The Talking Cure

One of the things I've done for my brilliant k in the past is read to her. Not usually "live" over the phone, though we've done that a little too. Most of the time I'll set up a microphone and just read aloud into it and send her an mp3. The first thing I ever read to her was one of her own erotic stories, and yeah I sure had a great time doing that.

And she's read to me as well, a couple of times it was poetry, which was truly a special experience (blogged about it back here), and she's read me one of her stories and one of mine (though both times under sort of special circumstances that shall remain nameless heh). I won't make you all read through another rapturous besotted post about what her mellifluous voice does to me - just take it as a given that it's pure heavenly pleasure, ok?

But another thing I've done is read her some "regular" poetry and stories, even chapters of books. At one point, I had the ambition of reading the entirety of East of Eden to her, chapter by chapter, but with one thing and another I started to fall behind at around page 200 or so, and she eventually just finished the book the old fashioned way lol. I still want to pick a longer novel and read the whole thing to her in pieces someday (and of course I'm always up for suggestions!).

There are a number of things I love about reading to k in this way.

• It's very sensual. My breath, modulated by my throat and mouth, entering her ears and resonating there. And the words I speak (though usually someone else's words), firing neurons and dendrite chains in her brain, creating images, characters, interactions, memories with sound.
• It bridges across times when we are apart. It's something I can do easily when she's away, and something she can listen to easily when I'm away. As I read, I feel that I'm reading directly to her, and feel that special warm intimacy of sharing words. Even during our stressful March Madness time, I kept reading aloud to her and sending the files along, needing that connection.
  
• One of the mental images I have is of her sitting outside under a tree on a warm day, or just sitting in a comfortable armchair, maybe slightly drowsy, with the book in her lap, listening on her ipod to my voice reading the words to her. I feel present in her life in a quiet way, part of an act that is usually private and silent and casual.
• Another mental image I have (a D/s-ish one, naturally) is of cunning k kneeling or sitting at my feet, leaning against my leg as I read to her. My hand lazily drifts through her hair and brushes her cheek, neck, shoulders - in slow counterpoint to the tumble of words. This is a powerfully erotic and deeply satisfying imaginative space, and one I long to create in real life with her one day.
  

So those are some of the scattered thoughts I've had about reading to the gal I love. A practice I highly recommend to anyone!