Gloire de Dijon — Summary

When she rises in the morning I linger to watch her; She spreads the bath-cloth underneath the window And the sunbeams catch her Glistening white on the shoulders, While down her sides the mellow Golden shadow glows as She stoops to the sponge, and her swung breasts Sway like full-blown yellow Gloire de Dijon roses.

She drips herself with water, and her shoulders Glisten as silver, they crumple up Like wet and falling roses, and I listen For the sluicing of their rain-dishevelled petals. In the window full of sunlight Concentrates her golden shadow Fold on fold, until it glows as Mellow as the glory roses.

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In the early morning, a man watches the woman he loves as she bathes by a sunlit window. He is captivated by the way light falls on her body: her shoulders glisten white, golden shadow gathers along her sides, and her breasts sway like full yellow roses. The comparison to Gloire de Dijon roses makes her seem both lush and delicate.

As she pours water over herself, her shoulders shine silver and crumple like wet rose petals. He listens to the water running off her skin, and the sunlight seems to collect around her, deepening into a warm golden glow. The mood is intimate and quietly worshipful — less about a completed act than about the pleasure of looking, lingering, and finding something almost sacred in an ordinary morning routine.

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