c. FEWalls

The breeze from the ocean

touches the curtain,

pulling and pushing.

The woman lies on her side

in the bed by the open window;

the muggy air breathes in and out.

In her fortress, she waits for her lover

and his sure hand

on the curve of her body.

She will roll over soon

reach for the blue rose,

loosen her dark hair.

Somewhere in Santiago de Cuba

a man puts out his cigarette,

closes a door and

drives toward the woman

as the gulls

fly up before him.

FEWalls