Iphigenia by Tapti Bose (India, 45)

​I was the princess
whose blood,
spurred the winds of war
to Ilium,
and launched a thousand ships.
To my father,
I was but an answer
to the Gods,
a piece for appeasement.
To my mother,
I was first
a bitter question,
then a bloody cry for justice;
and in between the answer
that came
before the question
I was only a daughter,
Not yet Iphigenia.

Tapti Bose (45)  is a writer based in Kolkata , India . Her poetry and short fiction  have  been published at  Women's Web , Gulmohur Quarterly , Kitaab International , Indian Periodical  and Live Wire . ​