by Jennifer Jackson Berry

            We ate Jell-O poke cake in bed
one night after. We brought it home
            from a church basement dinner,

plastic wrap over Cool Whip icing,
            whorls of orange inside.
Definitions of regular: 1: belonging

            to a religious order.
He has made me say all those things
            I never thought I’d say: oh god, oh oh

god. I remember the Sex
            and the City movie scene, the girls
around the brunch table discussing frequency

            of sex. 2a: arranged
according to some established
            rule, principle, or type. 

Charlotte, the Rules Girl, still put out
            two or three times a week.
Samantha will stop, drop, & roll

            any time, anywhere. We tried some X-
marks-the-spot position once, 2b: both
            equilateral and equiangular both

on our sides, heads at opposing sides
            of the bed, our legs scissored
in & out of each other. It was in a book

            I bought before we did it,
Big Big Love: A Sourcebook on Sex
            for People of Size and Those Who 

Love Them, when I thought it might
            take creativity to overcome two bellies
too big to smack against each other

            in any sexy way.
Miranda’s marriage was ruined
            because she wanted their first romp

in six months to end quickly
            3a: methodical <regular habits>
& Steve admitted cheating.

            If that wasn’t bad enough,
her friends chastised her for not
            trimming her pubes regularly

or enough. 3b: recurring at fixed intervals
            <a regular income>
<a regular churchgoer>

            I know what’s in his checkbook
& his prayer book. I know when he wants it.
            He knows I won’t always

have shaved legs, pumiced heels.
            Carrie remained neutral
& wouldn’t disclose how often Big gets big

            for her, although she said it’s hot
when he does. She can be the every woman,
            her regular is every woman’s regular,

unspoken, but understood.
            4: normal, standard: I’d never seen
a written recipe for poke cake

            until recently on Pinterest.
It was passed from woman to woman,
            tips included along the way.

A fat McDonald’s straw works best.
            Space the pokes at a regular interval
so the hot Jell-O bleeds

            into every corner of the cake.
as: absolute, complete
            Advice for special positions

also only whispered in the past,
            wedding night instructions under veils
of white netting & feigned innocence.

            There are two kinds of people
in the world: those who buy books
            before milestones & those who read

sex help online. But no one flips through
            a fat leather dictionary anymore
to find examples of use: 

            Most days they follow a regular routine.
He is a regular contributor
            to her boosted self-esteem. 

We make regular use of each other.
            The wallpaper in the bedroom
has a regular pattern of stripes.