"Danae" by Gisele L'Epicier

"Mexican Ladies!" the choreographer
blared,  "Make those dresses move!
MAKE THEM MOVE."
And Jose-Limon-like each lifted
one hip over, up and back,
dancing down the imaginary street
as bastard amber lit the stage
and Aaron Copland's Billy the Kid
warmed to broad daylight
crescendo.

I thought of that, this day,
thirty years since, walking
down this street, feeling
these hips in their own
undulant sway, leg swinging
from hip in a long, free
stretch of stride.  Feeling
the full power of my full pride
of motion, feeling
this woman's body move
this dress: my American dress
made in
Costa Rica,
Guatemala,
Indonesia,
South Korea,
or perhaps Taiwan.
(I can't read the label
while the dress is on.)

And I imagine that, this day,
down those streets walk
other women, women who
made my American dress
making their dresses move,
making their own dresses
move.

First published in WordWrights!

Bio: Christina Wos' Donnelly lives on the Niagara River in Buffalo, NY.  She has most enjoyed being a writer and copyeditor, a lay minister and hospital chaplain, a dancer and the mother of 3 multi-talented daughters. Her work has appeared or is forthcoming in Lilliput Review, Slipstream 2002, Stirring, The 2RiverView, and WordWrights!, as well as Artvoice, The Buffalo News, Map of Austin Poetry, poetz.com, Rogue Scholars, Short Stuff, Circle Magazine (with interview) and 3 anthologies. Christina was Guest Editor of Stirring, November 2002 & September 2003 issues.

Contact Christina Wos' Donnelly at cidonnelly@yahoo.com