At six pm as churches toll sweetly through yellow clouds
two women in long bright coats lean into each other’s hair
tangle fingers gently locking shoulders
one of them laughing louder
one of them smiling at those clouds
maybe sisters or lovers who have found
this moment this very minute of a cold summer day
this gold dusted evensong moment to tell us
how wonderful we are as we turn to leave
Women
fill up streets with sunflowers on afternoons
for no reason. Blooming, spilling out of museums
framed as they wave golden hearts at us – as we
turn to leave
Thrusting breasts and silver navels at us from glass boxes
filled with red light and pink smoke
winking and wiping eyes as we walk past
Vermeer’s girls. Cheeks glittering
as we leave stepping back slowly
through windows and half drawn curtains
______________________
Anuradha Vijayakrishnan is an Indian writer and business professional living in UAE. Her work has appeared in Kenyon Review, Acumen, Magma, Tiger Moth Review and Ice Floes Press. She is the author of a novel, Seeing the girl, (LiFi Publications) and a poetry collection, The Who-am-I-Bird (Bombaykala Books).