THE SEA ANEMONE She never found out how her name had gotten entered, But she had won a free sex-change. Full of vague dissatisfactions she'd never really acknowledged She thought she'd at least check it out. The shop was one of those places you read about in old books That hint of things beyond our rational world. And when she wasn't sure about taking the obvious type of sex-change They handed her a 200-page catalog. She finally decided to put in a sea anemone. When she returned to the singles-bar scene Reactions were, you might say, Interesting. Many a Casanova followed her home, Interested in only one thing And that one thing Was not a sea anemone. More than one had run screaming into the night. She got quite adept at finding out which insane asylum To deliver the left-behind clothing to. Others, made of sterner stuff, Plunged ahead anyway But soon learned that sea anemone tentacles Have little stingers, like jellyfish, For hauling in prey. And if that didn't stop them Their manhood would go numb Until they couldn't be sure It hadn't already been digested. Since she swung both ways She brought home some singles-bar women. "Can't do much with that," they'd say And take their leave. Then through the grapevine She began to hear of other anemone people. They'd lie together in the night Feeding each other sardines down there And thrilling to a sensation Others had no words for. But even this lacked something. She drifted away from the singles bars And began putting more of herself Into other parts of her life. Then once in a great while She'd meet someone special, Sometimes man, sometimes woman, Or sometimes someone with another anemone Or flowers or something. Exactly what didn't seem to matter. "Can't do much with that," they'd say, Looking between her legs, But then they'd find plenty of possibilities With the rest of her And with the rest of themselves. These were the ones she treasured. They soon learned how that part of her liked sardines And how other parts of her liked other physical pleasures. But they also knew that the most important parts Were not between the legs, But between the ears And in the heart. Tom Digby bubbles@well.sf.ca.us written Feb 27, 1995 23:20 edited Mar 1, 1995 22:05