As you reach for more
04/06/2009 - By Jalair Box Jalair Box
Temperance, gouach on paper, 2008
Jalair Box is an ecstatic dancer in Seattle, Washington. She painted Temperance for an altar at Ecstatic Dance in 2008. She wrote "As you reach for more" in 1995.
I.
Fly with with the body
beyond self
send the core through fingers, arms
spray the ceiling
with presence
and the lights shining down
with your glow
fill the space between the bodies
with whirling everything
Find your way
above the shell
of the building
above the pounding of the beat
above the lattice of the street
fly over mountains and back
in a breath and a smile
Yes, lift your arms
and embrace
the padded envelope
of atmosphere
that fills your rich and varied lungs
And in your buttocks
find the rush of gazelle
the undulation of dolphin
And in your back
feel the strong sway
of tree in storm
a storm you create
by being here
II.
Radiate core
molten sweat
steam-soaked cotton
In your bones
mineral attraction
knows where North is --
and East, and South, and West
Plant your feet
swivel your hips
to test the compass
to know your way
Imagine you and every
moving marvel
to be the progeny
of ten thousand years
Honor the ancestors--
look into eyes
that once chased woolly mammoth
to the edge of ice
Go deeper and feel the future
in the loins of us all
as we dance, ready vessels
revealing raw sex
hunger for life
as you reach for more
