Ode to a Real Woman

I want to love a woman who can bleed
                        once a month

Not some post-Madonna
            primadonna
       (like a virgin)
made of ivory, stone or precious metal.

I can not love a statue
            an object
But a woman can share my life 
                  and my love

A woman of flesh, hair, bone, muscle, blood
      all the things that make up a human being

When we make love, our bodies can glisten
                               with sweat
   I want to smell like you
   I want you to smell like me
I've got your body on my mind
                   in my mind


I want to love a woman with a mind 
                        of her own

Not a vapid-eyed Miss America
           Angel of the House
    Bright eyes concealing a 
             vast emptiness

I can not love a goddess of Ivory Snow White
                with hard, cold, perfect skin
                   and a blank, lifeless stare

But a goddess of soft, warm, beautiful, and imperfect flesh---
                  strong sinews and scars
                    to tell of a life with a story

She can share my love
          and my life


I want to love a woman with a soul

So that I know she will care for my heart
           when I give it away to her

Originally written 8/1987, revisited and re-written for a very special lady, 10/07