The Kama Sutra says there are forty-one
sorts of easily seduced women.
sorts of easily seduced women.
You are certain I’m in the first ten,
thinking of me as a courtesan
to my own desires; but what do you know?
Yours is only a man’s point of view.
It’s surprising what one lamb can do to a wolf.
All of my desires lie on my lips, waiting.
I flutter and fall fearlessly:
a tango of color, sullen shadows, a view to winter.
I’m acrobatic, erotic and love
apricots, sushi, and cinnamon.
I no longer rely on illusions, on losing.
I fold and refold like origami.
You and I eat oranges that taste like their color
and throw each other words like passion and borderline.
You ask if I like Clifford Odets. I say sometimes
and take a quick puff from your cigarette.
Janet R. Kirchheimer is the author of “How to Spot One of Us” and “Seduction: Out of Eden,” co-written with Jaclyn Piudik. She is producing "AFTER: Bringing the Dead Back to Life", a cinematic documentary exploring poetry written about the Holocaust. A Pushcart Prize nominee, her work appears in print and on-line journals.