Hello :) Thank you so much for taking the time to read this, please enjoy!
THIS POEM IS BASED ON TRUE EVENTS.
This ballad is written about a murder which took place a few years back in Mumbai, India. A 16 year old girl was seeing an older boy. When she reportedly attempted to break things off with him, urged by her father because he believed she needed to focus more on school, he brutally stabbed her multiple times and then started to slash his own wrists. She died and he was arrested. You can read in more detail at: http://www.mid-day.com/articles/mumbai-crime-16-yr-old-girl-brutally-killed-by-jilted-lover/16272169
As you can imagine from the description of the context, this poem has a dark theme. Please feel free to skip to the next poem if you feel uncomfortable reading this.
A glowing ember in the sky,
Drenched in its golden glory.
Beneath, scenes would horrify,
Bathed in the harsh yellow light.
It shimmers and shines and scorches,
The air is hot and heavy.
Only salvation are branches
Flies buzz, stray dogs nap; He waits.
He glances at his watch and frowns,
Why must she always do this?
For so long by the shantytowns,
He stood and saw red.
Eventually she does turn up
She is dressed impeccably.
Her hair flowing, she's a buttercup
Wearing a red salwar-kameez.
Her laugh was melodic always
Charcoal black hair, bright white smile
They had wished they never part ways
He stood and saw rose red.
The ferocious fire of her soul,
Fueled her sparkling eyes; but now:
They seemed empty, outlined with kohl,
Gleam replaced with glassiness.
Emotions swirl behind her eyes,
This needed to be ended
She believed her father's advice.
She swallows and starts "Listen..."
She explains her case with good grace,
As light strikes the dirty ground.
It stings, hearing he has no place
In her few priorities.
Grief and sadness envelop him
"I need to focus on other things,"
She looks up and her face is grim
He stood and saw maroon red.
A frustrated sigh escapes him
He drains the drink in his hand.
His vision starts to dance and swim,
He snarls and sways and stumbles.
She senses the trouble brewing,
Maybe she should not have come?
Never guess this rendezvousing,
Would steal her last, dying breath.
He draws a knife out from his sleeve,
And plunges it into her flesh.
It turned fierce, this midsummer's eve,
She falls and he's what caused it.
Helpless, she claws at him to cease,
Her eyes widen in horror.
She screams and cries and begs "Please!"
He stood and saw scarlet red.
The silver again burns her skin,
It pierces her three more times.
Was this monster him or the gin?
She transcends into numbness.
Silent protests ring about them
The wind kicks up a frenzy.
Catatonic clouds cause mayhem
The monsoon rain gushes down.
Blood on his shirt, garnet red,
Blood on the ground, mahogany red,
Blood on his hands, fire red,
Blood everywhere, red everywhere.
A tear trickles down his left cheek
A person so pure, ruined,
He still heard her last scream and shriek
He stood and saw crimson red.
The only witness is the sun,
Or so he darkly believed.
But then glided past everyone
They stood and saw blood red.
His own wrists, he started to slash,
Driven by insanity.
The mob, he, they began to thrash
The blood-streaked knife clattered down.
A glowing ember in the sky
Drenched in its golden glory.
Beneath, scenes had horrified,
Bathed in the harsh yellow light.
- KISHMISH_, SOAKED IN SHADES OF READ
Salwar-kameez; a type of traditional outfit worn by south Asian women. It consists of loose trousers, a long, dress-like shirt and a long, light piece of cloth usually wrapped around the neck and/or head.
