arrivals lain
how to trap the amber within the tree
how to trap the fly within the amber
how to trap the blood within the fly
how to trap the hunt within the blood
rest of it i will handle
it will be saffron and my wife
will be open-mouthed with wonder
she will be dissuaded from
cutting her hair,
her quick fingers braiding it up
again and sinking into the roots.
she will abandon the unfolded sari;
i hold out a wrist and she
smiles into it.
thursday evening my glasses break
and she scolds me, her quick fingers
rescue the minuscule screw, pinch it
carefully enough that her skin
splotches pink. i close my wet eyes
and laugh and laugh and laugh.
in the next room, there is a jasmine plant
ravenous for sunlight, seeping in
through unturned shades.
some days i am keener
on certain
brands of fealty.
strong scent of incense when i return,
as though all week, gods crowded around
her body seeking offerings. she
lies on her side, fingers curled over
one corner of the warm red sheet.
what i know better than anyone, after
thirty-one weeks in the glass city, is how to
open a door with mental oil on its
hinges. a measure of twine lies
on the little table, half-ringing a plate of
lentils and rice. steaming. i swallow
and it flecks the silence golden.
across the room, her dreams
are fields of wheat.
how to trap the fly within the amber
how to trap the blood within the fly
how to trap the hunt within the blood
rest of it i will handle
it will be saffron and my wife
will be open-mouthed with wonder
she will be dissuaded from
cutting her hair,
her quick fingers braiding it up
again and sinking into the roots.
she will abandon the unfolded sari;
i hold out a wrist and she
smiles into it.
thursday evening my glasses break
and she scolds me, her quick fingers
rescue the minuscule screw, pinch it
carefully enough that her skin
splotches pink. i close my wet eyes
and laugh and laugh and laugh.
in the next room, there is a jasmine plant
ravenous for sunlight, seeping in
through unturned shades.
some days i am keener
on certain
brands of fealty.
strong scent of incense when i return,
as though all week, gods crowded around
her body seeking offerings. she
lies on her side, fingers curled over
one corner of the warm red sheet.
what i know better than anyone, after
thirty-one weeks in the glass city, is how to
open a door with mental oil on its
hinges. a measure of twine lies
on the little table, half-ringing a plate of
lentils and rice. steaming. i swallow
and it flecks the silence golden.
across the room, her dreams
are fields of wheat.
Amrita Chakraborty is a Bangladeshi-American writer whose work has been published in outlets such as Kajal Magazine, BOAAT, Cosmonauts Avenue, and others. Her micro-chapbook, Cold Alchemy was published by Ghost City Press in August 2020. She is currently a graduate student in Cornell University's comparative literature program, and a blog correspondent with Half Mystic Journal.
Art: Molly Dunham