Smile

Her smile albeit faint exposes

her disconnect from reality.

And yet she is no dreamer.
that distant faraway look clearly missing

Then who is she.

We share the same “now”

but her reality so different than mine.

Her faint smile proves that.

It annoys me a little at first

and then a lot more.

For a part of me knows why,

And the rest fights to unlearn

How I wished for her smile to be a brave front.

Oh! What poetry would it be?

The redness of her lips matching her bruises

A sunset; don’t we all love a sad smile.

Acceptable still, if she would be pretty

An unpolished gem among the coal mines

Her smile a celebration of her uniqueness,

But how ordinary her features are

How dare she be beautiful then, ju her smile.

Heat so strong that everything withers

Dry wind blows furiously, scorching all joy

Not a tree, let alone a roof

Her utensils shine like a sword, murderous.

Calm. How can it be?

I think of asking her but do not

She probably would not know 

Or maybe I fear her answer

I pass her by silently

Her smile etched in my memory

slowly contorting my face into a smile