THE DRESSING GOWN
“Highsmith’s closest friend
presented me with a gift—
—Andrew Wilson, Beautiful
Shadow: A Life of Patricia
Highsmith
______________
I tried the gown on—
it was like slipping under
the skin of Patricia Highsmith
It was dark blue wool—
with black, blue and
beige stripe cuffs
___________
Its lining was a rather—
fine twill with a soft
tasseled waist cord
Purchased at Harrods—
strands of grey hair still
nestled around the neck
_____________
A strange air of—
otherworldliness even
suggested her nearby
Taking my clothes off—
so I could feel the gown
next to my bare skin
____________
Easing my arms—
through the same soft
dark spaces and
Tying the waist-band—
feeling the nuances of
her gown around me
_________
I looked down at—
my hands and they
were Highsmith’s hands
I picked up a pen—
and I began writing
like she would have
____________
I listened to her—
most intimate thoughts
flowing through me
I felt Tom Ripley—
doing drag there in
that Berlin disco
_________
But it was that—
exquisite feeling of
Pat’s soft dressing gown
Against my own—
naked skin that really
turned me on
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