The Orange Flower is back with double energy and even stronger voices! Join us in celebrating women’s voices. Register Now
The Orange Flower is here!We are ready to hear powerful voices in sixteen different categories. Nominate for awards!
Is a child bride just another nine year old girl? Or is she a woman interrupted, and reduced to a statistic? This poem makes you think.
The fresh breeze dances
lightly on the tips of the dangling dewdrop as
I run in the lawn of colourful imagination. The juicy sun
shines on my small feet.
My big, innocent eyes taste the world
With the all wonder of a nine year old girl.
Exploring, singing, living, breathing-
Free.
Like all children deserve to be.
A sudden darkness.
I stumble on the narrow-minded sexist stones; the most
poisonous of them all. My lush lawn of imagination
gets overthrown by the hard ground of reality, as,
A demonic spiral of a wedding garland tightens its hold on my trembling neck
choking my freedom.
Murdering my childhood.
Licking away all innocence.
Now, as I look up to see my twenty year old groom
I am just
A lifeless, empty shell.
Another 9 year old bride
Among 67 million others like me.
Pic credit: snugglepup (Used under a CC license)
Hi! I'm an often overly-excited, frequently fun-loving, and sometimes deeply-sunk-in-
Stay updated with our Weekly Newsletter or Daily Summary - or both!
Sign in/Register & Get personalised recommendations