Femininity on Fire

You look into my eyes,

And you see mysteries,

I look into your eyes,

And see questions,

The barrier that builds a wall between us

Is language, and we speak not the same,

I will never doubt that you love me,

But how do I tell you,

How can I make you understand,

I am more than flesh,

Ask someone else to feed your lust,

You bow down to religion,

You will never have me,

I am not your damsel in distress,

Maybe someone else would water your desperate need to save me,

If the only place where you can feel my fire

Is on the bed,

And even that, not fully,

I wonder who really is in distress?

Who really needs to be saved?

No more of this meaninglessness,

Where we stare at each other through a glass wall,

And nothing ever changes,

No more attempts at expressing things you will never understand,

No more repetition,

For my time here is scarce,

No more desires to settle,

For my energy is abundant,

No more waiting for a train

That will never arrive,

No more us,

No more you,

I am walking, walking away,

Knowing well you want to follow,

Yet your masculinity will tell you to stay …

I am fire, I know I will burn you,

I know your mom won’t approve of the marks I will leave on you,

I know your sister would tell you I am unhealthy,

I know your friend will tell you I am “too much”,

But you see, I am not water,

I was not born to quench thirsts,

I am fire,

I am meant to burn,

I am meant to scorch,

I am meant to hurt,

If the heat does not scare you,

You are nowhere near,

If I don’t hurt you,

You have not consumed me enough,

If you can’t feel the light in your eyes

And feel the blinding warmth,

You are not ready to even open your eyes yet,

If my presence does not hook your soul and pull it outside your body,

Why are you even in my vicinity?

Fire, I am femininity,

And I will always be on fire,

Go tell your mama,

I am too hot for you.

- Lakshmi Prakash