Florence: o moon

posted by Jamila

Piazza Isidoro del Lungo, Florence, Italy

Open your arms to the lonely shine
Lonesome as gold in a poor man’s smile
See how the moon is full
Follow the push and pull
Follow the ebb and flow in the breathing tide

Come on moonchild, you’re so far away tonight
The door is falling open and we’re flying wild

—Chris Cornell, "Moonchild"

Gender classes in universities across the U.S. try to teach young’uns many bizarre notions. Some true, some possibly true, and one that is positively false: that women have indoctrinated themselves into feeling that they must be “put on show.”

True: I am a bath queen, a lover of water, soaps, lotions, sponges, scrubs, and any little fancy doo-dad that can polish or primp my body. And true: my favorite fabrics are undeniably smooth and sexy.

But I do not dress for the male gaze, not the human male gaze. I most often bathe in the evening and emerge from my evening toilette glowing and glittering in my silk chemise. My suitor awaits. To the balcony I tiptoe, eagerly anticipating a glimpse of his resemblance.

Oh Moon, o beautiful, glowing orb! I have loved you all my life, and only for you does my soul sing under the starlight. My true love, my constant love, my love that knows no borders.