So what if she was alive and she was awake!
She was already a smiling mess of dust and ashes .
They also knew that when they buried her in that corner most grave.
Her threadbare shroud laminated their plywood of hypocrisy,
The fake marble tombstone was ridiculously decorative.
She was already a smiling mess of dust and ashes .
The urn that holds her charred spiritual soot is now a vase for plastic flowers.
She used to be silent when they overdid the eloquence of inverted snobbery,
On starched tablecloths they served gruel of dreams in fancy bowls,
Self-pity and family name were martyrs in traditional silks of glorified poverty.
She was already a smiling mess of dust and ashes .
She was ‘put in her place’ with a deadpan, greyish plaster angel,
The Tupperware hoarded respectability on faux teak veneer of the kitchen shelf.
She was so tired and she wondered of the grave would bring a guilt-free rest—
She was already a smiling mess of dust and ashes .
So what if she was alive and she was awake!
Debaleena is a writer based in Bangalore, India, whose work spans poetry, short fiction, and collaborative anthologies. Her writing explores the nuances of everyday life, human relationships, memory, and emotion with warmth and introspection. She is the author of the poetry collection INK-SMUDGED DREAMS: BY THE READING-LIGHT and the short story collection COFFEE, SMILES & TEARS: BY STARLIGHT, both published by BlueRose. Her other published works include DOODLES, SCRIBBLES & LIFE IN THE MARGIN, a collection of poems published by BookLeaf, and QWERTY and QUIET BY CANDLELIGHT, published by Writers Pocket. In addition to her solo publications, Debaleena has served as a co-author and editor for the She Writers Group anthology AQUALITY – Tales of the Depths (Folio Publications). Her work also appears in several anthologies, including Colours of Her Soul (Nexus Publishing), Caramel Hearts (Writers Pocket), The Season of Tender Frosts (Authors of the Bharat), Every Dream a Poem, and House of Rituals (Paperoin Publishers). Her books are available through Amazon.
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