The Temple Widow Poem by Raj Dronamraju

Begging outside where one buys lottery tickets
Interesting location for they come here to throw money away
To throw money at the chance of a good life without working to earn it

She met her second husband while mourning her first who died unexpectedly three months after the wedding
Sitting in the temple for several hours each day
And then she began meeting him outside for sex to dispel loneliness

Everyone has a relative hardship which takes on the shape of a wall, what tennis players practice hitting against
No value judgments on the level of hardship, the ball comes back at twice the speed you hit it
Quickly she has two children and helps out in her new husband's business

The temple widow offers a toothless plea, gums smack together almost silently
I am in love with you might have been said more than once and by more than one person in her past
But there's not enough love now for a warm meal, a cup of tea, someone who could at least temporarily remove the weight of survival

To not survive is a conscious decision and finding dignity in what is done to you is not an issue
Back to the way she was when everyone assumed she was cursed
And Karma planting rough kisses in a back room away from everyone else