tables by the pool
dining under umbrellas
on a very hot day
he sat demolishing
his juicy steak dish
con giusto
she maneouvred
the fork slowly under her
black covering
on the long journey
upwards to her mouth
how will she manage a drink
i thought of that cattle dog
left in the sun
chained to a fence post
in an elizabethan collar
unable to get to his water
in the outback
Sadly the differences in standards between men and women is striking in a lot of cultures. It still puzzles me that what is fine in a man is a scandal in a woman.
ReplyDeleteI'm proud to say cruelty to animals gets you a prison sentence down here.
ReplyDeletehow does she drink
ReplyDeleteI have no idea. I left ,I had seen enough.
ReplyDeleteI find Gabriella's comment spot on… Let men wear and follow the same rules as woman - things would change mighty quickly.
ReplyDeleteTo travel like that seems to be bringing a portable prison...
ReplyDeleteLiving like that is life in a prison.
ReplyDeleteoh yes she's living a cattle dog's life...
ReplyDeleteThe owner of that cattle dog was reported and taken to court. A cattle dog has more rights than she does.
ReplyDeleteYou've caught the atmosphere and feelings evoked so well.
ReplyDeleteNicely rendered atmosphere - and a very good question, I've often wondered myself. I also saw a lady like that at a theme park on a very hot day in Germany last year, with 4 children running around exhausting her. And I was wondering how she coped. But then her husband did bring back a large ice-cream for her... and went to change the baby's nappy.
ReplyDeleteYes well maybe in Germany....but not in an Islamic country !
ReplyDeleteLife wearing such attire would be intolerable. I do wonder what gives them joy & if they will ever gain strength to revolt.
ReplyDeleteThey are powerless to revolt. The punishments for any refractory behaviour is severe even death.
ReplyDeleteOnce while on a consulting job in Saudi Arabia I was in a hotel room overlooking the pool. Several shrouded women were there tending children, and one of them apparently had to have some relief from the heat and took off the birqa to reveal totally Western garb underneath. The contrast was shocking.
ReplyDeleteIt was a very uncomfortable place to visit, especially when I realized that my findings put me at odds with the Saudi agent involved. I left the country immediately, and learned on my return home that the last consultant that tried to solve the problem was arrested under the instruction of the same agent.
We hear so many stories like that. I am so pleased you got out in time.
ReplyDeleteOh, this poem goes straight to my heart - the woman trying to manage a meal under such restriction, and that poor dog chained in the heat far from his water dish. Drives me crazy.
ReplyDeleteoh striking images.....really something to think.....
ReplyDelete