Miss Josephine
the real dancing queen
Exuberant as a six year old
la femme
in brown skin
soft as petals
Miss Josephine
the real dancing queen
remembering mama's caveats
"a colored woman's life
is from can't do to can't don't..."
Miss Josephine
sipping on silver champagne
smelling of golden glow
new money
and the absence of memory
Elle a eu deux amours, Paris et l'Amérique
Miss Josephine
legs long as southern miles
who hungers for home
while wearing banana leaves
brown breasts
and silken weaves
Big boats come for
la bakers, butchers,and odd dream makers
sailing oceans as if they were grand lakes
They go to find what was left behind
Remember her cheeks and
lips in odd apple reds
and longings for children
blooming in every shade
La Baker la vraie reine dansante
- Miss Josephine, the real dancing queen
La beauté de l'Amérique cachée dans des vêtements français
- America's beauty hidden in French clothes
Your pearls are your shackles, your dresses are bindings
------Vos perles sont vos dispositifs d'accrochage, vos robes sont des attaches
Yet what man can resist your dreams?
----Pourtant quel homme peut résister à vos rêves ?
You wanted to be a lady,
and they wouldn't let you be
so you became something else
Miss Josephine, the real dancing queen
life takes you over
but not until you have danced
on its head
in banana browns
and apple reds
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