​Practical

​

The guards have come for us.
We are to get clean clothes.

But before they are issued
we must have a shower.

They take us to a brick building.
It has a wooden door.

Someone is shouting orders.
I don’t understand.

Apparently our clothing is so dirty

that we must undress outside.

I see the women around me are obeying.
I copy them.

Finally we are standing in a line.
We look at each other.

I see a strange animal,
tufted and white.

An animal with many heads
and many breasts.

Some are young and tilted,
some old and loose.

The sun is warm on my shoulders.
I try to close my mind.

The line starts to move.
We walk towards the door.

As we enter
I feel the darkness.

My skin  rises and falls
to the pulse of my heart.

There are metal showers heads
hanging from the ceiling.

They are dry.
I stand under one of them.

I see a shelf
with a piece of grey soap.

My hand reaches out for it.
I close my eyes.

My body trembles.
I wait for some sound or touch.

There is a sudden hissing in the pipes.
I feel the first drops of water touch my skin.

​