Bodies in Motion

By Carrie Allison

            A body in motion remains in motion….Newton’s First Law of Motion

1

Floating in August sun,

our crisp bikinied bodies

soak in chlorine.

My sister and I hang our chins

over the pool’s edge, dream

of boys and wedding dresses.

We wrap ourselves in hot pink

towels, spring across the lawn,

our wet feet prickly

with cut grass.

At the dinner table, I chug

a glass of milk beady with sweat,

wipe my mouth with the back of my arm,

and suck in a deep, hungry breath.

2

Mid-July, a window fan whirrs

in his second floor apartment.

In the dark, my hair blows

back from my wet face.

Sweat drips off my chin

onto his chest.

3

Late March, we speed between San Jose

and San Francisco on the Cal Train,

his arm behind my back,

my snoring head crooked into his neck,

two beams of light,

leaving no trail behind.

4

The Beatles’ “Something”

fills The Writers Place.

Guests band around us

as we swirl,

on the small dance floor.

My dress swells, a white moon.

5

On the shores of Jamaica,

I dip my toe into salt water.

In the horizon,

he leaps from a floating

trampoline; rings radiate

into the ocean and ripple

the water around my feet.