In the Half-Light

A woman kneels before him
washing his feet
slowly, sensuously.
She wishes her long hair
were long enough to dry them.
In the unbreathing silence, he says,
"I don't want you to do this'—
lying as usual.
She continues
until it is over.
She will remember this as
the one moment of fulfilment,
the only moment
when she was free of fear.