Shruti MehtaWe recently celebrated Indian Independence Day, the symbol of our freedom, a couple of days ago. Our eyes glistened with tears of joy and our chest puffed with pride. While we are still high from the ecstasy, the pandemic has dampened our moods. We were not allowed to gather and share our delight with others. Today we are free from the clutches of the Britishers, but somehow the society still has managed to grasp us in its hold. Here is our small step solemnizing towards love and freedom as we have dedicated this month to the theme of INDEPENDENCE IN LOVE with our poem- Endure.
Rewinding back to a couple of months where we were trapped into the confines of our houses, trying to save ourselves from the pandemic, something changed drastically. With people being home all day, women became the source to vent out frustrations. The rate of domestic violence went soaring high.
Today, we bring you all a poem- Endure, which is utterly close to our hearts. Through this poem, we express the pain of a woman who has been enduring domestic violence and has lost her wings of freedom. She has no face and her voice is suppressed in the shadows of darkness. Our words have defied us and we are gobsmacked with the harsh reality that the society still tries to hide under the curtain of tradition and culture.
We hope that this poem is an eye-opener for society and that people realize the ill-effects of their conscious or subconscious wrong-doings. Any relation does not give the liberty to hurt someone thinking it’s their right. While we pull ourselves together, our eyes still shine with unshed tears, our hearts are torn into pieces and we only feel a searing pain. With this poem, we hope that women discover their lost voice and breakthrough all the chains of relations and cages of fake love to search their lost wings of freedom.
Endure-The lost wings of freedom
Blood gushes out of her wounds,
Her heart thumps faster,
In anticipation, in fright,
How long? She thought.They say endure,
Husband is God,
Never utter a word,
It’s their right, it’s tradition.A sigh escapes her lips,
She thought it’s the end,
Perhaps for tonight?
But she was wrong as again he strikes.She whimpers, she groans,
Begging to be left alone,
But her cries fell deaf to his ears,
He carries on without any fear.She nurses her wounds,
But none to witness her plight,
Wallowing in self-pity,
Yet determined to fight.She is broken,
But she wants to break these bounds,
She desires to fly again,
Yet they restrain.The holy matrimony is a facade,
It’s nothing but a hazard,
She is served dishonor,
But they say endure.
Endure portrays the life of a woman who unfortunately has become the target of domestic violence. The marriage that she thought was a bed of roses became a path of thorns for her. Her better half has ironically made her life worse instead of creating a happy life. Who would have thought her dreams would be crushed so brutally? She wanted to weave her dreams with him, but he became the barbaric monster that she couldn’t even envision.
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Why did this happen? What did she do to even deserve this fate? Was it really her mistake? Did she fail to make him happy? These questions empty her soul by each passing second.
Horrendous shivers have replaced the butterflies that she felt by glancing at him. The shy holding of hands adrift as he now twists her hand, hard enough to make her experience hell, breaking the alluring bangles adorned by her. The ringing of the doorbell now makes the woman, in the poem Endure, jump on her place and she no longer waits for his return.
Every step she takes towards their room is taken in anticipation… in fright. Her giddiness and excitement have vanished and she has become cautious about every move. She wants to scream and fight back but her self- confidence, and voice have been murdered. The once feisty, bubbly girl who knew how to dream is now crushed under the baggage of the facade of holy matrimony only to endure lifelong pain.
The trinkets that embellished her are now restored by numerous bruises, some fresh some stale, some deep some shallow. The physical injuries would heal someday but how would anyone cure every wound engraved on her heart, mind, and soul? With each strike of the devil, she breaks a little more. Blood spills from her wounds, but there is none to tend to her wounds and share her pain. She continues to endure. Her family turns a blind eye from her as the demon hurts her, violates her again and again.
A woman is a daughter, a sister, a wife, a mother but amidst all these relations she neglects herself. She is enduring silently but there is none to mourn for her loss; her loss is the greatest because she has lost herself.
He wasn’t always like this! The strain had not cast its shadow on their bond. Where has the love vanished that once bound them together and weaved joy in their relationship? She is left unanswered and these questions haunt her like a nightmare, like the one her matrimony has turned out to be.
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The journey of this woman is fragmented. She is broken beyond repair but she is yet to find her way to heal herself and explore her way out of the living hell. Some of them have accepted this as their fate and others don’t want to go down without a fight. We hope that each woman who has been a victim of such offense fights for her respect and discovers the wings of freedom. And this, our dear readers, is the message behind the poem Endure.
We celebrate Independence Day each year but every woman who is imprisoned in such circumstances has still not taken a flight in the sky of freedom. There are laws and punishments against domestic violence, but women either don’t raise voice with the fear of enduring the same torture again, (hoping that things would change) or just to be the binding tie for the family.
We hope that next year when we celebrate Independence Day, people realize its true meaning and our society embraces the change with open arms for the betterment of each and every individual, and not just women. We admire all the women who had the courage to raise their voices against the domestic violence they endured and have emerged victoriously rather than becoming just a victim.
If this piece of work, Endure, has inspired any individual to take a step or raise their voice against something unjust or domestic violence, we will feel jubilant. It will grant us the satisfaction that our purpose has been fulfilled and ecstatic that our voice reached several ears and made some difference. The change starts with us, and even the tiniest change is our victory… our step towards freedom.
We hope that you have enjoyed the theme of INDEPENDENCE IN LOVE. Let us know your opinions in the comments down below and for further interesting updates stay tuned to www.lovesmitten.com.
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Amazing work .