Juned Subhan
Sandstorm
My father once gave a pair of ankle bracelets
to my mother. She was in the kitchen,
hissing like a rattlesnake, thawing the meat.
He looked like a beggar, as he unfolded
his palms towards her, disabled -
a fatigued husband with nothing to offer.
His brown suit was worn out.
Her fuchsia sari sparkled, luridly.
He was doing his best to indulge her,
but as he tried to scan the
confines of her body, she went frigid,
like a tube of frozen peas.
He fell as he struggled
to reach out to her, and perhaps her
apathy surprised him a little.
She pierced his stomach with spiky
food, made it sore, so no
wonder my father looked dingy, gaunt.
Deep down, he did try to assure
himself that he loved her, would
bestow on her anything she desired.
But there was an austere expression
on her face,
after she cursed him.
And because she was engrossed
in bleaching the food,
stuffing it with lethal spices,
she’d forgotten she left the meat cooking
for too long in the microwave: it exploded,
sending off chicken-spikes, gooey suds.
My father must have felt like that -
like he was going to detonate any second.
Page(s) 62-63
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