Sailing The Seas Of Desire Poem by Etienne Charilaou

The infernal Isle of Lust
under the hegemony of
the Demon of Lust lay
well behind me now.

I steered my bark North
for the map indicated
an island fair
where some men find peace
from fleshly desires.

A long and jagged reef
I had to negotiate carefully.
In those waters teeming multitudes
of creatures and sentient beings
of all kinds were engaged in
writhing couplings and
bizarre reproductive acts.

A hot mist enveloped me
and I began to fall under a spell;
I felt a pull like siren song
towards the dangerous reef.

My mind conjured images
of fair maidens in some
Bacchic dance, horned Satyrs
encircled them, waiting
for the dance to end.

Had I lost my way,
gone in a great circle back
to the Island of Lust?

My detachment, courage
and inner tranquility
began to erode -
to become dismantled
in a landslide, chunks
fell from great heights.

Truly I had been lost
but for the winds of chance,
or of destiny.
A gentle wind gathering force
blew my vessel clear of the
mist and onward swiftly
I sailed to a pristine archipelago.

On each island a single person,
male or female, and sometimes
small groups of aliens of unknown gender
appeared at their modest huts or queer abodes,
or strolling along their private beaches.

I had arrived at the Islands of Peace.