Pepper

(*scotch bonnet is also known as habanero chili)

PEPPER
everyone has a little spice inside
and surely cayenne kicks though her red is mellow
she has a way of making paprika jealous
but a scotch bonnet slut will only attract certain fellows
Still
everyone needs a little spice inside.

i admit it and some wish to hang me from the moon
make a spectacle of me with a silken noose
sex is everywhere, practiced, recorded, rehearsed
so why do you cringe as though i just cursed?
chilies and scotch bonnet seeds
ever rampant in the streets
people judge them but they always have enough to eat
And multitudes called vegetarians secretly miss meat
and crowds of christians play the same charades
but on quiet days
when it rains
they wish they had that pepper whole
floating around their yellow bowl...
Everyone needs a little spice inside.

Selena Dodson, June 16th 2011