Dream Drumming

by Muriel Rukeyser

I braced the drum to my arm, a flat drum, and began to play.
He heard me and she heard me. I had never seen this drum before.
As I played, weakness went through me; weakness left me.
    I held my arms high, the drum and the soft-headed long stick
I drummed past my tiredness vibrating weakness, past it into music
As in ragas past exhaustion into the country of all music.

Held my arms high, became that vibration, drummed the
    sacrifice of my belly.
He heard me, she heard me,
I turned into the infinity figure, reaching down into
    the earth of music with my legs at last,
Reaching up from the two circles, my pelvic sea,
    mountains and air of breast, with my arms up into music
At last turned into music, drumming on that possessed vibration,
Drumming my dream.

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