1 Psaltery & Lyre: Our Lord Jesus in Drag

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Our Lord Jesus in Drag

This guy can walk on anything,
even six-inch stilettos.
His purse, a sequined fish,
he unzips to finger a two-drachma coin,
flings it at the sour faces
of the unbelieving bouncers.  

He doesn’t need Spanx, perfect
abs, perfect butt, perfect legs stretch
from the glittering hem
of his little black dress
stitched with stars.

He struts the floor to the backroom
where his 12 gussied-up friends
fondle him in welcome. They gab
while they sample the grub, get
a little drunk, tongues down throats
that taste like red wine.

Later, they’ll hit the town,
paint it rainbow, raise the dead, raise
hell, before Jesus goes home, strips,
scrubs make-up from his perfect face.

In the morning, it’ll be a dove grey
suit, cufflinks, a power tie.
All business, he’ll forgive
a hundred stinging slights,
his daily sponge of vinegar.

 

Dayna Patterson is the newest blogger at Doves & Serpents. She is also on the editorial staff of Exponent II. Her poems have appeared in Dark Lady Poetry, Persona, Words Work, Exponent II, Segullah, Borderline, and BlazeVOX, and she has poems forthcoming in Front Porch Review and Sunstone. Her chapbooks, Loose Threads and Mothering, are available from Flutter Press. Her poem “Letters to My Polygamist Ancestors” received a Brodie Award for Best Poem 2011.