A WOMAN FOR ALL SEASONS (EXCEPT ONE)
Visiting the past you gave birth to Christ
had John the Baptist's head brought to you
submitted Samson's hair to a Number One cut
bared your breasts in Minoa
seduced Mark Anthony in Memphis
stepped in to kiss Nelson on the deck of The Victory
and committed suicide with Hitler.
So why can't you think of anything to do
when you are with me?
GIORGIO CHIROCO'S PORTRAIT OF APPOLLINAIRE
It could just as well have been
a preview portrait of Marlon Brando
set in stone
method acting a bust
and wearing black sunshades and stoicism.
It absorbs everyone's attention
the slightly chubby face
the receding hairline
the full sensuous lips
but mainly the muscular latency
that is perceived
though only the head is shown.
• West Bromwich-based Geoff Stevens is a poet and publishes the Purple Patch poetry magazine.