An evocative poem about the anguish and woe of a girl-child, by Vandita. A Different Truths exclusive.

I hear a child’s cry
From the darkness of the night
As evil lurks in the shadows
That walk by unnoticed.
The victim lies in a heap of blood
Ashamed of her sordid plight.
A stigma for her family
A scar on the visage of Time.

I hear the child’s groans
In the deafening stillness
As she is assaulted
Her muffled moans are drowned
As the thunderous clouds roar.
No one can see her hopelessness,
A burden for her tormentor,
A thorn in the eye of Existence.

I hear the child’s pleas,
Tragic sinking in the mire
Of sacrilegious ideologies
That pluck out her relentless spirit
Surrendering her to the flames
Of her husband’s funeral pyre
A blemish on eternity
A misfit for society.

©Vandita Dharni

Photo from the Internet