Kamala Das’ Verses - II

On sedatives
I am more lovable
Says my husband
My speech becomes a mist-laden terrain
The words emerge tinctured with sleep,
They rise from still coves of dreams
In unhurried flight like herons,
And my ragdoll-limbs adjust better
To his versatile lust. He would if he could
Sing lullabies to his wife’s sleeping soul,
Sweet lullabies to thicken its swoon.
On sedatives
I grow more lovable
Says my husband…

(By Kamala Das, from the book My Story)