The Woman of Gold

author’s note:

Continuing a continuing theme.


THE WOMAN OF GOLD

My friend, the comic
said he sought a woman of gold
but so far in his search
he’d found only lead.

I then mentioned a woman
he knew and I’d recently met.

But to that idea, he replied:

"What about those big ears
  and those big bug eyes
  and that big butt
  that wobbles from side to side
  when she walks up the stairs?"

I scolded him then, saying
“Consider the possibilities:

“Perhaps ears so big are made to detect
  the sound of gold hidden in this world of lead.
  And when that woman hears that gold
  that gold becomes
  part of who she is.

“And maybe eyes so big and buggy
  are well-designed to see the gold
  hidden in this world of lead.
  And when that woman sees that gold
  that gold becomes
  part of who she is.

“And to me, that wobble expresses
  the continual interaction
  of life’s yin and yang.
  That big butt bears witness
  To the universal creative energies within her.

“That’s not lead, my friend, that’s gold.”

Startled by my own response
I decided to let that obtuse man
find his way alone
then hurried home to phone
that glorious woman of gold.

mythsteps · the woman of gold

finding Beauty: poetry book
dream steps blog
myth steps blog
you tube channel
© 2025, Michael R. Patton

The Wonderful Cipher

author’s note:

Continuing a theme.


THE WONDERFUL CIPHER

When he saw her at the dance party
my friend nudged me in the ribs
and said with a laugh
Would you look at her!

So I turned my eyes
to the woman across the room:

Obviously anxious.  Shy.  Vulnerable, she was.
Perhaps embarrassed
by how her ears stuck out from her hair
or how
those two front teeth stuck out from her mouth.

But I choose to believe
all humans hold the magic of nightfall
(though we often hide the mystery well)
so I studied her until
I again felt the reality of that belief:

She’s a wonderful cipher
I then told my friend.

When he realized I was serious
he focused his beams
and after he saw what I had seen
he swallowed a deep breath
and strolled over to her—

moving carefully—
the way one approaches a deer
or a space alien.

I say:
the power and blessing of this belief
comes from how it asks us
to open our eyes
and see for ourselves.

mythsteps · the wonderful cipher

finding Beauty: poetry book
dream steps blog
myth steps blog
you tube channel
© 2025, Michael R. Patton