How Fast Can You Get Undressed?

shake off comfort-zone sedative sameness

unfasten rip off pull down undo

drop idiosyncrasies like nooobody’s business

disrobe unzip

unbutton ingrained beliefs

and cringe at the detritus tumble that follows

like you’ll never pick that up again

like every single liberation craved

from a bare soul /choked/on/successive/decades/of/constriction/

because from birth you were given this dress code

a one-size-fits-all

a standard uniform factory issue

a dictate rejected

as in

foot barely in the door

shoes and slogans thrown to floor

as in

who made up these stupid friggin’ rules

ill-fit t ing gar men t s

and non-constructive criticisms pinching and itchy

so relieved to be rid of

gone are public opinion hand-me-downs

that chafed sensitive body parts

and hurt like hell

you always

only wanted basics

itsy-bitsy essentials

uncomplications impossible to sweat in

airy fabrics easily discarded

biodegradable

i never

ever wanted lascivious looks

when my limbs leaned to light

via phototropic response

just gentle curiosity weary of seclusion

but

untethered intensity scares some people

gushes joyous rapture with travel by skin

not by sacrilege

multi-volume instruction manuals on acceptable apparel

written in fear

disguised as freedoms

brewed dissonance

a dichotomy of forward-backward-gas-brake-yes-no

dust collecting frustrations building urges rising

Somewhere

we dreamed of bliss and no woven barriers

delight and infinite vision holding hands

carefree and certain of self

with innocence a seal unbroken

and we knew

we just knew

that we were conceived and grew in secret for a reason

that the weight

of every “should” and “have to”

was a seductive straitjacket modeled as eye-catching regalia

we never had to wear

now

in knowledge of alignment

we shed past shame

tie dye iron-clad conformity

in vibrant shades of inner rebellion

a bona fide commitment

to remove each other’s threadbare shyness with gentle entreaty

keep watch at fireside

as exposed sensory receptors of us crave connection

we’re better at this now

bare divinity in a breath

yield held longings into life

scatter sensuous secrets secured and signed

to take off time’s tourniquet

and feel bodies without burden

Thank you for taking the time to read my poem! Your support means so much.

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