Poetry 2014 Longlist, Sneha Pujani

The Blade Sharpens

Let me take you
Through a journey wild
A life I live
And the one I hide
The reality is hidden
And lie blatantly open.
It took me time to get this right
That to succeed I need to live my lie.
The truth is too innocent for this world,
It smiles with sunshine and loves the rain.
Little did I know?
sun is to be shied away from,
rain is to be shielded from.
Its too innocent for the world, for it takes the extended hand,
Without fear of being strangled, it accepts smiles.
The fear is unknown, the horrors are banished,
I ask of you,
Is it wrong to keep the truth hidden!
It may be kinder to kill that sweet-pea ,
To bury the innocent side,
Attribute its death to its folly,
For it lived too simply.
I cant do that, I love it too dearly.
Its my essence, my eldunari.
Bring it out when I am alone,
See the eyes shine.
It’s the silent strength that I breath in,
One that helps me face the brutality outside .
Later, I hide it away, tuck it in a cage,
For its own safety, its locked away.
When you meet my eyes, you will find a ‘mean bitch’
It’s the animal at the alter
Fierce is its breed.
I growl, I defend, for the innocence is precious.
I find a balance in life, real and lie
To face the world I have a façade, I go out stone cold.
Judge me, ignore me, do what you may
But touch me once, the beast will unleash.
For it has waited long, long to strike back.
The façade has become alternate reality,
The insane me calls out to you,
 Bring It On!