It starts with the genitalia,
The difference of it
It does not matter when you are young and Mother says it’s just meant to be.
It starts to matter when you grow older
And summers don’t allow you to take off the sweaty t-shirt
at home.
When closed doors have a different meaning
When you can’t sleep beside your brother as it is not
“proper” anymore.
It is never a good different. It is never special
Hide your bras, your panties from the menfolk while their
underwear can swing from the lines in glory.
You must never tell anyone you are having your periods. Tell
them you are not well
The pads must be hidden
It’s not nice to talk about it.
Don’t get near the altar. Don’t touch anything for it will
too become impure.
‘Don’t’ becomes the resonating truth of existence.
Mothers start to worry when your breasts grow. For breasts
give men the opportunity to do something with their hands.
Darkness amplifies its perils when the daughter is growing
up.
Men everywhere look like predators.
There are hushed talks with elders where advice is given.
Remember only the woman can get pregnant. Only the woman carries the blame.
Only the woman carries the shame.
The penis becomes the weapon and all penises are the
parasites who seek refuge in your private place.
The place you should keep pure. For you have no desire.
It’s only men who
seek desire. For a man by any other name is never a slut.
The difference does not go away.
You have breasts and you bleed once a month.
You will be judged by the size of your boobs and the
tightness of your vagina.
You will be judged if you smoke , drink alcohol or wear
clothes unfit for the woman in our society.
You cannot be just friends with a man. You are giving
signals you are unaware of.
If you show parts of your body, you are asking for it.
You are never your own person. You are the daughter, the
girlfriend, the wife, the mother, the sister. Never just a woman.
And you will always aspire to become a man, for Penis envy
is the books and no one envies a vagina.
It starts with genitalia
It ends when you own it.
Real lines of emotions and agony from the heart of a feminist, much relevant in the contemporary society where mad penises frantically wander all around to take refuge at the fathoms of joy of ecstasy. Lines sharper than sword unfolds the plight of women- physically and mentally bruised, battered and tortured in a chauvinistic society where her empowerment or salvation is still a mirage. My sincere congrats to the poet.
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