Thursday 15 December 2011

BECAUSE I AM A GIRL


Trembling she holds her tummy
Knowing this fourth baby coming
Will be her making or breaking
She moans, her world hanging
Groaning as she strains
Not just from labour pains
With one more push, I came panting
With just a look, she screamed fainting
A reprieve from the moment of truth
Husband in-laws with new wife struts
Buckle up; it’s going to be a rough ride
Because I am a girl

In the kitchen I am taught to cook
While the boys read from the books
They eat the juiciest meat to grow strong
I eat what is spared though I feel it’s wrong
The floors I am to sweep and scrub
Even though I never get to roll and ball
For water I walk long distance to the wells
Galloping boys to school with pride swell
Head bowed I balance my buckets
Heads up they balance their books
I cannot join them in the grid
Because I am a girl

Only 14 they say I am ripe
Is my life all about strife?
I see the world through a veil
Body in robes not to be vain
With every inch covered
My value is coveted
I feel subjugated
My clitoris mutilated
They say I am born only to satisfy
Pleasures and desire of my buyer
A child bride in the crib
Because I am a Girl

I stare into the dark clouds
A tiny silver lining urges
I am a human
Not just a woman
I can nurture the earth
Heal and give it a caring heart
Break free the chains of patriarchy
Oppression nurtures hierarchy
No matter the sex
We all can excel
I can see me fly high
Because I am a girl!

BY © YEMISI ILESANMI, 22 SEPTEMBER, 2011

3 comments:

  1. really nice! I love the power of feminism..... you re right.. girls are subjected to all kind of things because they are women.

    ReplyDelete
  2. @Ebonyexcite- Thanks. It is unfortunate that many girls are still subjected to these horrible things. In India, female infanticide is still prevalent! Imagine the horror, just to be killed because you are born a girl and sometimes by your own mother and aunties! We sit in our own little comfortable space and assume there is equality while forgetting that beyond and even within our own space, many still suffer inequalities. Together we can make a change!

    ReplyDelete