (1935).
“That lived in him like dew”
“That lived in him like dew”
24. Mary Robinson, “Sappho and Phao”, (1796).
“Grasps every thought and burns in every vein”
“Grasps every thought and burns in every vein”
25. Mary Robinson, “Sappho and Phao”, (1796).
“To loathe the light and wish to die”
“To loathe the light and wish to die”
26. Maya Angelou, “Remembrance for Paul”, (1978).
“Only then can I greedily consume your presence”
“Only then can I greedily consume your presence”
27. Ono No Komachi, “No Way to See Him”, (9th Century CE).
“Lie awake longing, burning”
“Lie awake longing, burning”
28. Robert Browning, “Life in a Love”, (1855).
“While I am I and you are you”
“While I am I and you are you”
29. Sara Teasdale, “The Kiss”, (1911).
“I sought the sea, she sent her winds to meet me”
“I sought the sea, she sent her winds to meet me”
30. Shirley Manson, “You Look So Fine”, (1998).
“You look so fine I want to break your heart and give you mine”
“You look so fine I want to break your heart and give you mine”
31. Sir Arthur Gorges, “Her Face”, (1593).
“This ear will yield her tongue to trust”
“This ear will yield her tongue to trust”
32. Theodor Reik, The Unreachables, (1965).
“It has been said that history repeats itself. This is perhaps not quite correct; it merely rhymes.”
“It has been said that history repeats itself. This is perhaps not quite correct; it merely rhymes.”
33. W.S. Merwin, “The Morning”, (1885).
“I woke in surprise to your body for I had been dreaming it”
“I woke in surprise to your body for I had been dreaming it”
34. William Blake, “The Marriage of Heaven and Hell”, (1790)..
“Drive your cart and your plough over the bones of the dead”
“Drive your cart and your plough over the bones of the dead”
35. Wu Tsao, “For the Courtesan Ch’ing Lin”, (19th Century CE).
“We play wine games”
“We play wine games”
❦