Author of the Month: Meenakshi Mohan

Farm House (Oil on Canvas by Meenakshi Mohan) 

Let Life Dance with an Unrelenting Crescendo 

(Based on my oil painting -- The Glory Behind My House)

 

I looked out of my balcony

at the towering rows of trees behind my backyard,

the pale amber sunlight sieved through its thinning branches,

sketching chiaroscuro below,

hues of autumn glory veiled the azure of the sky.

 

The blossoms of spring came and slipped by

the greenery of summer changed colors,

autumn was here, and the trees were shedding their attire --

pink, yellow, and green blossoms fluttered and fell,

kindling the pathway with colorful glory.

 

Season changes, as does life,

I know not how the time slipped by in the blink of an eye for me,

I was dwelling over my journey through the ever-changing seasons of life,

then I saw two young walking on the pink petal-strewn path,

giggling and chatting, life seemed beautiful for them,

 I smiled; I, too, have many droplets of sweet memories in my collection.

 

I closed my eyes, a rainbow-colored butterfly hovered around me,

I remembered Tagore -- The butterfly counts not months but moments,

I heard a bird singing far away, perhaps a song of love,

a soft, crisp, slightly cool breeze tousled my hair,

the October trees, swaying in the wind, danced to a rhythm,

as if saying, Let life dance with an unrelenting crescendo.

 

I breathed in a fresh autumn, and it was here to cast its spell.

 ***

 Autumn

(minimalist poems based on my watercolor painting of autumn) 

(1)

 droplets of dew

on the petals of life

joy or sorrow –

what is or what be?

 

(2)

 spring bid adieu, summer slept

autumn of life knocked on the door –

an abundance of glory while it is

 

(3)

 dancing orange, yellow, and green

leaves fluttered on the ground

joined the cotillion glory, until

 

(4)

 autumn came, spreading its hues

covered the ground, colorful

oblivious of the next season

 

 

Meenakshi Mohan

Dr. Meenakshi Mohan is an editor, academic, art critic, children’s writer, painter, and poet. She has taught at universities in Chicago, Boston, and Towson, Maryland. Her book reviews, art critics, interviews, and poems regularly appear in different journals and anthologies, in addition to several books by her. She has been listed twice in the Who is Who Among American Teachers. She is solo exhibiting her paintings in Potomac Library, Maryland. She is on the Editorial Team for Inquiry in Education, a peer-reviewed journal published by National Louis University, Chicago, Illinois. She is serving as an advisory editor for Confluence, UK. She is a recipient of The Panorama International Literature Festival Award, 2022, and the Setu Bilingual Journal Award for Excellence for her Writings and Art, 2022. She has also been featured several times in the local journals in the Maryland area. www.meenakshimohan.com

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Setu, October 2023