In patriarchy, men are shamed to reject their Soft, vulnerable inner child Because it makes them Not a Real Man This aspect is then projected onto woman. And we call this The Feminine. And we call her Woman. And we name this Femininity And you feel it like a strange veil. A subtle scent in the air. Cant quite put your finger on why this feels so wrong and feels so right. Can’t get seen. Glass mirrors over everything. Try to wake up. Keep getting lulled back to sleep. Erotic lullaby pulls you undertow. I feel your disgust. You disgust me. Knife edge of shame drenched pleasure Pleasure that stings even as it flows Pleasure that does not satisfy Can not satisfy Never fills you up..... I can’t get enough of you. I am eating and eating and eating this vacant space where you are and I am not A slow drug. Feels so good. Feels so bad. Feels so right. Feels so wrong. Feels so good as it Feeds on your soul The Erotic Shadow Dance of Shame Mistaken Identities. Lover and Beloved. Parent and Child. Dominator and Submitter. Master and Slave. I’ll play big. You play little. I'm your Baby Torture chamber of repression The Romance of Projection Some ache that draws you in. You are its body. You are its vessel, for now. You are the one it speaks through now But it is ancient. This cosmic crack in love dripping pain that is eros that is wanting That is the drug that is the rush that is the high that is the thing we now call Love I'll eat your Grief If you eat my Rage And we can call it God She stole the fruit of my tenderness Made me fall in love with It in Her She tricked me I hate her He could kill me, but he doesn't We never speak of it. We feel it We call it Sex. He chooses to spare my life. Therefore, I worship him This is the masculine. This is the feminine. This is man and woman in patriarchy. -Maya Luna