Her Choice
Bo-oa first came five years ago
Eager to tell her Amma good news
Her ears pinned to the wall
She heard it all
And what Bo-oa had said:
Suddenly made her feel good
Next day they came
The women came
Those women Bo-oa had told her Amma about
They came and talked
Said the nasty words
Told her mother that her daughter was not what they wanted
They wanted good height for their tall son
They expressed themselves without considering how much they had taunted
They came and went
Scornfully, rejecting her
Bo-oa came four years ago
Again, dying to tell Amma good news
She knew what Bo-oa was up to
Pushing the events of previous year away
She again felt a flicker of hope
She was dragged by a powerful rope
Into a happy fantasized world
She remained there until the women came
Again, those jerks found her personality errors;
Very necessary to name
Now, their lame excuses were her skin colour and her nose
Her nose wasn't straight and her cheeks not as red as a rose
After completing eating the food, they went
As if they had come for a house to rent
Bo-oa came three years ago
Wishing to have a word with Amma
This time Bo-oa was so dead sure
"This family is different and decent," for her Bo-oa's words were a cure
Keeping the past events at an arm's distance, she again smiled
Her days were full of laughter until the next people arrived
"Just Matric?" the woman looked stunned on her qualification
And then rejected the poor her without any hesitation
All three women went in the same way they had come
Their rejection was easy to detect as doing a plus minus sum
Bo-oa came two years ago
Wanting to talk to Amma
It was the Summer of 2005
The thought that five was her lucky number
Granted her a new life
And some friendly good women came
And to her happiness, they approved of her
But on finding that they were not from a Syed family
Her mother was like, "what a shame, shame!"
This time, Amma and Abba were the ones to reject
And this time her mother was furious at Bo-oa
For bringing someone from a non-Syed family
Her parents could be wish-killers, she could not digest that fact
Bo-oa came last year
Apologetic in front of Amma
Telling her that she had a good news
This time, she did not feel good
No good feelings, on the other hand:
Fear
Fear of being rejected
Loss
Loss of tears
And she remained in that condition till the day
The day those women wearing a lot of gold came
One looked at her like a person ready to slaughter
And the more time spent, her face grew hotter and hotter
The women's gazes made her eyes water
Then with her Dupata, she removed the tears
In a strife to become courageous, she controlled her fears
"Your house is small," one sneered
"Can't you afford a big one," across the whole room, other peered
She suddenly felt as if it had got a way too much for her to bear
She threw the tea-cups on those women's face, without any fear
"Get the hell out of here," she snarled
Her Abba slapped her
Her Amma pushed her to her own room
But she was not like what she was yesterday
A moron!
She did not care if she had not a good height
Or if she was not very much white
She did not care if she was a Matric-pass
Or if she was a poor, living in a small house, lass
She only cared about one thing
She, too, had self-respect
She, too, was a human infact
She was not a show-piece
She was not a toy
A toy that one would enjoy
And then badly destroy
That day, and now
No Bo-oa has ever been seen in her house
What if she has no spouse
At least, she has her self-respect
Which is a great deal,
At least that is what she feels!
Now she is a school teacher
Earning for herself
As well as her parents
Not a burden
And her self-respect lives!