Anoucheka dwells on the debate about love in its bodily form and the soul’s quest in this evocative poem, exclusively for Different Truths.

Mirror, mirror, tell me, 
Am I the fairest of them all? 

No, no, you are not, 
You never were 
And you never will be! 

Mirror, mirror, tell me, 
If I am not the fairest 
How will I attract love? 

Love, when held prisoner by bodily beauty 
Gets lost and turns into vapour soon enough 
Love, when held bounded by bodily beauty 
Is false and not even deemed as being given a worth! 

Love is seeing deep into each other’s soul 
And wanting to place a kiss there where it is most porous 
Love is seeing the bad habits, the dark side, the blemishes, 
The seething monster, the freak, 
And wanting to appease it all with a caress of the hand! 

Mirror, mirror, 
You push me to dream 
Is Love of this type? 
Is it even existent? 

Do you wish to find it? 

Yes, Mirror, pray, yes, I do 
Such love, mirror, shall continue 
In the afterlife 
As I am sure, God himself 
Would be appreciative of such! 

Then put me to sleep. 
Stop being bothered about who is the fairest 
Open the windows of your soul 
And allow life and its goodness to immerse you in their essence 
Love shall then flow to you 
As if it were a raging tsunami! 

Picture design by Anumita Roy, Different Truths

Anoucheka Gangabissoon

Anoucheka Gangabissoon is a primary school educator in Mauritius. She writes poems and short stories on a wide range of subjects. She publishes regularly on online poetry sites and manages her own poetry blog. She has published a collection of poems in print, in her country, titled “Awakened Fancies.”