Sequence Four Summary

These poems are shorter poems built around the themes of love and relationships. The sequence begins with the ladies in purple, blue, yellow and orange dancing as though they are catching disease from each other. Suddenly they all freeze.

In Poem Twelve, the lady in orange says she used to try not to be evil or "leave bitterness in somebody else's cup." She tried to bring honest love and joy into people's lives. She used to dance that joy, until she came off of the dance floor and saw the woman that her man left her for. Crying feels strange to her, because she used to believe that colored girls didn't have the right to feel sorrow or pain. Feeling sorrow and being black at the same time felt redundant.

In Poem Thirteen, the lady in purple speaks in desperate language...