issue 2
Koukash Review
2023
i wake up but keep my eyes closed—i don’t want to see
our faces—the mirror is on my side of the bed and
a Qur’an on His.
i feel His arm around me—little spoon, big spoon—and
i gently move His arm and slide out of bed quietly
tiptoeing out of the room, careful not to make a sound—
He doesn’t like being woken up.
i start preparing breakfast for Him—for us—but less for me and
i hear Him slam open the bedroom door while i’m washing dishes and
He comes up behind me to hug me and kiss me good morning and
i wince at the soreness in my wrists from yesterday.
He asks if i want to pray together and
of course i do.
He heads to the bathroom to wash up while i keep breakfast warm and
bite my lip to keep the tears in my eyes and
clean up the kitchen because i made such a mess and
try to forget the night before and
He’s ready to pray,
hair, face, beard dripping wet from making wudhu and
i wonder if His sins are really falling off with every water droplet
i pray they are not.
Isra Cheema
Isra Cheema (she/her) is a queer Pakistani Muslim poet from the heart of Oklahoma. She is currently an MFA poetry candidate at Texas State University. She has work forthcoming or published in The Bosphorus Review, Jaded Ibis Press, Ghost City Press, Thin Air Magazine, and elsewhere. She can be found on Twitter and Instagram @tiramisruu. She lives somewhere in between Austin and San Marcos with her two cats, AJ and Rosy.