While studying Rodin’s Kiss
she moulds lumps of clay
creating two heads
flicking away clumps of earth
until features begin to appear
& tilted faces begin to convey a calm
delight their grey lips
almost
touching
but they could not
and would not
it was impossible.
In response the Professor shrugs
For another week
she primps his nose
plumps her lips
halfway closes eyelids
forcing cheeks to nuzzle
but the clay heads rebel
refusing to kiss perfectly
Fuming with frustration and the feeling of failure she gives up
placing one hand behind each head
she smears the two difficult
faces together
twisting hard
like this
Professor calls her work genius.
Kathleen Strafford is a student at Trinity University in Leeds studying for her MA in creative writing. She hopes her first collection of poetry Her Own Language will be published this coming year. Her poems have appeared in Interpreter’s House, Butcher’s Dog, Algebra of Owls, The Fat Damsel and various anthologies.