Sahana Ahmed

Dear Sister                              

Beyond 

the ways of my sun, 

the germs in my veins,

the brass in my claims, 

my purdah, my mane –

I am you too.

The wounds of my walls, 

the tombs of my lanes,

the thrones of my queens,

my mehfils, my rains –

are your home too.

Thursdays of fire,

Fridays of steel,

yearnings of yakshas 

and foreskins of djinns

are your shame too.

Remember,

when we meet next,

look me in the eye,

ask me –

Who bore you?

And I will unstitch my heart 

and show you new ways 

to etch your mother’s name.

Sahana Ahmed is a fiction writer and poet based in Gurugram, India. Her work has appeared or is forthcoming in Flash: The International Short-Short Story Magazine, The Hindu BusinessLine, Tiny Spoon, Cha: An Asian Literary Journal, ARTE, Indian Literature, and a number of anthologies. She is the author of one novel, ‘Combat Skirts’ (Juggernaut Books, 2018; Quignog, 2018). Visit her website for more information: www.sahanaahmed.com.