Assignment: Self-Portrait

I am

Woman, shadow-man, intellect, capricious and earnest
Bride, surprised and bashful, undeserving, enflamed

Friend, released, releasing yet companioned

Wife, socially recalcitrant and cherished still

Sister, unseen, unheard, unknown, unwelcome

Poet, shy and uncertain, wounded and healing

Writer, captivated in centuries of prose, tearfully smiling

Daughter, confidant in laughter and loss, relearning uncompetitve

Niece, awakened, enlivened, goaded into wonder

Teacher, silenced, searching, contemplative, newly born

Trickster, ancient wisdom of days, mirroring love in form anew

Student, shepherded and lost, awaiting another, found

Music, intimate and yearning, embarrassing the traditional

Baker, God-wrestler in flour, yeast, salt, water kneaded

Body, knot of expectation, others,’ my own, others,’ my own

Mover, last but first, willing in fear, delight received

Outsider, beloved, vocationally-aroused, listening

Firekeeper, steward of the Flame, quietly roaring 

Companion, tenacious fragment of divinity, a spark in love

with you.