The Feathery Captive

By Anushree Bose

 

I sit down to paint and wonder, what may I
fill in this canvas with? There are
dew-kissed tea roses from the garden on this desk,
gracefully wilting. Pretty. Melancholy.
Maybe something less sad?
The doorbell rings and punctuates my reverie.
I answer it. I sign the slips; pay the bills.
Wipe my daughter Imli's nose,
and pick up her toys on my way back in.

 

My motivation softly crumbles,
the emptiness of canvas consumes me once more.
Dirty dishes from the sink fill up my vision.
It’s nearly half past noon; Imli will need feeding soon.
Something swells up inside of me.
Perhaps, a yawn or a scream? A winged bird
within rib cage flutters irreverently.
It cannot unfurl, there isn’t enough space.
It shifts noisily and doesn't escape.

 

I think of my mother. I try to remember
her hands before they wrinkled.
I look at my hands, beginning to resemble her's.
Maybe I will write to Maa instead…
I pull out a fancy letter pad and fountain pen.
I wait but the bird is still, it doesn't sing.
It’s looped in Sir Einstein’s relativity.
Time is not linear; it’s spiral. Like a huge Python,
winding round and round around me.

 

Anushree Bose is a clinical researcher who loves to write, read and wonder. She holds a PhD degree in Psychiatry and a Master's degree in Psychology. She is passionate about research, and penning her sensitivity is her way of unwinding after work. Her poem - 'The Praying Spatula' has been accepted in the poetry anthology titled 'Songs of Peace: World’s Biggest Anthology 2020' by The League of Poets. Some of her writings have been published at Berlin ArtParasite, Spark India, The Elephant Journal, and The Wagon Magazine. |