Abishag, by John Robert Lee

from Symphony series, by Shallon Fadlien (Canada, b. St. Lucia) 2016.

Abishag

1 Kings 1:1-4

And then there is Abishag
who cherishes the king --
he won’t touch her when she bathes
him with bay leaves, singing
his psalms or teasing
with tent refrains
on the queen and that old affair;
he won’t touch her full breasts
full under the wet blouse
and her hips clinging
to the soaked skirt and one mischievous
bay leaf on the tremulous curve of the world --
he won’t look when he stands in the tub,
shaking with cold in his bones
desiring in his blood
as she towels him with wool from Lebanon --
later, he won’t interfere with her
when they sleep on each other
and she warms him with her hot body
under the quilted Shunammite coverlet —
            Abishag, the tender.

John Robert Lee

John Robert Lee is a Saint Lucian writer. His Collected Poems 1975-2015 was published by Peepal Tree Press (2017).

Shallon Fadlien is a Saint Lucian artist who lives in Oshawa, Ontario,Canada.