What They Teach Us – (Sushmita Konwar)

They teach us women
how to swallow our words,
speak like a bird eats
leftovers on the plates of men.
Silence is a thick veil
we are taught to hold on to.
Beautifully woven with threads of misogyny
embroidered perfectly with societal constructs.
They conceal in them, disguised threats
and name it women’s honour.
Some men romanticize it
as an abstract art,
that always means a yes.
I do not regret being a woman.
But growing up has been
a constant act of dissent.
My hands refuse to wear
the glorified shackles,
My throat propels back words
they want me to swallow.
Everyday I put down my veil,
while questions leap out of my skin
and they lash out.
A fallen woman they name me.
They give us a few adjectives
to choose from. Always extremes.
On one end  resides a Sita
while on the other a Lilith.
Everyday, we try to teach them
all those that lay in between.