Poetry
I Am Not This Body
I am not this body
I am not this middle age flab
I am not this year’s fading tan
I am not the sinewy flesh underneath my arms
I am not these jellowy thighs
Or, the cellulite on my butt.
I am not the strength of these intense emotions
That hold on like a hurricane blasting the shore
I am not the angry letters I write in my journal
I am not the waves of shame that course through this body
Nor am I the accumulation of old memories
And negative thoughts I had today.
I am the spirit of the woman within who knows
That I am not this body, these old thoughts or these
Powerful emotions
I am the color of New England when the leaves peak in Fall
I am the sound in the hummingbirds wings
I am the silence after the first winter’s snow
I am the mist hanging over the lake
And, I am the one watching this woman without scorn.
Patricia Flasch
I Have a Great Booty
Dedicated to my women’s group (Sophia, Gwen and Kate)
I have a great booty.
This is a NEW thought.
What if it’s true?
And, all my judgments were false.
What if I don’t need to lose inches or pounds?
What if I DECIDE that
I have a great booty.
Well, this changes everything.
Then I can go back to feeling sexy and powerful
And STRUT MY STUFF.
What if you have a great booty, too?
I don’t mean LATER when you’ve lost the 10-20-30#---
or you lost the 2-4-6-8 inches…
I mean NOW, RIGHT NOW…
What if you have a great booty. Too!
Patricia Flasch
ROUND WOMAN, Retrieving the Shadow of Women's Bodies, is a collection of 20 poems for those of us who have issues with food and who are caught in a seemingly endless struggle to change our bodies and the associated weight anxiety and weight depression. These poems invite us to turn the corner towards loving the body, as it is, right now. These poems offer a cradle to step away from the constant contradictory advertising messages "Eat More!" "Stay Thin!"
Give yourself and those you love the gift of ROUND WOMAN, Retrieving the Shadow of Women's Bodies. Only $15.95 at our store.
