I keep my selkie skin safe

Hidden

Withdrawn

Only when needed

I feel enchanting

Confident, Herculean

In my female body

I have a power over men

I have a power that men 

Do not

Think sometimes it angers them, though

They don’t understand its subtleties

And there are times I can’t let my female body show

So I cover myself fully – head to toe

In my seal selkie skin

Slip away amongst the waves

Hidden and withdrawn

Selkie: folk in Celtic and Norse mythology capable of shapeshifting between human and seal form

Image courtesy of Joseph Barrientos