Poem: She

They want to shackle her,
But who can stop the rising sun?

They want to silence her,
But who can muzzle the raging wind?

They want to clip her wings,
But who can tame the hungry tide?

They want to crush her dreams,
But who can stamp out the blazing inferno?

They want to tear her down,
But who can overpower the turbulent storm?

They want to erase her identity.
But she is the one who gave them theirs.

Still, she is relegated to the footnotes,
Her history distorted, her life interrupted.
Her body in chains, her hopes burned.

But her mind is free and
So is her soul.

And when she rises from the ashes,
She will break free to fly higher than ever,
Shine brighter than ever.

In a new world,
Which will neither debase nor deify her,
Neither fear nor fawn over her.
Where she will find her own place,
And make her own way.

Here or beyond.
Beyond it all.
For she is all.
And so much more.
She is.

She.

(Richa Tilokani is a marketing, communication and advertising professional and a poetry buff)