The Muse

She seemed to be the anima,
that myth of a girl
who appears in your dreams

the flaming inspiration
that excites the soul
more than the body,

the muse,
the missing half of you,
personified
in otherness, but
unmistakably magnetic,
and beautiful,
and strange.

and I wanted her so!
but I was pinned under glass,
unable to touch
when touch might
break the spell.

And she inspired others
who achieved

and so, at last, I bade the muse
begone!

and then I was helpless,
and I stood there staring
like one of those fools
in the movies.