"Lodging services" by Manasi Diwakar

The linoleum floor and a wet towel   were having a gossip when she skimmed over the room,  they sneered as a debutante would   at a commoner   the watching eyes of the walls mocked her   with scuffs from yesterday-  the Mrs. Grundy of this house   had been waiting for her to get moving  the curtains tapped her shoulders   to show the stains of Sunday, from two weeks ago,  they pointed a finger to the soiled windows   which rattled for her attention   the sheets on the bed sprawled lazily   from the binge-watch of yester-eve,  they could not be bothered to straighten   their evening wear in her company  Wary of the expectations  from entrenched medieval idiosyncrasies,   she felt akin to providing lodging services,  and, resigned to it with nary a hope,   she heaved her sleeves up,  to tidy her home before rushing to work.

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Editor says:"Wary of the expectations

from entrenched medieval idiosyncrasies, 

she felt akin to providing lodging services"

In the poem "Lodging Services" by Manasi, we see the harsh reality in the life of a working woman. Her chores are endless, there’s always a conversation going on in her mind on what to do next. She may be back from work but that doesn’t mean that she can unwind her soul by sipping a margarita and reading that book. The second shift starts. The laundry has to be done, there are dishes to be washed and there’s a room that needs to be organized or she will be judged that she is not a good woman.

Being a working woman doesn’t mean that she can run away from the responsibilities which wait for her at her home.

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About the author: Manasi is based in Melbourne, when she is not indulging in literary things you will find her sketching, racing with her nephew, or practicing Bharatnatyam.