Ways of Seeing

Next time one character
makes friends with another
who happens to share
an initial, a hobby,
a pet, a route to work,
don't think "a fellow taxidermist -
that's nice for him"
Think DOUBLING.

Shame on you who bypass
half-buried Christian doctrine
in chapters containing
nails, thorns, lambs,
or denial. You're missing
the point.

Snow, coal, pitch,
porcelain, ebony, sugar,
linen - you get the picture.
Sla-ve-ry?

A liberal sprinkling
of Eve, the crushing
of lipstick underfoot,
a pear-hipped protagonist who's strong,
confident, and into submission,
a mute girl, a gentle nudge
about symbols from the author
should lead you
onto the feminist delta.

A brother and sister
who get on with one another?
Well it's blatantly incest,
repressed or no.

A pen or letter?
Meta.