Shell Shock Venus, aborted at sea Her youthful uniform torn open and free Floating where the whirlpools swirl Men came diving for her pearl They'd scour her surfaces She'd dredge up their deep In a chaotic universe, shallow and sweet And as the merman hurled Woman went careening from the girl And no line of questioning Could penetrate her nerve But something was tapping her reserve Ashes of innocence, splinters of dreams Her anger in residence, ripping the seams And petrifying fast She anchored to that mast Through waves of ecstasy They'd compromise But something was vacant in her eyes Reptiles in water, a goddess in heat We dreamt of a daughter, Venus and me Floating where the whirlpools swirl Men came diving for her pearl