Neon Mariposa Magazine
Three poems by Adrian Ernesto Cepeda
Updated: Jan 9, 2019
Mesmerized by Her Hands
From A portrait by Alfred Stieglitz of Georgia O'Keeffe (3), 1918
She loves to wear my dark
blue Navy pea coat
and nothing else. She loves
the soft feel, the weight
of anticipation loving
to unfasten the buttons,
squirming so beautifully
underneath, the way she stands
there wanting to slide off
my coat, who needs a fire
in our shivery bedroom as she
wildly heats me. I am mesmerized
by her hands, the way she loves
to trace every inch of my coat,
no nail polish, just an au natural
grip, she pulls me closer,
the magnetic warmth engulfs
us as she softly spreads my navy
blue open, azul wrapping the coat
around us both, the last thing
I remember the tracing sparks
Her fingernails on my chest
eye lashes she wildly paint
brushing my attention
loving our instant cuerpo
connection igniting fingertips
running her tips up and down
my skin, loving as she leans
glowing closer, our breaths
so caliente like a match
this feeling already kindling
the heat between us.

Between My Shadow
From photograph of Frida Kahlo in Beyond the myth exhibition at MUDEC of Milan
I feel most naked
without my canvas
colores, no brushes
no paint on my fingers
no smudges, as el sol
rises. let me hide here
white boda dress see-through
exposing my au natural
color, mi sangre, silencio
avoided other fiesta voices
toasting chisme, drinking
chistes, tomando laughter
as I glow here in the corner
they want to paint me
too many whispered drunk
unbottled impressions
they don’t want to feel
oír me, color me over
love to abstract my voice,
I don’t belong to Diego,
soy casado, I am wedded
to mis pinturas. They want
to cuardro wall me leaving
me displayed to show off
their piece obra of arte,
hanging in darkness, oscura,
I am more than a painting
standing here between
mi sombra invisible,
sin beauty mascara
no concealer on my face
a masterpiece unfinished,
naturally blushing… my choice—
alone.

They Asked Me About Drugs
“I need my little addiction to you.”
— Anne Sexton
I told them about her eyes,
she was the kind the vision
you wanted to inhale, a line
of pure MDMA ecstasy
one blink would send
shivers down your rippling
spine. Wanting to taste
her all the way down,
she looks like your favorite
hit, you snorted just to feel
her reflecting her winking
beauty off the make-up mirror
in Bump Decatur in French
Quarter. She is the kind
of kiss you want to ingest
feeling her lips rise up
as she licks you down
your pulsating veins.
She is the speed you
want to swallow,
keeping you up
as she straddles you
awake where ever she
takes you, you crave
to follow her
like drowning tomorrows
within shots of Southern
Comfort, she is the chaser
you pursue with every
sip, she drinks you,
see her giggling
blurry, reaching out
you hear but can never
feel her, this beautiful
addiction keeps mirroring
much closer in the morning
your cravings resurface
empty bottles reflect retasting
the fear, you always need one
more hit to exist you reaching
for her invisible spirit,
your favorite high always
loves to beautifully disappear.

Adrian Ernesto Cepeda is the author of the full-length poetry collection Flashes & Verses… Becoming Attractions from Unsolicited Press and the poetry chapbook So Many Flowers, So Little Time from Red Mare Press. His latest work Between the Spine is a collection of erotic love poems that will be published in 2019 with Picture Show Press.
His poetry has been featured in Frontier Poetry, poeticdiversity, The Wild Word, The Fem, Pussy Magic Press, Tiferet Journal, Rigorous, Palette Poetry, Rogue Agent Journal, Tin Lunchbox Review, Rhythm & Bones Lit, Anti-Heroin Chic, The Yellow Chair Review and Lunch Ticket’s Special Issue: Celebrating 20 Years of Antioch University Los Angeles MFA in Creative Writing.
One of his poems was named the winner of Subterranean Blue Poetry’s 2016 "The Children of Orpheus" Anthology Contest and two of his poems “Buzz Me” and “Estranged Fruit” were nominated for Best of the Net in 2015 and 2016.
Adrian is an LA Poet who has a BA from the University of Texas at San Antonio and he is also a graduate of the MFA program at Antioch University in Los Angeles where he lives with his wife and their cat Woody Gold. You can connect with Adrian on his website: http://www.adrianernestocepeda.com/