The only Medium for Communication with You

Tali Cohen Shabtai

“You are so beautiful,
if I were young
poems would be the only medium for
communication with you”

You see, I have a quill made
from a stem of material that cannot be eroded
between the teeth and
print sheets of
erodible writing surfaces
of all the skin
in my body
that covers
almost all its area and occupies
15% of its weight

It
is in keeping with
with an ancient pattern that exists
for over 1,000 years and received

a use with me on the tiny pores
of skin. 

In order to communicate with me, I have to
expose this cover system
to you
in order for you
to mark the letters of poetry
on my nakedness.

Therefore, this will not be
interpersonal-direct
communication. 

Do not be a fool! The grimaces on my face
are the message of the words I write individually.

In my nudity I place
and not for reasons of modesty
all the words that will not be said – yet –
their destiny is no enigma

If it was not performed well and turned out good
it will be spared, I may allow you
to use your medium between
the limbs
in the greatest amount that can be contained or absorbed
until I reach
catharsis.

[Tali Cohen Shabtai was born in Jerusalem, Israel, and is an international poet of high esteem with works translated into many languages. She is the author of three bilingual volumes of poetry, “Purple Diluted in a Black’s Thick”(2007), “Protest” (2012) and “Nine Years From You”(2018).   A fourth volume is forthcoming in 2021.  She has lived many years in Oslo, Norway, and in the USA.  Tali is known in her country as a very prominent as a poet with a special lyric, “she doesn’t give herself easily, but subject to her own rules”.
She lives in Chicag, USA.]