At The Carnival Poem by Yana Thompson

As I hear the beating of the drums
my hips begin to twitch.

My heart thumps in tune to the beating,
the beating of the never ending drums.

As I close my eyes,
I begin to sway from side to side.

Still swaying to the beat I fling out my arms,
everything that is in me is burning to dance.

I give in to these bohemic urges,
and my body begins a sensual dance that I dont know.

My skirt billows and furls in a myrad of color,
as my feet move faster and my jumps are higher.

I am in exctasy,
this is who I am and this is who I was born to be.

All of the sudden the music stops,
I open my eyes to look around and I wish that I could be swallowed
up by the ground.

People are looking at me with astonishment in their gaze,
and I come to from that mysteriouse haze.

I walk away with my head held high,
and smile sweetly at the passer bye.

I think of my dance,
going over it with a critical eye.

Then I smile to myself,
there is no reason to be ashamed or feel like I have to hide.

My skin glistening,
the sweat of my dance is like a badge of pride.

I look at the bright colors around me,
and I goad myself into just maybe one... or two more carnival rides.