Instinctively I feel annoyed 
When I hear that word 
Flung at men like them 
Cheap vicious vapid men

Vain shallow selfish men
There is power in words
And the rare is the word
Echoing down the centuries 

Meaning holding unchanged
Presence compressing, and
Coalescing with each one 
Holding the knowing of it

Power like this is not for them
To be grabbed and flung like a wasp
By one fool at another, neither able
To open it, just an insult, a little cut

I remind myself that the other word
Vagina comes from the Latin word
For sheath: a thing to put a sword in
Call them that

image from Unsplash

Dáire Shaw is a queer neurodiverse Irish multimedia woman artist from Wicklow, Ireland. She works primarily across art, photography, and poetry, and is currently pursuing an honours degree as a mature student in art photography at the Institute of Art, Design & Technology, (IADT) Dunlaoghaire, Ireland.  Proudly published numerous publications and has exhibitions in Gaslamp Gallery, Dublin and Wicklow Artists Gallery.

Dáire is deeply interested in the exploration of the human condition at its intersection with meaning through art and symbolism. On a personal level, Dáire uses her art in an attempt to understand herself and the world she finds around her.