O F B A T T L E S & W A R S
Saira Banu
Of battles we fought inside
Like swirling whirlpools
Never allowed to spill
Always dripping
Not parched, but never full
Unlike the wars they indulge in
Gushing forth like a tsunami
Washing over battles,
For the victory of the war.
Of battles that are fought
Over tears shed
For fathers, and brothers, and lovers,
Of the wars they fought
Over the honour
Of what lies between our legs.
Of battles fought quietly, demurely
As is expected of our fights
The carnage, our dreams,
The spoils, their might
Unlike their wars
Unlike the havoc they wreak
Claiming the laws of the universe
Of the battles we endure,
Of all that we ration
As the wars they fight
Steer out of their bastions
The wars they wage
While we salvage.
Of all the battles provoked
The ones we did not want to fight,
Of the wars we were dragged to -
A display of their spite.
Of the battles they fought
But claimed were wars,
Of our war
The one waged everyday
Against the world
Against us
Against war in itself.