Being Observed In Lesser Than

                  
The daily routine of others    
never seems the way for her;  
   
when traffic mills in gridlocked streets    
with lines of yellow at a standstill.    
   
Where a pedestrian believes    
she’ll make better time,    
until the subway entrance;    
   
that disgorges commuters    
up and out into the light of day.    
   
Some racing for buses that slow    
as people break away from the curb    
and push frantically between,    
   
to dodge and sprint    
to the other side of the street.    
   
In the midst of it all, distancing,    
she forfeits subway catacombs    
where the males of arctic bears snarl,    
   
The vision of her flight from their grind    
at a glance, reflects an invitation    
she is not entirely unconscious of.    
   
But still she blindly proceeds    
from the discourse she finds    
more urban than primitive.      
     
The seams of her nylons run afoul.   
The structure of her foundation    
garment infuriates,  
   
and the high heels of her shoes    
become acts against nature.    
   
She’s being observed in lesser than    
her suit of woolen armor.    
   
Even less than the satin halfslip    
giving up the ghost in mid-swoon.    
   
And it too, like she, slides inches    
as if to wave a white flag    
of imperfect contrition.    
   
But instead, becomes the unfurling    
of a matador’s cape in the ring    
which has her think in conclusion,    
   
of everything symbolic    
a ring represents to a woman:    
   
the chase, the capture,    
the bond, bondage and divorce.    
   
And the men watching,    
being only what they are,    
   
snort and score their hooves    
across the hard ground,    
holding back their rage    
   
until they huddle, when to crash    
the confines, to bellow their intent.    
   
And a cabbie with his    
hastily embarking customer,      
resets the meter, to make their way    
   
through Central Park, heading for    
the Museum of Natural History,    
   
where displays of taxidermy    
and bones will grow eyes for her.