Every night, within this darkened

hemisphere, where heavenly bodies, clad

in sequinned tights, are chased by beams

of ghostly light, I trust him with my life.

 

Women worship at his feet.  Beyond

their reach his torso glistens, smooth

as steel.  When the hi-fly work begins

I wink at him and catch my breath;

 

and then, beneath the finest set of teeth

a girl could ever hope to meet, I spin

into a mummy's shape, with nothing but

a thin gold ring between his life and mine.

 

Inspired by gasps of incredulity, we sweep

across the canvas sky.  The spangles

on our crimson Lycra shine like jewels.

He swings, I gravitate in matching suit.

 

To twist and turn below his chin is like

a trip through paradise.  We stretch the laws

of nature, taunt the Gods, and span

the void between imagination and reality.

 

When our fragile bodies tell us that it's time,

to shed our leotards and quit the ring,

we'll bid this passing world a fond farewell,

and swing in perpetuity among the stars.

 

© A.K.S. Shaw 2006 reproduced by permission of the author