Poetry and poësie

Photographic by De Waal Venter

The presence and absence of a body

A short while ago
The white towel
held the shape
of a woman’s body;
now the shape it holds
is not eloquent.

Not long ago,
the red blanket
covered the shape
of a woman;
now it shapes a plain
with no life that can be seen.

The silken gown
gently stroked
the shape
of a woman’s body
a little while ago;
now the shapes within it
are too thin to translate.

In this room
there was the shape
of a woman.
The air has now come together
where she was.

Somewhere
away from here
her shape is bending
light, curling
thoughts and words
around her.