When I Am an Old Lady
When I am an old lady
the young men
will come to me
& sit trembling
at my trembling
feet
saying:
you must have been
beautiful
when you were young;
you must have been
a wonderful lover-
& perhaps
they will still feel
that current
which you say
passes from me
to you
& which you give back
doubled
on our wild
afternoons.
The madness
will still be there-
the current of sex,
of poetry, of heroism-
which is only
another name
for God
passing through us-
God, Goddess,
whoever
we call Her-
that ancient lady
who sits above the world
spinning out
our destinies.
She looped your life
around mine;
she took the weft
of your need
& gave me
the bright threads
to weave you
into my life-
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poem by Erica Jong
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