Geis*

Everything
changed

after you spoke, it was
as if I became
pregnant with joy,
unspeakable
pure-faced
joy.

It was
as if my soul was
revealed in your voice, an
intimacy
known to the
few,

to the Grainnes and Diarmuids
of every age

bound together, a chosen fate. 

*Author’s Note: “Geis” is an Irish Gaelic idiom from traditional mythology. for a taboo. It is not just a taboo though–often something spoken or chanted, a prohibition, obligation or vow laid upon someone, much like a “spell”. Basically it is a bond or link created, that is considered fated–to break a geis would be to destroy yourself. In this poem, the title “Geis” is meant to give the poem connotations similar to the story of Grainne and Diarmuird, where after speaking to one another (Grainne placed a geis on Diarmuird), they were bound to be lovers forever.