Jackie

“I want to say something but shame
prevents me

yet if you had a desire for good or beautiful things
and your tongue were not concocting some evil to say,
shame would not hold down your eyes
but rather you would speak about what is just”
― Sappho, If Not, Winter: Fragments of Sappho

“and on a soft bed
delicate
you would let loose your longing”
― Sappho, If Not, Winter: Fragments of Sappho

“stars around the beautiful moon
hide back their luminous form
whenever all full she shines
on the earth

silvery”
― Sappho, If Not, Winter: Fragments of Sappho

“for when i look at you, even a moment, no
speaking is left in me
no: tongue breaks and thin
fire is racing under skin”
― Sappho, If Not, Winter: Fragments of Sappho