Author:
Yuimi Vashum
Publisher:
Penthrill Publication House
Year
of publication: 2018
Pages/
Price: 105/ 299/-
It
is quite unusual to start a book review on an apologetic note, but I
want to put on record that this is a long pending one. But I write
this not so much to please the author and publisher, but to bring to
fore the subject child sexual abuse, or sexual exploitation in
general, which the book so powerfully articulates, and it has too
long been silenced in the Naga society, as also in many societies
across the world. It was only at a recent launch of the book, The
Marys of the Bible: The Original #MeToo Movement by Boaz Johnson
cum a panel discussion on sexual exploitation, in Delhi that I got
prompted to the immediacy of talking about the subject. The Marys
of the Bible argues that the Bible started the #MeToo movement
because it does not hide the sexual abuses in the historical/biblical
times, and that in fact, Jesus came to redeem the broken people and
the world we live in.
The
book's title Love. Lust. And Loyalty sums up pretty much what
most poets write about. Those three words are what most people juggle
with in relationships. But what more appealing to me of this book of
poetry is the section on “Forgiveness” that didn't find its way
to the title. Divided into two parts, the first section on
“Forgiveness” deals with the struggles of the poet in coming to
terms with the memory of the menacing past of being sexually abused.
The second section on “Love. Lust. And Loyalty” shades light on
the poet's encounters of love, heartbreaks and all that most lovers
sing of! However, what captivates me is not just that it upsets the
usual style of poetry by having the title at the end but also the
brutally honest experiences of what poet as a young girl goes
through.
Telling
one's life story is not an easy task, especially when that part of
life is a traumatic one. Yet, narrating them can be a therapeutic
experience, as psychologists/psychiatrists would say. In a “bare it
all” way, Yuimi confronted the demons that haunted her since the
time she was “seven years old”. “It all started with Robinhood
/ A tiny illustrated book he brought with him that summer” she
recounted in the poem “waves of abuse”. As excited as a
seven years old would be to be read bedtime stories, she fell into
the bait, easily becoming his victim - “He fucked me over
and over again / Until he finished the book”. She
tells of how for years she would still “have my haunted dark days”
and even driven to the brink of life wishing to “jump of a tall
building” or “throw myself at a running train” (“childhood
to adulthood”). Her pain was even made worse when the society
wouldn't come to defend the defenseless - “And parents, aunties,
uncles, sirs, madam, / All of them lecturing Your virginity is
your virtue / Do they know? Do they think about girls like me?”
(“the problem with virtues”).
But
the true strength of the poet lies in the fact that she was able to
“brave the demons” - “I gave my nightmares a closure fifteen
years later; / For my freedom, / From the fear, the beast(s) and
society” (“waves of abuse”). The sarcasm on the
society's indifference is subtle here. And yet, greater still is the
poet's ability to forgive the perpetrators/demons - “Because,
Forgiveness, / It liberates you” (“let go and let God”).
I think this is the highest virtue one can hope for from victims of
abuse of any kind. This is true Christ-likeness. And the largely
Christian communities like the Nagas need to take this as a way
forward to find healing from the wounds of the past.
Love.
Lust. And Loyalty is a daring book of poetry that is utterly
honest on the part of the young poet to pour out the trauma of sexual
abuse she experienced as a child. It is universally accepted that
many children suffer sexual abuse but remained silent because of fear
or are usually silenced by elders in the family and the society.
Recognizing the need to deal with this issue, the United Nations
declared 19th November as the World Day for the Prevention of Child
Abuse, and 20th November as the International Day for the Rights of
the Child. Yet, despite these recognitions many cases go unreported
or many children still suffer abuse because they are not aware of
their rights, or are silenced, and many people live in denial.
By
telling her own story, Yuimi Vashum does not simply fascinates in
poetic experiences, but she does set an agenda that the wave of
abuses would be confronted:
Today,
as I sit here and write this,
Recalling
feelings I never wanted to;
I
weep for the little children (like me) who suffered,
Alone.
I
hope they get to read this,
and
in their lowest moments,
I
hope they remember-
We
moved past the abuse;
We
can move past anything.
(“childhood
to adulthood”).
I
hope Love. Lust. And Loyalty would
not just be another book of poetry that is shelved in your collection
and forgotten after a while, but that it would spark off the #MeToo
movement in the Naga society or the society you find yourself fitted
to. Silence make the victims suffer over and over again, and the
demons grow bigger and fiercer. Let's stand for those who have been
wronged, especially the little ones!
Published on 18 June, 2019, Morung Express
https://morungexpress.com/the-naga-metoo-moment-a-review-of-love-lust-and-loyalty/
