after sandra cisneros



ashe! she is a coconut oil kind of woman. grease

stain on the pillow, flag on the moon type

woman. pioneer of her own kinky planet. the kind

who laces her two strand twists with antennae.

resourceful, frying kale in the same fat she smooths

her edges with. all natural, reading the labels

on bags and shit. recycling, understands the way

one thing can become another. alchemy,

how the jar is filled with something like water one minute

some snow the next. she’s always mindful

of the season. her curls know when it’s gonna rain.
her fro is the black cloud in the water

cycle they forgot to draw in the textbook. throw away

your pantene she will, without asking.

teach you names of all the devils living in bottles

at walgreens. her smell reminds lovers

of coladas. they don’t know how dry their skin is

til they touch her.