I Load Guns with Flowers
poem & photo by Mahu Kamal
I.
When my cheeks beg my eyes to stop pouring salt lagoons my unmanicured nails open my window to air dry my bark I want fresh jasmine to kiss the white walls but my bedroom smells like sweat and humid grass weaved with mango pits II. When will I pick tomatoes from my own garden where I can be free I am a raw tomato a bird who lives in a cage thinks the cage is the sky To be woman a dying day pulled out into new light to be woman to be long gone to be woman to be given to be owned to be held III. I load guns with flowers Caress my temple with the barrel and pull the trigger rose petals will burst I will lay engulfed in garden drowned in salt the lettuce leaves blanket me Prep me for metamorphosis I will bleed rose water I am the garden I am a raw tomato |
About the poet
Mahu Kamal is a writer and artist who graduated from the University of South Florida with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English with a focus in Creative Writing. Her work can range from serious to satirical pieces, with a diverse collection of topics, like struggles of people of the Muslim faith around the world and in the United States, women’s struggles, and bringing awareness to mental health issues. Through her work she hopes to understand the absurdity of life, and the human tendency to be creative despite the irrationality of it.
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