Whistler’s portrait
of his mistress
turned up at our
National Gallery of Art.
I didn’t expect to be
struck by the spectacle
of a pale girl
in a long, bluntly
white dress.
A dress like this,
“was only worn at home.”
In private, anything
can happen.
The limp hand holds
a reluctant lily.
That her long red hair
is messy and fetching
is meaningless to her.
Her eyes look so vacant,
you could do anything
at all with her. This
is just a suggestion.

– Sarah Henry