. This poem first appeared in Jerry Jazz poetry magazine on October 31, 2025.
.
my feminine ideal
.
is a Black woman, carefree, free to care,
with all the right grace notes, bundle of strength,
Amazonian, sexual, and queer
in all the senses, in all the tenses
(Queen)
that quiver and shiver and shine --
shimmer like Sun Ra's percussion and sax
Mbungi Ubuntu the stars align
in all the senses, in all the tenses
(Queen)
Califia, sororadelphia,
full length and depth of the sea, caliphate
of fecund drum beats, reeds of Dionysia
wise as Apollo, Black as Otello
closed eyes, I picture Angela Davis
coming into Plato's Cave to save us
#####
Read the 1864 Atlantic article, "The Queen of California ": click here
#####Listen to the 1966 recording of Sun Ra and His Myth Science Arkestra perform his composition When Angels Speak of Love [Virtual Label LLC]
