A New Me

Were it possible,
I would dissect myself,
(remember that fetal pig in biology?)
And live as two remnants
Neither complete, yet able to function.
I would throw off my abaya of caution-
Send its amorphous black slickness
Flying into the night,
And then don a shawl
Of reckless abandon.

I would ravenously gnaw artichoke leaves,
Licking the sweet melted butter,
All the way to the heart,
Never letting the fear
of choking on the thistle
quell my pleasure.
I would forget my daily vitamins
And never take to heart the bottle’s
muffled insults
again.
And I would cross diagonally-
smiling.

My other me would be diligently
At work,
Studying Al-Ghazzali, Rumi,
and art.
So clear would be my mind,
I could paint cerulean circles while
Contemplating God.
Neither
lessening
the other.
And in the background:
Coffee- Beethoven-
And dust,
Dancing in
The descending
eddies of
sunlight,
sifted
through plated
Windows.