*You Seduced Me and I Was Seduced*

I, the black slate between stars

You, the sun, haloed in your rainbow ring

I, the filler, the looked past, through - but now, at

You, the substance, viscous, invasive, the uninvited but coveted guest

I, the youth, bashful, inhibited, forever tucking in

You, the voyeur, penetrating, unabashed, stolid

You, you tell me I hold stars and dazzle my blackness into quartz

I, I long for your spindle fingers to stroke my bodies, make them blush

You, you press your light only, your thumb and forefinger, into my freckles

I, I - aroused - send them into orbit, spinning like tops, dancing to say, "I cannot speak except for love"

You, you stand, illumed in your own light, watching the galaxy twist and turn

I, I watch you watch me, my bodies

You seduced me and I was seduced.

I wrote this poem upon viewing Adam Belt's artwork entitled You Seduced Me and I Was Seduced (shown below) at the San Diego Museum of Contemporary Art in La Jolla.