I am no woman. I am a neuter.
I am a child, a page-boy, and a bold decision,
I am a laughing glimpse of a burning sun
I am a net for all voracious fish,
I am a toast to every woman’s honor,
I am a step toward chance and disaster,
I am a leap in freedom and the self
I am the blood’s whisper in a man’s ear,
I am the soul’s shiver, the flesh’s longing and denial,
I am an entry sign to new paradises
I am a flame, seeking and jolly,
I am a water, deep, but daring up to the knees,
I am fire and water, in sincere context, on free terms
EDITH SÖDERGRAN
Finland, 1916