Poem: "Was Blind But Then Did See"
This is the second freebie for the April 1, 2014 Poetry Fishbowl. You have new prompters 
dialecticdreamer,
helgatwb, and LiveJournal user Ng_moonmoth to thank for this perk. It was inspired by
peoriapeoriawhereart. It also fills the "genderswap" square in my 12-8-13 card for the
genprompt_bingo fest.
"Was Blind But Then Did See"
Tiresias came upon two mating snakes
and struck them with his staff,
whereupon Hera turned him
into a woman for seven years.
Tiresias married and bore children,
serving Hera as a priestess.
Upon seeing the snakes again,
Tiresias left them in peace,
and so became a man again.
Hera and Zeus later asked --
because who would know better? --
whether the man (as Hera said)
or the woman (as Zeus said)
enjoyed the greater pleasure in bed.
Tiresias, who had partaken
of lovemaking in both forms,
replied that the man knew
but one part in ten of the pleasure.
Outraged, Hera struck him blind.
Abashed, Zeus blessed him with prophecy.
It was then that Tiresias realized
what this said about their marriage bed.
Blind Tiresias saw more
than most sighted folk did;
he-she Tiresias knew more
of love than even poets could tell;
God-touched Tiresias
bridged Olympus and Earth.
It was said that Tiresias
could answer any question --
but that only a fool would ask.
* * *
Notes:
Tiresias is a famous example of genderqueer themes in mythology and history.
Genderqueer people have often been seers, shamans, clergy, or other mystical folk.
dialecticdreamer,
helgatwb, and LiveJournal user Ng_moonmoth to thank for this perk. It was inspired by
peoriapeoriawhereart. It also fills the "genderswap" square in my 12-8-13 card for the
genprompt_bingo fest.
"Was Blind But Then Did See"
Tiresias came upon two mating snakes
and struck them with his staff,
whereupon Hera turned him
into a woman for seven years.
Tiresias married and bore children,
serving Hera as a priestess.
Upon seeing the snakes again,
Tiresias left them in peace,
and so became a man again.
Hera and Zeus later asked --
because who would know better? --
whether the man (as Hera said)
or the woman (as Zeus said)
enjoyed the greater pleasure in bed.
Tiresias, who had partaken
of lovemaking in both forms,
replied that the man knew
but one part in ten of the pleasure.
Outraged, Hera struck him blind.
Abashed, Zeus blessed him with prophecy.
It was then that Tiresias realized
what this said about their marriage bed.
Blind Tiresias saw more
than most sighted folk did;
he-she Tiresias knew more
of love than even poets could tell;
God-touched Tiresias
bridged Olympus and Earth.
It was said that Tiresias
could answer any question --
but that only a fool would ask.
* * *
Notes:
Tiresias is a famous example of genderqueer themes in mythology and history.
Genderqueer people have often been seers, shamans, clergy, or other mystical folk.