She was taught to hold her tongue,
to speak only when she must.
She was taught that she was an object
to be used to feed men's lust.
She was told her intelligence was futile,
when she was so desirable.
But her beauty was only secondary,
to qualities far more admirable.
She was told to do her duty,
to follow the rules, to compromise.
She was taught to be selfless, to be sacrificial
until the day she met her demise.
She was taught to let the world limit her,
to allow her life to be controlled,
by the monstrous dictators,
that tried to shatter her mighty soul.
And, slowly the weight of the expectations brought her down
and within her grew a terrible rage.
For she was no more than a slave,
a prisoner trapped in a gilded cage.
She longed to escape the walls,
in which she was confined.
She yearned desperately for the freedom,
she was unjustly denied.
Fueled by a thirst for independence, a hunger for liberation
and an unwavering resolve,
So concealed by restrictions.
that no one witnessed her evolve.
She could move mountains with her spirit
and stir the angry seas.
Her laughter could silence hurricanes
and tame the wildest beasts.
But the cruel world had immured her
and dimmed her incandescent light.
But what the cruel world did not know,
was that she would put up a fight.
-Maha Rauf 9/6/16