HOME / poem: A weekly poem, read by the author.

Dragonfly

By Patricia TraxlerPosted Wednesday, Aug. 4, 1999, at 3:00 AM ET

He hovers just above the glittering
current, iridescent green in morning
sun. How does he manage to stay there
at the peripheries of his own desire,
keeping that exquisite distance till
he's certain he can have what he
needs and he takes it then with flashing
tongue (your tongue's wet flicker
and prod, how you knew to hold back
till the pleasure was a pain I'd die for
and the taking a perfect kill) the dragonfly
stays poised at the edge to have his fill
and his eyes never close, hour after hour
he hovers at the edge until the light goes.

Print This ArticlePRINTEmail to a FriendE-MAILShare This ArticleRECOMMEND...Get Slate RSS FeedsRSS
Patricia Traxler is the author of Forbidden Words (poems) and the novel Blood.
Click here to visit Poet Laureate Robert Pinsky's Favorite Poem Project site.
What did you think of this article?
Join The Fray: Our Reader Discussion Forum
POST A MESSAGE | READ MESSAGES
The places we live.TODAY'S PICTURES: The places we live.
Cartoonists' take on homosexuality.TODAY'S CARTOONS: Cartoonists' take on homosexuality.
How low she can go.TODAY'S DOONESBURY: How low she can go.
Washington Post
The Washington Post
OPINIONS
Secretary Clinton?
Broder | It's not a good fit for her talents, or the next president.
Toles: A Layered ProblemEditorial: What Would Bill Do?