Honey, I'm Home

This place,

poised to take us in.

Its pulse swoons,

melting the drear

into a canopy

of tangerine.

The backdoor open,

august- floating in.

Heavy florals,

forsythia and lilac

waft through.

Your sand-drenched

legs could use

a back-yard shower.

Strawberry lips.

Our bodies kneel down

in the dusky light,

ignoring the shrieking kettle.

My navel, moist and vanilla.

Tuberose on my heels,

arches, and between my toes.

My sleeveless blouse, gone.

Your shoulder, salty.

My inner judge

on vacation.

Laughing.

Breathing.

Taking you

in, in, in.

I trust your fingertips

to go anywhere.

Bien dans sa peau-

I am a goddess

sparkling in these

coconut sheets.

The following recipe is a perfect compliment to these two poems. The writer May Sarton believed that flowers were "silent presences" that "nourished every sense but the ear."

Lemon and Rose-Water Biscuits

YOU WILL NEED:

4 ounces (1 stick) butter, softened

1/2 cup of sugar

1 egg

1 scant tablespoon rose water

1/4 teaspoon caraway seeds or dried rosemary

1 tablespoon grated lemon rind

Pinch of backing soda

1 cup of flour

1. Cream butter and sugar together, then beat in egg till light and fluffy

2. Stir in the rose water, caraway seeds, and lemon rind.

Sprinkle with baking soda

3. Fold in the flour, 1.4 cup at a time.

4. Chill dough for several hours or overnight.

5. Lightly grease cookie sheets and preheat oven to 325.

6. Roll out the dough to 1.4 inch thick and cut int circles (a small, scalloped biscuit cutter would do nice). Place the slices 2 inches apart onto the greased cookie sheets.

7. Bake the cookies but not browned. Cool on rack. Store in a tightly covered tin or jar. Recipe makes 30 cookies.

Cheri

Your love...

its salt gives

your sugar bite.

Listen, listen

to the coins ache.

Shimmering tokens

of longing,

bathing in portholes

of desire.

Late nights,

twilight dips

in midnight water.

The curves of my

breasts,

hips,

hug like the

moon.

Soft, subtle.

White peacock

in the sand,

whispering in the lobe

of early morning.