Exile
Back then, punishment was
being sent to the rose garden –
a reverse exile
from the morass of the world
to a tropical Eden.
Banishment was
lying beneath the canopy
of moringa leaves, circled by roses,
their faces tilted to the sun
in perpetual worship.
Cobblestones glowed with secrets –
my young feet trod
their quickening pulse.
Those who sought to punish
never knew
they had sent me to paradise:
lying in the sundial’s shadow
dreaming of parallel lives,
far more fulfilling
than wandering the mire
of the human world.
Oormila Vijayakrishnan Prahlad is a widely published Indian-Australian artist, poet, and improv pianist. She has been painting for over 25 years. Her work has been published in several literary journals and anthologies including Yale Divinity School, Amsterdam Quarterly, and Pithead Chapel. She lives and works in Sydney, on traditional Gameragal land. Find her @oormilaprahlad and www.instagram.com/oormila_paintings
See more of her work in 9.4 9.4 and 9.4 and 8.2 and 8.2 and 8.2