cholesterol

a lab produces
anxieties on
large scale. a
doctor’s eyes
strand on the
cholesterol
while sailing
down the lab
report. but his
words remain
unabsorbed
on her brain’s
surface. her
mind is a dead
zone of little
learning, where
cholesterol
doesn’t grow.
the doctor
forbids*biriani,
ghee-rice, fried
beef, mutton
chops…a
deadpan smile
spreads on her
wizened lips.
each forbidden
food has been
beyond her
penury since
times immemorial.

*biriani – a South Asian dish.

First printed in issue #16 of The Literary Hatchet.