* Content warning: The following poem deals with human trafficking. *
I have to avoid her, that reptilian captive:
She's world suffering to me.
A caged girl in Mumbai, a tomato-picking slave in Florida,
Tied in the back of a truck at night.
All that's wrong in the world--
Right there in that shallow glass tank.
I try to avoid her; I walk a different road to
Get where I need to go, where I want to go.
Where I can go. (Where she can't go.)
I don't want to see her.
She's clawing at the glass, a thin line of water keeping her afloat--
Holding her chin up, a little air to choke on.
Right in front of that beige house—in their driveway, up against the front wall,
Just there, for everyone to not see.
About the author: Abigail lives in Japan, and she dedicates this poem to victims of human trafficking and to her friends in Japan who work to raise awareness where there is little (but growing) knowledge of this issue within its own borders. She has been published on Haikuniverse and enjoys reading, cooking and eating international food, blogging, photography, drawing, creating tactile art, and writing poetry and short stories. Abigail is working on her first book, set in Japan. Come say hi on Instagram @mamatouille.