Roll & Lock

It was my first time touching
his seductive, thick, courageous
Creative, authentic, relaxing and eye-opening
Crown of hair.

It was the first time I touched a black man that intimately.
Not intimately in the way of a kiss, or a caress,
but Intimately

in the way you carefully share buried secrets

In the way you bond with your mother,
Your Father.

in the way he said,
no, twist it this way

in the way that I felt I was completing a task that other
Queens before me had done for their kings.

I was meticulous in the way I
worked. The way I worked
my fingers.
In and out
Up and around
Slipping and sliding.
The bitter, yet inviting smell of beeswax and weed
All rolled into a ‘lock.
My soft breaths and his sweat
All rolled into a ‘lock.

The salty, sweet, caramel melody of our love making.

I just felt blessed to be able to swim in this strong sea
Of a Black man’s beautiful hair.
It was coarse and rough,
yet he was gentle and guiding
no girl, twist it this way

I walked away with grease on my palms
A new found freedom in my hips
And his small puffs of hair in my comb