If only for a day

I had a woman’s beauty,

Not wisdom, love or courage

But a spellbinding face

/

Long limbs, thin frame,

And an entitlement to silence,

Which one is only given

By beauty’s tender hands;

/

I wonder what it’s like

To be admired

Not for a timely joke

Or for a kind embrace

/

But simply for one’s presence –

The presence of a candle

In a world lit

By pale glow of plain lamps

/

If only for a day

I knew this power

Which all the elements

Are willing to obey

/

Next day, I know

I’d have to be devoured

By the monstrosity

My mirror’s used to showing