Two Poems

By Saumya Dave

 

Daughter Dreams

 

Before arid fate

grips these ankles

and loneliness

seduces my lungs

I’ll offer

who I never was

 

I hope she won’t be defined

by blood that

cycles through her insides

 

I hope sensuous syllables caress

her tongue

I hope her arms ache

with the weight of books

 

I hope she thrusts ideas

against naked paper

stretches out

over black, white

flirts with gray

 

I hope she never believes

good intentions

are

good enough

 

 

Fake

 

He offers

sangria passion

with fleshy bits

scarlet love that makes

love to me

 

                  stroke me like your guitar string

                  that sighs when

                  you release

 

loneliness is stale, he suggests when I fly

wilts pregnant orchids

a corrosive womb

 

maybe you should wear laughter around your hips

or as a string of pearls

grazing your sternum

 

as the sky chokes

I’ll place it on my nightstand

next to a yellow photo

of my mother when

she also faked fulfillment

 

_________________________________________

Saumya Dave is a writer, medical student, and budding feminist from Atlanta, Georgia. Being born in India and raised in the United States has exposed her to a variety of struggles that women face. She uses words to create awareness about women’s issues, ranging from relationships to body image concerns. A student of the arts and sciences, her writing has been featured in The New York Times, India Abroad, Open Beast, and The Lancet Student. When she isn’t studying or losing time on Wikipedia, she is editing her first novel.