All children cling to life. I'm a little
girl, upside down-legs wrapped

I went to his cottage,
at 2 A.M. or so, and
walked right in the
unlocked door. Had I
been a little slower, he
might have killed me.
I knelt at his bedside
and demanded, "Kiss
me once, and I'll
leave." I left after
the kiss-satisfying,
as I knew it would be.

I wanted him to wake
in the morning, won-
der if I'd been a dream.

A Portrait of Daniel:
I think of a river run-
ning through you. It
flows from your head
to your upper thighs
and groin. The water
rushes by me.

Oh, to bathe there!
Soap, a wash basin,
prayer-bubbles.

Inside you there are
rocks, and the water
crashes against them.
Sometimes your arms
and legs are pure fire.

Soap, a wash basin,

the power of prayer-
bubbles.

As a child, I clawed the
earth for cacahouètes.
Dirt streaked my face,

lodged under my nails
for weeks.

Only an experienced
sailor could navigate
the rocky shoreline.

My mother oversaw
the workers. After her
death, the ground-nuts
rotted in pyramids.
For my father, I flew
to Dakar.

round the thick branch of a baobab.
And, oh, baby, who are you, living
on berries out under the stars?

All children cling to life. I'm a little girl, upside down-legs wrapped

round the thick branch of a baobab. And, oh, baby, who are you, living on berries out under the stars?

All children cling to life. I'm a little
girl, upside down-legs wrapped

round the thick branch of a baobab.
And, oh, baby, who are you, living
on berries out under the stars?