By Aashna Jain
I am always happy.
Happy in the way Bordeaux is red-
Drinking wavelengths
Of sickly chartreuse
Or the tannin of jaundiced yellow
Or the deep murky sadness of blue
Reflecting only
The rosy cheeks of a drunken rouge
I am always happy
Happy in the way a song is sung-
Heard by none
In the vacuum of space
Yet rattling against the ribcage
Desperate to escape-
The throat
Wretched and raw
I am always happy
Happy in the way I swallow
The generational sorrow
Of mother’s brittle voice
And the cold white blade
Of father’s fickle rage
Trembling against my ivory teeth
I am always happy
Always.
In the way that
I am not.