Across our vine dangling house,
lived good old Mrs. Borborah
with thugis* of four leaf clovers.
for magic lines, she searched and
she scouted to cast malicious spells
away; and with every crossing of a cat,
and the hooting of an owl
told the town of ill luck
that was about to befall.
around crinkled cornered eyes,
hung the shadow of her fears
and when her brown patchy cat
spilled milk over her grey nylon mat,
her husband never came home
for many a stormy nights.
she cried and she howled,
told passers-by of the curse
the devil above had bestowed;
but on the seventh night,
she tied a silver amulet
like a lei around her head,
keeping Abbadon away from
the dreams she lived, buried
awake in her cold creaky bed.
*Thugis - Baskets made of bamboo to store day to day items also known as khoks in Meghalaya.
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