MARITAL LOVE Who is the third who walks always beside you? When I count, there are only you and I together But when I look ahead up the white road There is always another one walking beside you. ---T.S.Eliot, The Waste Land.
She talks of chemistry
spark igniting fire
pure, unadulterated, legal
on the nuptial bed
undisturbed
by voices, thoughts
present or past.
He talks of sociology
parents, family, society,
the morning bed tea
tasty meals
and guiltless love
undisturbed
by the woman next door.
They both talk of duty
responsibility
sacred union,
while with time
chemistry, sociology, economics
fight with each other
for dominance.
But chemistry remains
always lurking in the background
changing the colour of the liquids
reacting with each other
to red, purple, pink, blue
but always tinged with scarlet.
Then these reactions in both
coated with regret
lead to discussions, tears,
arguments, threats
and finally resignation
to a life
of sexless love,
loveless sex
with both of them
walking hand in hand
on that arid, dusty road
trying to probe each other's minds
for the answer
to the eternal question:
"Who is the third who walks always beside you?"
