BLEEDING
WORDS
-
Neelam Saxena Chandra (India)
Words still bleed.
They surrender. They accept.
They keep getting stabbed.
They haven’t developed
That knife-edged sharpness yet.
I am found hopelessly washing
Those reddish-maroon stains
On the chest, on the ribs,
On the valves of the heart-
But they color my eyes instead,
Making them itchy and red.
My throat is choked too,
Inhaler is what is advised.
Pollution is what the Physicians diagnose.
Ah! They would!
After all, they can’t observe the stains
On the chest, on the ribs,
On the valves of the heart!
An air purifier is installed.
What I need instead
Is a strong will
For not surrendering!
****