Read Poem: What are they by Maria E. Padrón

Today,
Silicone
Glass
Acrylic.
Jelly
Soft-skin
Stone.
Before,
camel dung
gold
silver
ivory
jade.
Whatever;
Does it really matter
what they’re made of?
Dildos, that is.
The English word’s origin
uncertain and ambiguous
as the dildos themselves.
It’s meaning
Does it come from the latin word
for ‘open wide’
or for ‘love’?
Or the Italian word for ‘delight’?
Maybe from the word “dally”
which meant ‘to flirt’
Their development and that
of great civilizations
seem to cum
hand in hand.
Egyptians, Romans
Greeks, Chinese
and Italians during the Renaissance
they used them all.
To keep their wives from cheating,
Their “gayness” satisfied without being persecuted
or killed
for touching a loved one.
To offer their “virginity” to the god of fertility
For worship
To show off
Prestige and status involved.
To treat orgasm-deprived women
of so-called “hysteria”
To “enhance couple relationships”
As a “sexual aide”
But
For discovery and pleasure