Briseis Takes A Break from Rehearsal
A Work in Progress
126
She was his intellectual equal there’s no doubt
He tended to fat with his fondness for stout
Briseis was describing H.D. and Aldington:
It’s easy to see why he’d fall for me
We have an affinity
They met in tea rooms where they could sit and talk
All very platonic but Aldington’s avatar claims he
Slid his hand up under my skirt, just imagine
It was in the tearoom at the British Museum
Ezra sat beside me with his hand on my thigh
Aldington across from me with if you can believe it
One elbow on the table while he reached below it
I was against a wall so nobody could see
And I was used to being petted by Ezra
It meant little to me ‘cept his hand went higher
Encountering Ezra’s hand inner thigh, o my
Excuse me I said Ezra says you write free verse
He’d withdrawn his hand, so Ezra explored further
So please show me and let’s have Ezra edit it
He needs something to do with both of his hands
I was quite stirred as he was so young and up for it
He plucked poems from pocket, asking did the trick
Ezra taking out his red pencil to correct
While my toe stroked Richard’s thigh finding his prick
Well, that’s how it’s scripted in our new play
He was nineteen she six years older
She was long legged he was still growing
We haven’t scripted the next scene yet
Dick Russell © Richard M Russell
2026
