sifting through her ashes
he was told to find her jaw

here, skin
feathered dust
there, an ankle
calloused heel
the length of her arm
ashen elbow
her ring finger

a pair of teeth smiled up at him

she looked up at her father
clumps of rainy ash in her palms

here, she said
I found mumma’s heart

he looked at her
not knowing what to say

I know it is her heart, papa
because it was beating
when I put my fingers through it

children and the world of energy

can I keep it

no
without her heart
your mumma will not be whole

but without it
neither will I

we do not bring ashes into the home
abshagun hota hai

but she is my mumma
she is not ashes
how can it be bad luck

so she stuffed a handful into her pocket












Rachna means "Creation" in Sanskrit, so poet and writer Rachna Vohra never denied this as her fate. The moment she learned that an extremely rare species of butterfly shared her name, she knew she had found her wings. Her published works include The Distance Within and The Acorn and the Caterpillar. Her work has been featured in anthologies and magazines, and she has performed at various spoken word events. She has recently begun exploring her South Asian heritage, as well as experiences of the feminine through her writing, and is passionate about coloring outside the lines drawn, accepted, and perpetuated by society.