With the new definitions we have placed
on our relationship
I respectfully submit
that there are certain behaviors, phrases and actions
we should both endeavor to remove
from our day-to-day.

Please do not let your hands rest upon mine
for more than three seconds.
Do not casually mention
our former weekend getaways
as they have been placed explicitly
in the past tense.
Refrain from humming my name in the hallways
or on my voicemail
or across my bed.

Do not correct my Pig Latin pronunciation
or refer to my hidden tattoos
or place the restraints upon my ankles
With that sultry fluttering motion.
No more spankings
or bathings
or plugs of any sort.

Do not tell me things for my own good
As you have lost the right to speak so casually
of my welfare.
And you may no longer call me “beloved,”
as that is the language of another era.

These are the new rules
I beg
we must maintain.
This is the way we shall get through this.
Please,
follow these edicts.
You have provided so many instructions
about our current state;
please accept this from me.